The Cheapest Way to Spend Overseas Discussion Area

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1. Nationwide Debit Card for ATM withdrawals from destination country (no foreign loading) / the Audi credit card or the Post Office credit card for purchases in destination country (but watch out for Dynamic Currency Conversion) (no foreign loading for purchases, BUT watch charges for cash withdrawals).

2. Nationwide Credit Card (please note Nationwide's policy re chip and pin in foreign countries: see this thread from FlyerTalk) (no foreign loading for purchases, BUT watch charges for cash withdrawals).

3. SAGA credit card (if you are over 50) for purchases in destination country (no foreign loading for European purchases, 1% for rest of the world).

4. Any other debit card for ATM withdrawals from destination country / any other credit card for purchases in destination country (but for both CHECK T&C's to see exact charges).

5. Thomas Exchange Global ("TEG") in central London - pay and pick up at store (they also offer a delivery service, but charge £5).

6. Link Foreign Exchange ("LinkFX") in Victoria Station, central London - pay and pick up at store.

7. Travelex online (remember Travelex will price match any other exchange service, i.e. the one above) -pay online, pick up at airport.

For price matching: order through Travelex online as you would do normally, then call up TEG (02072401214 or 02078281880) or LinkFX (02072338822) and get a quote re their exchange rate. Email Travelex: [EMAIL="customerservices@travelex.com"]customerservices@travelex.com[/EMAIL] (must be done on the same day) stating the following: your Travelex reference number, your currency quote from TEG or LinkFX (and the fact you got it from TEG or LinkFX) and your address (Travelex will send you a cheque refunding the difference). Also Travelex normally acknowledge receipt of your email. Full terms and conditions of the Travelex Price Promise are on the Travelex website.

8. Marks and Spencer - pay online or pay and pick up instore.

9. Online FX (using this link ensures free deliver) - pay online, delivery to home.

10. HSBC (they seem to use Amex as their travel money provider and offer free delivery for orders over £350) - pay online, deliver to home or pick up from branch (and avoid any delivery charge).

11. Thomson Travel (they seem to use Amex as their travel money provider) - pay online, delivery to home.

12. Co-op Travel (they use Currency Express / Exchange and offer free delivery for orders over £300) - pay online, delivery to home.

13. Post Office (while probably not the best rate, there are many of them around, so may be convenient) - pay online, pick up at PO or pay and pick up at PO.

14. Haggle with High Street travel agent (which may ensure better rates than 5 to 9 above) - pay and pick up instore.

With 1 - 4 make sure you tell your card provider you are going abroad, where you are going and for how long, so they can put a note on your account.

With 5 - 14, if you are paying with debit / credit card check your T&C's as many providers charge for the privilege of using money exchange services.

Here are links to ATM locators: VISA and MasterCard

Here are various information links to VISA: Foreign Exchange Rate FAQ and Visa Exchange Rates

Also please read Martin's article: Spending Overseas and Loading Technicals

Also look at the these forum threads: The Cheapest Way to Spend Overseas Discussion Area and How to buy TCs and foreign currency

Paul_Varjak

Saban wrote: »

Would anyone be able to help me with this? Unfortuntely i cannot open a Nationwide account to get the Debit Card or get a Post Office credit card due to a poor credit rating, so i have to stick to what i have!

Any advice?:D

have you tried getting a Nationwide account with a cash card (rather than a debit card)?

Paul_Varjak

My friend has just withdrawn - in the last few minutes - US dollars from an ATM in a Russian shop, using a Nationwide Cirrus cash card.

She got an exchange rate of 1.9836 dollars to the pound (with no fees). I don't think that can be beaten!

PatelA

If you were all going to Miami for 7 days and wanting to say have $1,000 for spendign money what would be the best way... take a couple hundred dollars out there and use the card for the rest?

moob_2

PatelA wrote: »

If you were all going to Miami for 7 days and wanting to say have $1,000 for spendign money what would be the best way... take a couple hundred dollars out there and use the card for the rest?

See post #443 above.

Get small amount of cash for emergencies on arrival, and use the Nationwide Debit Card for taking cash out of ATMs that don't charge.

Citibank, Wells Fargo etc

Dave1167

My wife and I have just returned from a holiday in Canada - Toronto to Montreal. She has a Barclays Connect card and tried to get money from a Bank ATM. Her card was blocked and so I gave her money from my Nationwide Debit Card. When we returned she contacted the bank and they were very apologetic!! It seems that they have had so much card fraud abroad that they block cards used overseas UNLESS YOU TELL THEM THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE ABROAD!!
If my wife had been on her own she would have had serious problems without any cash. (she does not have a Credit Card)
The moral is to contact your Bank and check before you go.

beario

At last, I've gotten myself a Nationwide debit card (incidentally, I bought my euros with my Halifax debit card on Travelex and did not get charged by Halifax).

I'm going to Florida at the end of August. Can anyone tell me which US banks or ATMs I can withdraw dollars from (using my Nationwide account) without getting charged by the bank?

Any help would be greatly appreciated; it would be somewhat annoying to have gone to the trouble to open a Nationwide account and then get nailed by the US banks.

Abi

pin

beario wrote: »

At last, I've gotten myself a Nationwide debit card (incidentally, I bought my euros with my Halifax debit card on Travelex and did not get charged by Halifax).

I'm going to Florida at the end of August. Can anyone tell me which US banks or ATMs I can withdraw dollars from (using my Nationwide account) without getting charged by the bank?

Any help would be greatly appreciated; it would be somewhat annoying to have gone to the trouble to open a Nationwide account and then get nailed by the US banks.

Abi

Come up numerous times on this thread, do a quick search.

But of the top of my head you'll be fine with BoA, HSBC, Wells Fargo, Citibank to name a few.

mzqa395

Holidaymakers need to be alert to ensure their foreign trips do not land them with steep banking bills.

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HSBC is confusing them by claiming that some of its debit cards are free to use at cash machines abroad.

In fact, though the withdrawal fees for its packaged current account holders are waived, a charge of 2.75% is added to the foreign currency exchange rate the bank receives.

Yet HSBC's advertisement campaign states: 'Withdrawals from Cirrus/Maestro ATMs worldwide, free from HSBC transaction fees'. A voiceover on the TV ad claims: 'Cash withdrawals from ATMs worldwide are free from HSBC charges'. The loading fee appears in the footnote.

A spokesman for HSBC said: 'The 2.75% loading is not a fee. It's part of how we calculate our exchange rate. We don't believe we have misled our customers.'

The 'free' ATM withdrawals overseas are one of the benefits claimed for HSBC's packaged Bank Account Plus, which costs £14 a month. Some 1.35m customers have a Plus account.

Building society Nationwide is investigating HSBC's claim. Its own current account holders have no extra charges when using their debit cards abroad. It passes the exchange rate it receives from international card scheme Visa directly to its customers.

HSBC customers with a standard bank account pay 1.5%, with a minimum fee of £1.75, when taking money out of a foreign ATM. All the other banks charge a similar fee to their customers when abroad as well as loading a typical 2.75% onto the exchange rate. So withdrawing £100 worth of foreign currency is likely to cost you £4.50.

Using your debit card to pay for purchases or bills attracts other fees from some banks. Halifax adds a fee of £1.50, NatWest is increasing its charge from 75p to £1.25 on June 5 and Lloyds TSB adds on £1.

Customers of these banks would be better off using their credit card for overseas purchases, which does not bump up the cost in this way. Most credit cards, however, do add 2.75% onto the exchange rate. Lloyds TSB is increasing this to 2.99% from July 30 - in time to catch most holidaymakers.

Nationwide is the exception again, along with the Post Office credit card. Those with credit cards from Saga and LV - formerly Liverpool Victoria - escape the foreign loading fee when using their cards in the European Union and are charged only 1% extra when using them elsewhere

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/credit-...2&in_page_id=9

moob_2

beario wrote: »

At last, I've gotten myself a Nationwide debit card (incidentally, I bought my euros with my Halifax debit card on Travelex and did not get charged by Halifax).

I'm going to Florida at the end of August. Can anyone tell me which US banks or ATMs I can withdraw dollars from (using my Nationwide account) without getting charged by the bank?

Any help would be greatly appreciated; it would be somewhat annoying to have gone to the trouble to open a Nationwide account and then get nailed by the US banks.

Abi

It's two posts above yours...