Cash on holiday

NiftyDigits

zagfles wrote: »

The Kalixa card is better value for large cash withdrawals - which the OP was after.

With it's £300 per day withdrawal limit, it is not the most suitable for the OP.

benjus

zagfles wrote: »

The Kalixa card is better value for large cash withdrawals - which the OP was after.

Fair point - Kalixa is cheaper for withdrawals over £150. Although as NiftyDigits has pointed out, the higher withdrawal limit of the Globe card may be a factor.

zagfles

NiftyDigits wrote: »

With it's £300 per day withdrawal limit, it is not the most suitable for the OP.

He could always get 2 (eg 1 for partner, or is there anything stopping him getting 2 himself?).

ATMs will often limit you to about £300 or so anyway so he'd probably need 2+ withdrawals to get more out with any card.

MrSmartprice

zagfles wrote: »

Or the Halifax Clarity, if you have time (can't remember how long it takes).

Good for cash as the only charge is interest, it'll be much cheaper than any pre-paid card. Pay it off as soon as you get back off holiday to minimise interest. £500 per day cash withdrawal limit.

Agree with all that. We have Halifax Clarity cards which we only use abroad for payments and cash withdrawals from ATMs. If you pay off your cash withdrawal on your return, the interest is a few pence. Payments incur no charge.

It's also worth noting that the exchange rate is the commercial, not the tourist one. But remember if using an ATM that you must NOT let it do the conversion for you if it asks. It must charge you in €s and let Halifax convert it.

NiftyDigits

zagfles wrote: »

He could always get 2 (eg 1 for partner, or is there anything stopping him getting 2 himself?).

ATMs will often limit you to about £300 or so anyway so he'd probably need 2+ withdrawals to get more out with any card.

It makes no odds if they have to make two ATM withdrawals with the Globe card.
At least you will be able to make those two large withdrawals.

I already suggested that they get multiple Globe cards, as it was suggested that they would need access to a fair amount of cash. So imagine how many Kalixa cards they would need to obtain if they needed multiple Globe cards.
Plus of course there is the fee for each Kalixa card, which hopefully would be refunded by TopCashBack.
But that would be £13.50 that would be needed to be clawed back if two cards were needed.

Do you know if the Kalixa card deposits are ring-fenced?

Either way, I included it as an option in my original reply.

NiftyDigits

zagfles wrote: »

Or the Halifax Clarity, if you have time (can't remember how long it takes).

Good for cash as the only charge is interest, it'll be much cheaper than any pre-paid card. Pay it off as soon as you get back off holiday to minimise interest. £500 per day cash withdrawal limit.

Your statement is pure hyperbole. It'll be much cheaper is a bit much. As we both know, Kalixa card costs can be reduced to 0.75% off Mastercard. The Globe card, 0.99%.

So it can be cheaper, but it can also be more expensive, dependent on how the account is run.

zagfles

NiftyDigits wrote: »

Your statement is pure hyperbole. It'll be much cheaper is a bit much. As we both know, Kalixa card costs can be reduced to 0.75% off Mastercard. The Globe card, 0.99%.

So it can be cheaper, but it can also be more expensive, dependent on how the account is run.

Why do I get that DejaVu feeling

Optimal use of the Clarity is cheaper than optimal use of any pre-paid card, as it works out well under 0.75%. Typical/hassle free use is also cheaper, I don't use it optimally, I just pay it off when I get back off holiday, and typically end up paying about 0.4%. About half the cost of the best value pre-paid and far less hassle. And of course MetroBank are even cheaper.

Pre-paid cards should be considered a last resort eg for those who have credit problems and can't get credit/debit cards, or haven't got time before their holiday.

NiftyDigits

Yes... the word 'optimal' certainly makes a difference.