I Don't understand

NiftyDigits

rustyboy21 wrote: »

I had other cards available, but wanted to use that one, as had special rates. Waited 3 days for them to courier out another card. OH lent me money, but still shows that people should still take currency with them, not just rely on cards. Hence my comments. Not everyone feels safe just relying on a card and an ATM to like each other.


The OP said , in effect how he is fed up with people asking about where to get currency and if I am not mistaken his comments were about using cards instead of a BDC to obtain notes. You just seem to think the sun shines out of credit/prepaid cards proverbials.

Do you always come over as an obnoxious !!!!!!?

Only to idiots.

This ( for me) is after going on holiday 6 years ago with no euros, going to an ATM at a Barclays bank in Spain and the machine eating my card

How many posts do you see here about people whose card has been eaten? You must be a really special case.

With my experiences, yes I do take my cards with me, but I do get currency before hand and use this first.

Another testament to your 'intelligence'...why on earth would you use it first? How does that protect you from cards being eaten etc?

I had other cards available, but wanted to use that one, as had special rates.

So, you weren't stranded, you were just being petulant. Your poor use of language just confirms that you are ...special.

More than twenty years of world travel and the only time that my card has been swallowed, was when I left it in the machine.
Darn those machines that give you the cash before they release the card.

Doshwaster

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

I think I've shifted to a "there's ATMs in every airport arrival area" point of view over recent months so would be happy to carry no local currency until I've landed. Mrs PW is a million miles off agreeing with me though.

I've been that way for the last few years. I can't remember the last time I changed any cash prior to travel. It's at least 5 years ago. I always have a few leftover Euros, dollars and various other currencies in my travel wallet at home to take with me in the unlikely event of there being no working ATM and I can't buy onward travel with plastic. I haven't had a problem yet.

benjus

I remember 15 years ago travelling by coach from Bolivia to Arica (far north of Chile) with no cash on me at all and having absolutely no problem getting local currency from an ATM. Only afterwards it struck me that it might have been a bit of a risk if I'd had problems with my cards. Ever since then I've assumed that changing cash before travelling is redundant. I have travelled quite a lot since then and have never been stranded without the means to pay for something I needed.

rustyboy21

There are still a vast amount of people, who want to have local currency in the possession prior to landing in a foreign land, rather than have to find and feel comfortable in using an ATM, from a bank that they do not recognise, the chance of being done by cloning/fraud and the misunderstanding of exchange rates.


Not everyone lives down south and has the facility to get some of the recommended cards frequently stated on this site. Some of us live 'Oop North' and are restricted in the type of cards we can get. Clarity is an exception.


An age old saying, stated a number of times by airline/tour operator staff on TV( and heard in person too). People who live up north, have a reasoning that going away on holiday and spending all you have taken with you means you have a good holiday, especially if you come back with nothing. Travellers from Down South tended to go on holiday, then brag about how much money they came back with, saying look how much I have saved?.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUapyIucTWc skip to 15.20


Holidays are different for everyone, some splurge, some don't. Some feel safe with taking a lot of currency with them ( like me I now like to take £800-1000 worth) some only take cards. Whilst a large number of us like to take currency with us, there will always be posts on here where to buy at the best rate.

Doshwaster

Rather than a "north vs south" thing, I would say it is the difference between people who go might abroad once a year and treat it as a big deal and those who do it regularly and take it all in their stride.

If you aren't an experienced traveller then I can fully understand the appeal of hard cash. If you don't know when and where your next holiday will be then it makes more sense to change back any leftover money as soon as you get home. For others who may regularly "pop over to Spain for the weekend" things are different.

PeacefulWaters

rustyboy21 wrote: »

There are still a vast amount of people, who want to have local currency in the possession prior to landing in a foreign land, rather than have to find and feel comfortable in using an ATM, from a bank that they do not recognise, the chance of being done by cloning/fraud and the misunderstanding of exchange rates.

And, as a poster on a money saving site, I would say it's fair to point out to these people that there are better value for money ways of sorting out your spending overseas.

What they "want" is based on what they used to need. The really don't need it in 2014 for the overwhelming majority of travel destinations.

Not everyone lives down south and has the facility to get some of the recommended cards frequently stated on this site.

I spend a lot of time in the North. They have Post Offices there. And t'internet.

Some of us live 'Oop North' and are restricted in the type of cards we can get. Clarity is an exception.

As is Cumberland Building Society. Northerners are a canny bunch. They are capable of getting Caxton, Kalixa, Halifax, Capital One, Saga, Nationwide and whatever other deals are pointed out to them.

Other than Metro, I'm not really sure where you're going with this point of view because it's slightly bizarre.

An age old saying, stated a number of times by airline/tour operator staff on TV( and heard in person too). People who live up north, have a reasoning that going away on holiday and spending all you have taken with you means you have a good holiday, especially if you come back with nothing.

Travellers from Down South tended to go on holiday, then brag about how much money they came back with, saying look how much I have saved?.

Stereotyping at its absolute worst.

Holidays are different for everyone, some splurge, some don't. Some feel safe with taking a lot of currency with them ( like me I now like to take £800-1000 worth) some only take cards. Whilst a large number of us like to take currency with us, there will always be posts on here where to buy at the best rate.

If you want to chuck away £30-£50 on your currency every time you go away, that's your call.

But, as I said before, this is a money saving site. There are more cost effective ways and my northern friend will enjoy having an extra £30-£50 to spend on black puddings and tripe rather than subsidising the financial services industry with their hard earned cash.

jackieblack

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

For those who get the Clarity (or other decent card) concept but still like to have some local cash on them as they land the idea of ending your holiday with an ATM withdrawal at the departing airport should be considered.

I have a circle of friends/colleagues who insist on travelling with all their funds in cash and who invariably bring some of it back.
They all know that I will buy any leftover US$ from them at a rate which is more favourable to them than changing it back at their bank and more favourable to me than the rate I could purchase at.

As all spending goes on Clarity/Post Office/Santander Zero and we only use cash for incidentals and tipping I haven't needed to draw cash from an ATM for several years

YorkshireBoy

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

...my northern friend will enjoy having an extra £30-£50 to spend on black puddings and tripe

To quote your good self..."Stereotyping at its absolute worst".

PeacefulWaters

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

To quote your good self..."Stereotyping at its absolute worst".

And done quite deliberately to highlight how ridiculous the north / south argument was.

jackieblack wrote: »

I have a circle of friends/colleagues who insist on travelling with all their funds in cash and who invariably bring some of it back.
They all know that I will buy any leftover US$ from them at a rate which is more favourable to them than changing it back at their bank and more favourable to me than the rate I could purchase at.

As all spending goes on Clarity/Post Office/Santander Zero and we only use cash for incidentals and tipping I haven't needed to draw cash from an ATM for several years

An excellent way of squeezing the spreads to favour yourselves instead of the currency sellers.

zagfles

rustyboy21 wrote: »

There are still a vast amount of people, who want to have local currency in the possession prior to landing in a foreign land, rather than have to find and feel comfortable in using an ATM, from a bank that they do not recognise, the chance of being done by cloning/fraud and the misunderstanding of exchange rates.

Misunderstanding of exchange rates is more of a risk changing cash. And why do you think cloning/fraud is more likely in a foreign ATM? Suspicious of foreigners are you?

Not everyone lives down south and has the facility to get some of the recommended cards frequently stated on this site. Some of us live 'Oop North' and are restricted in the type of cards we can get. Clarity is an exception.

What utter carp. I'm in Manchester and I've got several free cards.

Perhaps you misunderstand the purpose of this website. The clue is in the title. Here we'll continue to recommend the best way of saving money, which in general for travel means using cards not changing cash. If you're not interested in saving money, go post on I'llDoThingsMyWayEvenIfItWastesMoney.com.

Or perhaps you simply shouldn't bother travelling at all, if you're worried about foreigners defrauding you, or bragging southerners. Or use TravelTipsForXenophobes.com.