Cheap Travel Money Discussion Area

alxx

stilltheone wrote: »

Your calculations are a bit off.

Look at the links zagfles has provided and take 2.75% from them. That should be what Citi are offering to you.

No, it's not the best deal you can get.

Metro Bank, N&P and Cumberland BS have much better accounts for when it comes to overseas travel.

Thanks Stilltheone, but I'm not sure why the two converters are relevant, because the account is in Euros, I'm spending in Euros and my bank do not charge me for the transaction....?
The only way I can see that Citi have a chance to make money on this service is through the original exchange rate when I transfer money from my sterling account to the Citi Euro account

zagfles

alxx wrote: »

Thanks Stilltheone, but I'm not sure why the two converters are relevant, because the account is in Euros, I'm spending in Euros and my bank do not charge me for the transaction....?
The only way I can see that Citi have a chance to make money on this service is through the original exchange rate when I transfer money from my sterling account to the Citi Euro account

Yes - they probably don't use VISA/MasterCard rates for this. Compare with the VISA/Mastercard rates to see if you're getting a good deal - it looks reasonable but probably not a good as using a VISA/MasterCard of one of the accounts/cards which don't markup the rate.

stilltheone

alxx wrote: »

Thanks Stilltheone, but I'm not sure why the two converters are relevant, because the account is in Euros, I'm spending in Euros and my bank do not charge me for the transaction....?
The only way I can see that Citi have a chance to make money on this service is through the original exchange rate when I transfer money from my sterling account to the Citi Euro account

That's what I have written...

If the rate they have quoted to you is the rate they will apply to your currency account there is a difference between the rate they offer and the MasterCard/VISA rate(currently between US$1.606 & US$1.611).

Euro is 1.108/1.105.

So there seems to be difference in the way they treat the Euro and US$.

Perhaps around 1% off 'interbank' in Europe and 2% off 'interbank' in the USA.

Is it confirmed those are the rates that will apply to your account? If so, the 'reference rate' of 2.75% off Mastercard/VISA must apply to only cross-currency transactions.

michaeloswald128

Hi Folks,

I'm going travelling with friends for 7 months. We have all opted (it seems) for slightly different payment systems but my boyfriend is yet to decide on the best way go. I have searched through the threads for some of this info, but it's not easy to find!!

One friend has a Santander Zero Credit card. She plans to front load it. Does anybody have any experience of this, if so, does it work, or did they return the payments?

I have gone with FairFX pre-paid cards. One Anywhere card for SE Asia and Australia, and a $ card for USA.

Our other friend is planning on taking post office credit card (seems to be not great, but considered an ok card from the travel money page)

My boyfriend has still to decide, and I'm trying to explain why the Halifax clarity is best (he doesn't believe me), but there is one other issue. When we are away, we will continue to pay mortgage/bills etc out of his current account so he'd rather a separate account so that the finances don't get mixed. Are there any debit accounts which are not horrendous for withdrawing abroad so that in an emergency (or if he was approaching clarity limit) he could withdraw/spend on it?

stilltheone

michaeloswald128 wrote: »

Hi Folks,

I'm going travelling with friends for 7 months. We have all opted (it seems) for slightly different payment systems but my boyfriend is yet to decide on the best way go. I have searched through the threads for some of this info, but it's not easy to find!!

One friend has a Santander Zero Credit card. She plans to front load it. Does anybody have any experience of this, if so, does it work, or did they return the payments?

I have gone with FairFX pre-paid cards. One Anywhere card for SE Asia and Australia, and a $ card for USA.

Our other friend is planning on taking post office credit card (seems to be not great, but considered an ok card from the travel money page)

My boyfriend has still to decide, and I'm trying to explain why the Halifax clarity is best (he doesn't believe me), but there is one other issue. When we are away, we will continue to pay mortgage/bills etc out of his current account so he'd rather a separate account so that the finances don't get mixed. Are there any debit accounts which are not horrendous for withdrawing abroad so that in an emergency (or if he was approaching clarity limit) he could withdraw/spend on it?

Your choices should have been better. Travelex Cash Passport Globe is the best PrePaid Mastercard for your needs.

Metro Bank debit card is a good option.

dsmcgarry

hi. i will be travelling to switzerland on a coach in august. we will be going to dover for the ferry to calais then through france to switzerland.
i have a low credit rating so cant get a credit card. i dont envisage spending a lot in france in either direction. there may be a food spend on the ferry each way and the same in france.
i will be in switzerland for 6 days mostly at a scout camp so will be buying a few souvenirs etc and possibly teas coffees etc.

can ai have some suggestions for the best way to sort my spending.
thanks:)

stilltheone

dsmcgarry wrote: »

hi. i will be travelling to switzerland on a coach in august. we will be going to dover for the ferry to calais then through france to switzerland.
i have a low credit rating so cant get a credit card. i dont envisage spending a lot in france in either direction. there may be a food spend on the ferry each way and the same in france.
i will be in switzerland for 6 days mostly at a scout camp so will be buying a few souvenirs etc and possibly teas coffees etc.

can ai have some suggestions for the best way to sort my spending.
thanks:)

Travelex Cash Passport Globe

John_Pierpoint

Take a debit card for Switzerland. Try to get a low cost one (eg Metro Bank)
Alternatively get a low cost card that needs pre-charging. See main MSE sites for examples.

For France try to beg or borrow a bit of Euro "shrapnel" from friends and relatives or chat up the purser on the boat or fellow passengers on the coach.
The big motorway service areas are likely to have ATM's but you will most likely be charged a fee by the purser and motorway service area and large value notes won't get you into a French super loo.

Beware of the currency used on the boat. If the accounting currency is GBP then pay in GBP, if it is Euro then pay in Euro to avoid the possibility of currency conversion charges.
Beware of any one offering you the "convenience" of paying in GBP abroad; it will almost certainly mean a hidden 3%+ "Dynamic Currency Conversion" charge - and that includes big and small supermarkets. Depending on your card it can be cheaper to get cash out of an ATN and then pay locally in cash.
"When in Rome do as the Romans do" - especially as you are visiting from a country with a devalued currency - though a Greek might offer you a discount for sterling;).

Finally at this time of year you can take your own pic nic - lots of back packers do - there is nothing finer than crisp bread good cheese and a glass of cheap wine in the fresh air yes it is still possible to avoid the crush indoors and get into the fresh air at service areas and on the decks of ferries, (Not so much fun on the shuttle though:mad: so the extra "hour or two" crossing the channel is time well spent.)
If you know which line and which crossing you can probably get ahead of the crowd by looking up the boat in advance on the interweb.:D

Are you sure you are motoring the length of France? The main French motorways are very expensive in tolls, the ones that follow the borders (and the remote ones built with European grants) are free.

I've done a "non stop" thrash the length of France by coach and it does need a bit of resilience, especially if you get caught up in the mass holiday weekends ("Jolly Carthorse" - weekends around July 14th and then back again around 15th August.).

http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/DF_holidays.shtml

Here is a thread on how to avoid (most of) France when going through Switzerland.
http://www.italymag.co.uk/forums/travel-talk-safety/11488-car-tavel-italy.html

Old_Trout_2

I am due to fly to US in September. Would it be better to buy US dollars now or should I wait and see what happens? Am new to all this...:D:D:D

John_Pierpoint

If any of us knew the definite answer to that we could become very rich.