Travel credit card for Thailand? Advice needed

Charliebear64

Hello all 😊 First time posting, could anyone advise me please?

I’m going to Thailand in April for 2 weeks and want a card to use for everything. My plan is to use the card for booking accommodation and transport before we go, as well as paying for things by card when there and withdrawing Baht. I went before about 7 years ago and used a Caxton card, I still have it actually therefore that is an option but I know there are lots available on the market.

I really want to keep everything on one card as I don’t want the hassle of having payments randomly being taken out of my account (the website I’m using for accommodation says pay at the hotel but oftentimes it comes out before). So the idea was to put what I’ve saved onto the card. Also, I got charged a ridiculous amount by BOS this year when I gave my card over to the hotel for payment in the Canary Islands.

I’m pretty much looking for free withdrawals and free purchases - is this possible? I’ve seen the Monzo card is meant to be good for overseas but I don’t trust it due to recent publicity plus the withdrawal limit is £200 and you never know.

Also, I’m recently out of debt and cleared all my cards and left myself with one Barclays card so I’d really rather a prepaid debit card but am aware that some places only accept credit card and don’t want to run into hassle over there. I wouldn’t impulse spend, I’m just loathe to open another.

Cheers for any ideas 👍

Voyager2002

On CASH, remember that most Thai ATMs charge a lot (I think five pounds) per withdrawal. So you might do better to bring some pound bank-notes and exchange at the money-changers.

I cannot imagine any merchant accepting a credit card but not a debit card: this might only be an issue for car hire, and no-one in their right mind would hire a car in Thailand. So a prepaid Visa or Mastercard ought to do most of what you need.

Charliebear64

Thanks Voyager2002!

I’d forgotten about the high charges for withdrawing out there. Must bear that in mind.

With the debit/credit - I’ve heard before of people having issue booking accommodation with a debit card. All of ours will be pre-booked, but just on the off chance we have a change of plans. I suppose in that situation I’d just use my ordinary card and take the hit.

EveryWhere

£5.64 ATM withdrawal charge, currently.
In addition, some Thai vendors may try to charge a percentage for card usage.

https://www.starlingbank.com/travel/ is your best bet for a travel debit card.
A possible option is withdrawing cash over a bank's counter. For that you'll need your passport for the purpose of identification. Some banks will refuse this service to debit card holders.

For a credit card with not too high a bar; https://www.tandem.co.uk/credit-cards

You can use it for withdrawals abroad and purchases.

cubegame

When we went we got a cash advance at Bangkok airport. All the bank booths have signs saying no charges. However, they will charge you the withdrawal fee. Take a photo of the signs and then claim it back from the card issuer.

Voyager2002

cubegame wrote: »

When we went we got a cash advance at Bangkok airport. All the bank booths have signs saying no charges. However, they will charge you the withdrawal fee. Take a photo of the signs and then claim it back from the card issuer.

If you are that desperate, you can hunt down one of the ATMs that does not charge. When I was last there, Citibank had a free ATM conveniently located near to where I was staying on Sukhumvit.

EveryWhere

cubegame wrote: »

When we went we got a cash advance at Bangkok airport. All the bank booths have signs saying no charges. However, they will charge you the withdrawal fee. Take a photo of the signs and then claim it back from the card issuer.

Perhaps you can post the picture here, for reference. I certainly have no idea as to what you refer.
Are you referring to a cash advance over the counter of a bank's exchange booth or are you referring to ATMs?

As far as I know there are no booths for banking services, only for currency exchange.

Anyone wishing to exchange money at the airport, should head down to the 'B' floor; https://www.thai.lt/blog/134-where-to-get-the-best-foreign-exchange-rates-at-suvarnabhumi-airport

Never transact anywhere else.

I wouldn't depend on claiming the £5.64 back from ATM transactions when you are informed both on the ATM screen and your receipt.

Hopefully cubegame will come back with the picture they took and used to get their money back.

Doshwaster

To be honest, cash is king in Thailand. Many small shops, bars and restaurants won't take credit cards or charge you a fee.

Certainly take a travel-friendly credit card for booking hotels/flights and as an emergency backup but otherwise I'd just use cash as much as possible. Also, if you do take cash to exchange there you will get a slightly better rate for 50 pound notes (as long as they are in mint condition) rather than tenners or twenties.

cubegame

EveryWhere wrote: »

Perhaps you can post the picture here, for reference. I certainly have no idea as to what you refer.
Are you referring to a cash advance over the counter of a bank's exchange booth or are you referring to ATMs?

As far as I know there are no booths for banking services, only for currency exchange.

Anyone wishing to exchange money at the airport, should head down to the 'B' floor; https://www.thai.lt/blog/134-where-to-get-the-best-foreign-exchange-rates-at-suvarnabhumi-airport

Never transact anywhere else.

I wouldn't depend on claiming the £5.64 back from ATM transactions when you are informed both on the ATM screen and your receipt.

Hopefully cubegame will come back with the picture they took and used to get their money back.

Did I say I took a photo?

All I remember was that it was a Siam Commercial Bank booth with signs saying no commission or fees. The counter assistant then proceeded to charge me a fee BUT gave me two receipts, one with the fee and one without.

I used the receipt without the fee to reclaim the overcharge.

EveryWhere

cubegame wrote: »

Did I say I took a photo?

All I remember was that it was a Siam Commercial Bank booth with signs saying no commission or fees. The counter assistant then proceeded to charge me a fee BUT gave me two receipts, one with the fee and one without.

I used the receipt without the fee to reclaim the overcharge.

No one knows what you did, since you did not explain.

So now, after your explanation, we know that you took a cash advance over the counter of an SCB bank booth.

SCB are notorious for charging an 'administration fee' for cash advances over the counter. Was 180 baht the last time I heard. I would not be surprised if they have increased it to 220 baht.
They would always be my last choice. AFAIR, they were the first to introduce an ATM fee in the first place.

Many banks will refuse a cash advance using a debit card. Instead pointing you towards an ATM. Credit cards are usually accepted. The 'admin fee' is SCB's way of not refusing your custom.

cubegame

EveryWhere wrote: »

No one knows what you did, since you did not explain.

With respect, it was probably perfectly clear to most.