Cheap Travel Money Discussion Area

greydee

:mad: really could do with some sound advice ,,,,,

i have one of the cards from hell abbey debit to be honest im leaving in 19 days for my holiday ill be visiting canada and the usa mostly us just visiting canada for 4 days i want about 300 to 400 dollars canadian and about 500 pounds worth of us dollars since ill be staying and traveling with friends makes it abit cheaper to travel , but according to the advice on here i cant buy online with my debit card and ive left it too late for credit cards(can hear them luaghing at my application form just thinking about it) and nationwide my only choices are pre paid card and just some change till i hit a cash machine or cash purchase from a travel agent or i change my money in the states ???? also ive booked a room and plan on paying with my debit card is this a good idea though my friend is going to pay half in dollars i do have a capital one credt card though sadly i cant pay it all off at the moment would it be better too make a payment off it now and use that for the room instead of the debit card ???

i know this is a long message but i could do with the help as you can no doubt tell i am on a very strict budget thank you for any help you can all give me hope your haven a great day :beer:

malc_b

My daughters are off to australia for a year out. So, for money I suggested they get a Nationwide Flex account and use an ATM. That's what I've done in Spain and USA and not had any charges (used publix ATM in USA). True NW now pass on the 1% fee so not quite as good as it was but better than the rest. However, my daughter who has a friend in australia says the ATMs over there all charge (the locals) for interbank access (i.e. using an ATM that is not your bank) and limit ATM to 5 per month when it is your bank.

Anyone know if this applies to NW cards? Any suggestions for the cheapest way to bank in australia? They plan to spend saving initially then work.

Limiting customers to 5 withdrawals per month just means that customers take out all their money in one hit. So 100k customers take out $100 extra, that's $10million less that the bank has to use. Surprisingly it sounds like australian bankers are even more stupid than ours.

dzug1

malc_b wrote: »

Anyone know if this applies to NW cards? Any suggestions for the cheapest way to bank in australia? They plan to spend saving initially then work.

Well things may have changed (just like in the US) but a year or so back they didn't charge NW customers

Nessie23

clairecut100 wrote: »

I am moving to Barcelona in 6 weeks, currently I just have a LLoyds TSB visa debit card. What would be the best type of card to have my salary paid into and use on a day to day basis over there? Or would it be a case of using my LLoyds card to ohave salary paid into and then transfer money online to anoter type of card for general spending?

Hi clairecut100 firstly it depends what currency you are going to be paid in. If you are going to get paid in Pounds, then I would suggest using the Nationwide Flexiaccount and getting paid there. Nationwide will not be charging fees for using the card within Europe (but double check their website to make sure). So you could use the debit card for both taking money out of cash machines and paying for services.

If you are going to get paid in Euros, well that's a different question. In that case you might want to consider using a bank with a local presence, i.e. either a local bank or a international bank with a local presence. Please note that in Spain there are a lot of hidden charges in the banking system so you'll have to shop around, for example many banks will charge you a monthly fee for having an account and many will also charge you for taking cash out in a cash machine from a different bank!

See also MSE's article "Foreign Currency Send or spend money internationally"

It seems some banks like Citi, Barclays, Lloyds and Halifax offer fee-free transfers to their spanish accounts, but you would have to check the details, I haven't tried it myself yet! For the non-fee transfers do check out if their exchange rates are competitive

Hope this helps,

Nessie23

dcellwood

I've just arrived back from Europe with 250 Euros left - I have no plans to head back to Europe any time soon and wandered what the best option is for selling.

I bought the currency from Thomas Exchange Global via a link from this site and had it mailed to me.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

greydee

dcellwood wrote: »

I've just arrived back from Europe with 250 Euros left - I have no plans to head back to Europe any time soon and wandered what the best option is for selling.

I bought the currency from Thomas Exchange Global via a link from this site and had it mailed to me.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

try seeing if any friends or work friends need euros and exchange them with them

pennypincher61

A word of warning re Nationwide debit card- in March I couldn't get any money out in Rome as I had been to Istanbul 2 weeks before and they thought it was a suspicious transaction - all very inconvenient when you arrive at the airport and have to borrow cash from your family to get a train ticket.... and then the cost of calling an 0845 number from abroad.

anyway, last week I called Nationwide to advise them I'm going to be going abroad soon - fun in itself getting through the press 1, press 2 palaver then entering my account number incorrectly because you have to take the 6 off the front of the account number ( oh yes of course....) and then the queue.
Finally spoke to a real person who said they aren't able to log it on their system and so couldn't reassure me that I will be able to draw my money out.
Dreadful.....
I shall be closing my account when they announce they will make a withdrawal charge in Europe!

Fist Direct - called and spoke to someone straight away and told them I'm going away - 'no problem, we'll make a note on your account, have a lovely holiday!'

taz12345_2

Hi I posted a thread elsewhere but it got no replies, I'm a student who will be studying in singapore for 5 months, I was thinking a nationwide flex account would be the best account for acccessing my money abroad, as even with the 1% fee its still the one of the best for withdrawing money abroad (unless someone can show me a better alternative). I know they have changed the terms and conditions on who is eligible. I notice it says if you are not using it as your main account you have to meet the following conditions:
"I am aged 16-21 or transferring from a Nationwide Smart account"
Do I have to meet both conditions? I am 19 years old but I'm not transferring from a smart account. Also those who applied for an account, how long did it take you to recieve your debit card? I was thinking of applying in branch as it may be quicker, I'd need the card before the 3rd of August.

PauperViking

Hi,

I'm travelling to the US for 3 months starting in August and will need constant access to cash and also a credit card to pay for and secure hotel rooms/deposits.

I have a flexaccount with Nationwide, and as I understand from the article, I will be charged nothing for withdrawing cash in the US. However, I do not understand the term "Load Worldwide" at 0.84%. When is this fee applied?

As for credit cards, I am leaning towards the Abbey Zero Santander. If I am paying a hotel room say $100, and I either transfer money or use direct debit to pay off the $100, will I still be charged interest? I understand this is the case for cash withdrawals, but not sure whether it is for just making purchases on the card.

Thanks in advance

Nessie23

PauperViking wrote: »

Hi,

I have a flexaccount with Nationwide, and as I understand from the article, I will be charged nothing for withdrawing cash in the US. However, I do not understand the term "Load Worldwide" at 0.84%. When is this fee applied?

As for credit cards, I am leaning towards the Abbey Zero Santander. If I am paying a hotel room say $100, and I either transfer money or use direct debit to pay off the $100, will I still be charged interest? I understand this is the case for cash withdrawals, but not sure whether it is for just making purchases on the card.

Thanks in advance

Hi,

The 0.84% load worldwide on the Nationwide Debit card the means that Visa will charge a 0.84% fee each time you withdraw money in the US. Bear in mind that some cash machines could charge you also charge you a fee, so it is always good to check whether the cash machine you intend to use will charge you a fee.

Secondly with regards to the credit card as long as you pay the full amount in time you will only pay for the cost incurred converted to pound. e.g. the 100$ hotel room bill will be converted to pounds at the exchange rate set for that particular day/time. So if you pay the Abbey Zero credit card bills on time and in full you should not be charged any interest, for peace of mind you can set up direct debit for the full amount.

However don't use the Abbey Credit card to withdraw money, as if you do you will charged a 27.9% :mad: on the cash withdrawals.

Any questions please ask

Cheers,
Nessie