Withdrawing Cash on Your Credit Card Abroad

chattychappy

stehouk wrote: »

Can somebody advise me on buying euros please, I am going to Spain in November and need approx 300 euros cash as i don't like paying by card in bars abroad, i will be paying for my hotel on my clarity card or my aqua card but will I get a better rate in Spain if I use my clarity card to withdraw cash at an atm and pay it off in full via my online banking or is it best to buy the euros in the UK by debit card.
I know it's not a lot of money but this is a money saving site, I suppose I have to weigh up the cost of an atm charge by the bank in Spain as well unless anybody knows of any free atm in benidorm.

In order of preference I would go for:

1) Use Clarity/Aqua in ATM in Spain that doesn't charge, reject any offer to convert.

2) Use Clarity (probably Aqua too) in Moneycorp ATM at certain airports before leaving. Reject conversion.

3) Use Clarity/Aqua in ATM in Spain and pay local ATM fee.

4) Most other options.

5) Go to counter at airport (ie the worst).

chattychappy

WilliamJohnston wrote: »

I don't claim any expertise. I can say that my personal preference is to get my foreign currency before I leave. At least then I know exactly how much I'm spending, and can stop worrying about it. I suppose it might be cheaper to draw cash abroad. On the other hand, how much might I actually be saving? A couple of quid?

Depending where you get your cash, you could be paying as much as 10 or 20% more. Just a couple of quid if you're only spending £20 whilst away! If you want to get cash before going, you can get better rates by shopping around - but still at a significant premium.

stehouk

chattychappy wrote: »

In order of preference I would go for:

1) Use Clarity/Aqua in ATM in Spain that doesn't charge, reject any offer to convert.

2) Use Clarity (probably Aqua too) in Moneycorp ATM at certain airports before leaving. Reject conversion.

3) Use Clarity/Aqua in ATM in Spain and pay local ATM fee.

4) Most other options.

5) Go to counter at airport (ie the worst).

Brilliant, thanks for the advice :beer:

WilliamJohnston

I've just done a comparison between XE.com - which gives rates as if I were losing nothing on commission - and No1currency.com. XE quotes £259 for 300 euros; No1 quotes £263 for the same amount. Given that even Halifax are unlikely to give me the same as XE, it would seem that my guess that I might lose a couple of quid on the deal is not unreasonable. Even four quid is an amount I can live with. And I can't know how much a rogue ATM is going to charge me.

zagfles

WilliamJohnston wrote: »

I've just done a comparison between XE.com - which gives rates as if I were losing nothing on commission - and No1currency.com. XE quotes £259 for 300 euros; No1 quotes £263 for the same amount. Given that even Halifax are unlikely to give me the same as XE, it would seem that my guess that I might lose a couple of quid on the deal is not unreasonable. Even four quid is an amount I can live with. And I can't know how much a rogue ATM is going to charge me.

At latest Mastercard rate EUR 300 will cost £260.31. If the ATM charges it'll likely be around 2 EUR, making it slightly cheaper.

But the bigger advantage of the ATM is you get the money when you need it, rather than relying on money getting sent in the post or having to travel out of your way to some obscure shop to get it, then having to carry a lot of cash and hope it doesn't get nicked at airport security etc...

ATM wins on convenience as well as price.

Unless of course you're one of these intrepid travellers who goes to places where they don't have banks, and you don't travel through any major airport or port of entry which will almost certainly have an ATM...seem to get a few of those here

ETA: just seen this thread on the travel board!
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6061561/travel-money-horror-story-advice-request