Going Travelling: What Card Would You Take?

Lyndon77

So me and my girlfriend are going travelling in October, to India then through SE Asia. We need a credit card. The question is, which one do we get? I thought about putting our flights, purchases etc. on it to try and get some rewards, and use it exclusively when getting money out abroad, paying for things. I've heard that Mastercard is the most widely accepted card abroad, so it makes sense to use that one. Has anyone done anything similar? Are airmiles/cashback rewards even worth it in this scenario?

callum9999

If only this website had some sort of guide for this topic...

(Look on the tabs at the top of the page - they are clearly labelled!)

chattychappy

Ha ha ha.. top money saving tip: it is cheaper to get a girlfriend when you arrive than take one with you!

Seriously, though, I travel alot and spend extended periods of time in SE Asia and to a lesser extent other bits of the world. If you search by name you will see I have made a number of posts on this topic.

First of all, for stuff like flights/insurance then these will likely be UK purchases in GBP. So ideally you go for a cash back card/air-miles type card etc. If you can get the same airmiles on your card as with the airline you intend to fly (or they are in the same group of airlines) then even better. But bear in mind if you travelling on discounted economy tickets you might not get airmiles at all on the flights themselves.

For foreign CC spend, then Halifax Clarity, Post Office Mastercard, Nationwide Select and, I believe, Metrobank are the obvious choices. If you already have one, then Santander Zero is also good. No foreign loading on these.

For cash, it's more complicated. Not many debit cards don't charge/load. Nationwide on their new "Flexplus" account, Metrobank, N&P are exceptions. Halifax Clarity and Santander Zero credit cards don't charge the usual CC fee/loading so are excellent but you will pay interest from the day of withdrawal. Minimal if quickly repaired. Barclaycard Plat (not sure about other Barclaycards) charge about 3% loading on foreign ATM withdrawals but then treat them like a purchase - so no additional fee/interest. So this isn't too bad.

I've not noticed any benefit of mastercard over visa card or vice-versa when it comes to acceptance.

NB whatever charges cards do or do not levy, in some countries ATMs will levy local charges (rather like some machines in the UK). Bear in mind also that cards are not always as widely accepted as in the UK or may only be accepted subject to surcharge. Watch out for DCC - dynamic currency conversion - this is where a retailer will offer to charge you in GBP rather than the local currency. Always refuse - their conversion rate is almost never as good as the rate you get from the CC companies.

Bear in mind that cards are much less reliable when used abroad. Whatever card tell you about worldwide acceptance, trigger-happy fraud prevention systems can kick in at any time - even if you've told your CC exactly where you'll be. Take multiple cards and ideally a way of calling home cheaply (skype account or whatever). Better to have a loaded card which will cost you a few extra quid than making expensive emergency phone calls home or paying through the nose for Western Union etc. Most CC blocks can be removed on phoning your CC company. Also, obviously, best not to keep all your cards together especially in high crime areas.

Ideally access your accounts online whilst away. Make sure your bills get paid whilst you are away. I don't use DD - I do everything online manually. If you use DD, you should still check your statement in case there has been a fraud. Enlist a trusted family member to help/open post if necessary.

daisy353

I can highly recommend the Post Office Mastercard which is fee-free for transactions abroad. My partner and I have just spent 14 months cycle touring throughout the world (Argentina, Chile, USA, New Zealand and Australia) and the PO card was invaluable. It was even accepted in the most remote areas of Patagonia and gave us the flexibility to travel with very limited amounts of cash. The telephone customer service is pretty good, too.

I can also recommend the Metrobank current account debit card which offers free withdrawals and purchases abroad. Long may these two products continue!

chattychappy

daisy353 wrote: »

The telephone customer service is pretty good, too.

Yes, agree with that. And that's useful when you're abroad. Their online system is pretty tricky to use though!

guesswho2000

chattychappy wrote: »

Barclaycard Plat (not sure about other Barclaycards) charge about 3% loading on foreign ATM withdrawals but then treat them like a purchase - so no additional fee/interest. So this isn't too bad.

I've not noticed any benefit of mastercard over visa card or vice-versa when it comes to acceptance.

Can confirm that Barclaycards changed as of last May and now no longer charge a cash withdrawal fee or interest on advance if repaid in full - there is a 2.99% foreign transaction fee on cash and purchases, with no minimum (this is the only fee, unlike a lot of cards which would charge 2.75% forex plus 3% cash fee, for example).

As for Mastercard vs Visa, I had never had an issue until last month in Ukraine - normally I'd use my Halifax Clarity card abroad, but I was short of cash and nearly missed my flight, only to discover the ATMs only took Visa - queue the Barclaycard - drew out the equivalent of £4 in cash to make up my taxi fare, was charged 12p!

Doshwaster

If you are going travelling for a few months then you will need at least one backup card each - just in case your main card gets lost, stolen, damaged, swallowed or simply declined. Keep the spare well hidden and separate from the rest of your travel money and documents.

Lyndon77

Wow thanks for all the advice! I read all the guides on cashback/rewards etc. but it seemed to me like if you're not spending thousands (our flights will add up to less than £2k) then airmiles aren't really worth it as you'll barely have any.

Post Office Mastercard sounds perfect, I will definitely look into that. And good call on having back up cards. We both have Visa debits. I'm going to look into pre loaded cards too.

And daisy353, your trip sounds amazing!

chattychappy

Lyndon77 wrote: »

but it seemed to me like if you're not spending thousands (our flights will add up to less than £2k) then airmiles aren't really worth it as you'll barely have any.

Yep. The schemes work best if you can combine airmiles on spend with airmiles through staying at partner hotels and miles from flying on the airlines themselves - particularly if you use business/first or flexible economy tickets. Checkout www.flyertalk.com for endless chat about airmile schemes.

As a general rule of thumb, airmiles are worth looking at if you are making a couple of long haul flights or more a year on one airline/airline grouping.