Which Credit And Debit Cards Are Best For Worldwide Travel

belly1

chattychappy i must thank you for your fantastic comments.
i had taken into account the min repayments involved and will be setting up a standing order from my current account to pay those. i will also be using that account to access cash for places like fiji/thailand and just general cash.
my plan is to only use my credit card for a few large purchases over the 6months i.e a week in a hotel/ skydive in NZ. probably looking at a total of about 15 transactions maximum during the trip.whats best thing to do?

chattychappy

For cash, Metrobank is about the only debit card without a loading. An alternative is to get cash advances on credit cards that don't either charge a loading or charge a cash advance fee. Halifax clarity or Zero are suitable for this. BUT you will pay interest from the date of the transaction regardless of whether you have a promotional deal on purchases. The most efficient way is to use these and then pay them off within a few days using internet banking. If you get a cash advance on a "normal" credit card overseas you will be absolutely crucified.

Or use a pre-pay card for cash, though I don't use them myself.

For the credit card, it does seem you'll be best off with the Tesco card.

Knowing SE Asia well, I feel duty bound to mention insurance. I'm sure you'll get proper medical insurance. But from my experience (which includes living there), the biggest risk faced by Brits is motorcycle accidents. It's very popular to rent a bike and ride around without a helmet. Most insurance policies won't cover you if you are "illegal" - ie no license, no helmet. On the expat policies, you could get insurance which covered you without a helmet. The premium was double. Yep - we're talking about policies that include all medical conditions not just accidents, but just for the facility to ride without a helmet the cost was doubled. Gives you an idea of the risks.

I digress....

MIKE770

In some of the areas you mention I found Caxton FX easy to use no problems, pre-paid card.

iblametheparents

MIKE770 wrote: »

In some of the areas you mention I found Caxton FX easy to use no problems, pre-paid card.

The FairFX card(s) are better, as discussed on the travel forum.

chattychappy

iblametheparents wrote: »

The FairFX card(s) are better, as discussed on the travel forum.

The version that's 1.5% per transaction, right?

iblametheparents

chattychappy wrote: »

The version that's 1.5% per transaction, right?

Yeah, that one.

belly1

That Fairfx card looks pretty good,

think i'll go with that for my debit card option, which i will mainly use for withdrawing cash.

i'm going to continue looking at credit cards.

if anyone knows of any good ones with at least 12months 0% on purchases, feel free to tell me. cheers

just tried to apply for the tesco credit card..... DECLINED
looking at other cards with 12 months 0% purchases including:

Virgin
AA

Don't know where to turn

iblametheparents

Blanch354 wrote: »

I have used a caxton fx card - worked great. Also I have just seen on the homepage of their website that they have a gap year offer - looks like you get a free back up card when you apply, which might be good for you when are travelling?

You'd be better off with a FairFX Anywhere card.

tiggerjj

One more thing to consider, take both a VISA and a mastercard, some places you cant use one, other the other (cant remember specific countries but i have been to most of s and c america, some parts of africa and more than a few "fun" moments trying to get hold of cash!!!! Oh and if you are taking a backpack hide $50 in the metal frame, the number of times that has saved me i dont care to mention!!!!

proeleche

I recently used the Caxton FX dollar card and it was geat. Whilst the conversion rate is not as good as FairFX (the difference is minimal!) - Caxton do not charge for using your card at POS or for withdrawing cash, and you can top up using your debit card via the website or text.

Overall, Caxton is cheaper than FairFX, especially if you will be using the card for cash withdrawals and I cannot recommend it highly enough - I am going to Thailand in February and I plan on taking the Caxton anywhere card with me.