Best cards for travel ...

SBarratt

Morning all,

My girlfriend and I head off to Australia October 5th on a Working Holiday Visa for a year. We intend to land with at least £3,000 per person having paid for flights/insurance/visa which is perfectly in-line with what their immigration requires.

We hope to find work rather promptly so we can avoid living off of our savings. We have every intention of moving on to New Zealand the following year and doing the same thing so this is sort of a must.

Just in the interest of peace of mind what would be the best credit card to take? I have never owned a CC and aside from my student loan I have never been in my over draft - missed a deadline etc (probably far from a perfect candidate) but I would like one on hand to be able to throw an emergency flight on to should we need to quickly return home!?

I travelled S.E.Asia a few years ago for 11 months and at the time Nationwide offered free ATM withdrawls - anything like that exist now to keep withdrawl costs down?

Our first port of call will be an Oz bank account but I'd rather leave the majority of savings in a UK account if possible and it would be nice knowing I won't get charged a fortune everytime I use it.

Final question - what is the best way to transfer cash between foreign accounts? I thought paypal could be a good idea but I don't want to be bordering on money laundering. Is it just a bite the bullet sort of thing and pay whatever fee the banks request?

I came here with more questions than this but my mind has gone blank.

I appreciate any advice you can give.

Thanks

Rafter

Take a look in the travel/ motoring section at the top for current best buys etc. Getting a completely free card, particularly for cash withdrawals these days, is tough but if you manage it carefully you should be ok.

Main issue will be getting the card given your credit history etc, but if you are currently working then you should get at least some limit. Don't forget to tell your card provider you are travelling or you might find that card doesn't work.

Probably worth carrying some sterling travellers cheques as an emergency supply.

Good luck.

zagfles

Halifax Clarity, Nationwide Select card (NOT their other credit cards). No forex markup/charge on spending. The Clarity is also good for ATM withdrawals as the only charge is interest, which you can minimise by paying them off asap.

You could consider a MetroBank account to keep your £3000 in as they are fee free for ATM withdrawals, though they only have branches in London and you have to visit to open an account. Or N&P, but you need to jump through some hoops with them (think it's 5 transaction per month minimum).

Ask on the flights and currency board for things like transfers etc.

chattychappy

SBarratt wrote: »

Just in the interest of peace of mind what would be the best credit card to take?

A card on a parent's account.

You might not like that answer, but the practical reality is that they are more likely to get a card with the sort of limit that could help in an emergency. Also easier for them to make the necessary payment on time. As you haven't had much credit before, you might struggle to get the cards that are best for travelling (Select, Clarity etc.)

I've spent a long time working in Asia. Have met many young Brits hanging around - sometimes on extended backpacker trips, sometimes working on a gap year. Stuff can go wrong - and using other methods to get cash from bank of mum'n'dad (western union etc) can be rather expensive.

zagfles

chattychappy wrote: »

A card on a parent's account.

You might not like that answer, but the practical reality is that they are more likely to get a card with the sort of limit that could help in an emergency. Also easier for them to make the necessary payment on time. As you haven't had much credit before, you might struggle to get the cards that are best for travelling (Select, Clarity etc.)

I've spent a long time working in Asia. Have met many young Brits hanging around - sometimes on extended backpacker trips, sometimes working on a gap year. Stuff can go wrong - and using other methods to get cash from bank of mum'n'dad (western union etc) can be rather expensive.

A current account with a debit card as above could be the answer then (Metrobank etc) and the "bank of mum and dad" can simply transfer money into that account if disaster strikes.

chattychappy

zagfles wrote: »

A current account with a debit card as above could be the answer then (Metrobank etc) and the "bank of mum and dad" can simply transfer money into that account if disaster strikes.

Yep, with the proviso that with time differences, it could mean a day's delay.

Frankly, I'd do both. Cards do get blocked/simply fail to work sometimes. The more backups, the better.

TakeThis

The best possible combination is actually the MetroBank Debit card and Credit card.
Certainly much better than taking the cash and plonking it in a Aus bank account(currency fluctuations disregarded).

SBarratt

Hi again guys,

Thank you for the reply.

I know now my parents would happily bail me out as they would get the cash back and I could easily take that option but it's not the point.

I am currently 26 and I have held a few 1 year jobs in and outside of University and previous working abroad positions but I have also been on top of my money - it's what helps escape the hum drum and I figured I would probably struggled to get a decent CC.

I will look in to MetroBanks if they have free withdrawls abroad. I can get a cheap enough train to and from London in the day if I book it far enough in advance so it may be worth it.

Do they have online banking so I can switch cash between that account and my HSBC?

Thanks again