Money advice in USA

inmypocketnottheirs

Or open a citibank account https://www.citibank.co.uk and open a US dollar current account. You get a visa debit card that you can switch between sterling and US (and € too if you open a € account) in real time by telephone. Make transfers online as you need to. Withdrawals free in the US - don't have to use a citibank machine but there are plenty of them.

I have been doing this for a few years and find it the best way when travelling US/Europe.

misa.blue

inmypocketnottheirs wrote: »

Or open a citibank account www.citibank.co.uk and open a US dollar current account. You get a visa debit card that you can switch between sterling and US (and € too if you open a € account) in real time by telephone. Make transfers online as you need to. Withdrawals free in the US - don't have to use a citibank machine but there are plenty of them.

I have been doing this for a few years and find it the best way when travelling US/Europe.

Hi, is there any monthly charge for this account?

Spursman180

I've always taken cash, buying it as and when I think the rate is good.

If you're staying in Vegas then it's most likely a casino hotel. You can (usually for free as a resident) get a safe deposit box at the cage. They will take a copy of your passport and check you against it every time you access it. It is secure and safe, don't lose the key as it's usually $100+ to drill and replace the lock.

I only use cards for hotel, shopping and car hire, otherwise I am always suspicious of skimming.

If taking Stirling make sure it is English as I've had a friend given a lower exchange rate for Scottish pounds in the Mandalay Bay, not because they're worth less!!! but they are more difficult to transact for the casinos.

I always keep any dollars left over (really!) for next time, but it is also worth checking the ex rate before you leave, keeping a few dollars for the airport goodies.

Enjoy

Spursman180

Sorry, should have said. It is always worth taking out a deposit box even if you don't want to use it for cash to keep your flight tickets, insurance, copy of passport, any credit cards for back up etc.

You will of course be carrying your passport with you as ID, don't forget it is an offence not to have ID on you at all times. You will need it to cash your travellers cheques and to use your credit card as UK PIN numbers dobn't work on their machines. You need to make sure the name on your ID matches anything else that you are likely to use.

Jeff_Bridges_hair

inmypocketnottheirs wrote: »

Or open a citibank account https://www.citibank.co.uk and open a US dollar current account. You get a visa debit card that you can switch between sterling and US (and € too if you open a € account) in real time by telephone. Make transfers online as you need to. Withdrawals free in the US - don't have to use a citibank machine but there are plenty of them.

I have been doing this for a few years and find it the best way when travelling US/Europe.

Well i never knew this.. Thats a great tip thankyou.

Spursman180

Jeff_Bridges_hair wrote: »

Well i never knew this.. Thats a great tip thankyou.

Hmm, it is a good idea, as long as you're not a gambler, especially an online one. I assume as you're going to Vegas you do gamble.

If you play online poker for instance on a site like Pokerstars which is a dollar site i.e. you deposit in Sterling and they convert it to dollars, when you withdraw money it comes back to you you are subject to transaction and exchange rate fees to your credit card.

I know several people who have opened these dollar accounts so that it is deposited straight in as dollars avoiding exchange rate clipping only to find that the bank refuses to accept them point blank.

Such gambling is legal here in the UK but such wire transfers are illegal in the states and the banks are scared witless by the authorities there.

So it may work if you are using 'honest' money but not from such sites regardless how legal they are here.

You also do have to pay for these accounts, any cards that you have will also still have the UK code on them. We've had problems in the past shopping online so that food etc can be delivered to our villa on arrival. We also have had problems ordering pizza in etc as our C.C. wasn't recognised.

Murphy_The_Cat

Spursman180 wrote: »

You will of course be carrying your passport with you as ID, don't forget it is an offence not to have ID on you at all times. .

Hello Spursman, please could you provide me with a link to show what offense you would be performing/law that you would be breaking by not carrying ID with you at all times, as I believe that you are wholly incorrect.

Triker

I usually use a combo of fairfx card preloaded in dollars and a credit card for incidentals. However after the collapse of crown currency I am triple checking the protection on my money from now on.

Spursman180

Murphy_The_Cat wrote: »

Hello Spursman, please could you provide me with a link to show what offense you would be performing/law that you would be breaking by not carrying ID with you at all times, as I believe that you are wholly incorrect.

My apologies you are correct, it is not compulsory to carry ID in the States. The post is about Vegas where it is not against the Constitution to be arrested for not being able to produce ID when stopped by the Police. The basis being on reasonable suspicion of which the standard is very low, the argument being an a couple of cases that the police were suspicious enough to have stopped you in the first place.

The decision on such police action not being a violation of the constitution was made by the Nevada Supreme court. This decision is being reviewed by the U.S. supreme court, whom it is suggested would not want to ratify that judgement for the mayhem it would cause nationally.

So yes, illegal is too strong a word to have used but try doing stuff there without it.

Murphy_The_Cat

Spursman180 wrote: »

My apologies you are correct, it is not compulsory to carry ID in the States. The post is about Vegas where it is not against the Constitution to be arrested for not being able to produce ID when stopped by the Police. The basis being on reasonable suspicion of which the standard is very low, the argument being an a couple of cases that the police were suspicious enough to have stopped you in the first place.

The decision on such police action not being a violation of the constitution was made by the Nevada Supreme court. This decision is being reviewed by the U.S. supreme court, whom it is suggested would not want to ratify that judgement for the mayhem it would cause nationally.

So yes, illegal is too strong a word to have used but try doing stuff there without it.

Wow, some interesting reading there :beer:

I've been going to America for about 20 years now, and its very rare for me to carry ID. The only times that I have actually needed phot ID I could count on the fingers of one hand -- and in some States, having some form of ID is handy, some of the time, if paying by CC (mostly they accept that I'm English and I wouldn't be carrying ID ).
But if you are visting a Federal Building (I'm thinking Hoover Building, Pentagon, BoneYard), then obviously they would want to confirm who you are before you can get in :beer: