Travel money in non EU countries

Mosska_16

My daughter is soon going on an InterRail trip which begins in Hungary, then Slovakia, Czech republic, Germany and finally Netherlands, lasting just over three weeks. She has a Thomas Cook cash passport (Euros)for the last two countries but has no idea what to do about money for the first three non Euro countries. (Thomas Cook said that it was not recommended to use that card in non Euro countries). Her debit cards (Nat West and Halifax feature in this sites 'Hall of Shame', so no good. Just taking foreign currency is risky, ie no security. She has had previous difficulty with cashing traveller's cheques (Poland) and is reluctant to use them again. She can't get a Nationwide card as a student with a low credit rating. Does anyone please have any advice on this? Would be very grateful, thanks.

Voyager2002

Well, Nationwide do offer accounts with some kind of cash card (not visa) to students, and rumour has it that they work for getting foreign currency. Otherwise (or as well) she should take a reasonable amount of cash for the non-euro countries and just make sure that she has an insurance policy that covers it. If not, what I did on inter-rail was made sure that my money was always next to my heart: worked for me, although I met someone who had all his money, passport and inter-rail card stolen as he slept in a hostel in Venice!

Travellers' cheques: I once spent a week visiting every bank in Bogota before I could find a way to change mine! However, if you contact the company issuing the cheques they can tell you when and where you can change them in each company (in Bogota it was just one bank, and just one two-hour period each week!).

And withdrawing cash with a Natwest card might be expensive, but a lot less so than wiring money in an emergency, so she should certainly take her cards with her.

beer_tins

In those countries it's best to take cash and change money at the Bureau De Change, just avoid the ones at airports and train stations as the rates aren't great. If she doesn't want to take so much cash, I'd say the next best thing is to get a decent cash card (e.g. nationwide) that doesn't charge for cash withdrawals abroad, i.e. only their "buying" exchange rate for the day.

Central Europe is a wonderful part of the world to visit and is still cheap if you avoid the most touristy areas, other than for sightseeing. I hope she enjoys it.

beer_tins

P.S. sorry, didn't see you saying she couldn't get a nationwide card. for the fisrt 3 countries I would take a reasonable amount of cash, with her normal bank card as backup. As long as she has insurance it should be fine. If she has to use the cash card, make sure she uses it only once if possible as the fees are usually per transaction.

benjus

I think the "Cards From Hell" thing on Martin's website exaggerates the scale of the charges. The Halifax card charges 2.75% + £1.50 in fees. This means that €300 would cost about £246. The cheapest bureau de change listed on this site would charge about £243, but this rate is only available in central London. TravelEx would charge £245 - just £1 cheaper than the Halifax card. The Natwest card is slightly more expensive than the Halifax card - instead of a £1.50 fee it charges 2% (min £2).

So while a Nationwide card is clearly the best option if she can get one, the Halifax card is not that bad, and safer than carrying cash. Travellers' Cheques are even more expensive, and outdated (IMHO).

Mosska_16

Many thanks to all for the advice, I will pass this on to my daughter.