Credit Card Charges Abroad

Cirius_2

Hi there,

I'm going to Bremen for 5 days in June and will have to pay for about half of the holiday costs (such as the hotel bill) on my credit card as I won't have enough saved up in cash. Does anyone have any suggestions on how best to avoid potential charges for spending abroad. I have Capital One and Vanquis credit cards and doubt I would get approved for any of the lower interest rate cards.

Thanks.

dzug

The charges for using your credit card (typically 2.75%) will be less than you will incur getting your cash in advance (typically 5% though can be less if you shop around) . I wouldn't worry about them.

Just don't get cash out with your credit card - there's usually an extra charge for that, plus interest.

knightstyle

In this mornings post we had an application form for the new Abbey credit card called Zero. Claims no fee for cash withdrawals or purchases abroad. Might be worth popping into your local branch.

bignred05

Get yourself a Nationwide either a

Flexaccount, you have your English money in this account then you can withdraw your money abroad at any atm "FREE"

or get a

Nationwide Visa card or a Post Office Visa Card, they also don't charge abroad

pretty sure all these are recommended by MSE

after being caught out last summer I have now got both, will not get caught out again, thats for sure

dwileflunker

bignred05 wrote: »

Get yourself a Nationwide either a

Flexaccount, you have your English money in this account then you can withdraw your money abroad at any atm "FREE"

or get a

Nationwide Visa card or a Post Office Visa Card, they also don't charge abroad

pretty sure all these are recommended by MSE

after being caught out last summer I have now got both, will not get caught out again, thats for sure

The Flexaccount or Nationwide Visa is probably as good as anything for travelling abroad and reducing charges. If you travel a lot try Thomas Cook credit card, there's no loading for use abroad and you get 1% back on all purchases which you can spend at Thomas Cook. I'm not sure how the interst rates compare but if you clear your balance evey month it's better than most.

knightstyle

These are not credit cards! Abbey Zero is a credit card with NO Charges for cash withdrawals or purchases abroad. No annual fee and 0% on all purchases for first 6 months. Can any other CREDIT card beat that?

arealhighlander

knightstyle wrote: »

These are not credit cards! Abbey Zero is a credit card with NO Charges for cash withdrawals or purchases abroad. No annual fee and 0% on all purchases for first 6 months. Can any other CREDIT card beat that?

So where do they make their money?? Does it mean that they will give you a poorer exchange rate instead? Has anyone spotted the catch yet - there must be one! They will not be doing it for free

Personally I use Nationwide Flex account for cash withdrawals and Post Office credit card for purchases. I only use these for holidays.

Voyager2002

The OP said that he did not think he would be approved for the more desirable credit cards. So, while Nationwide offer an excellent deal, they are unlikely to be suitable (they only accept customers with excellent credit records).

I suspect that it is easier to get a Post Office card than a Nationwide card, so that is one avenue to pursue. And the Abbey Zero card certainly sounds like a good deal. The 'catch', the way they make their money, is to use these good terms to build a relationship with you and then hope that you will buy other services from them.

Donnie

arealhighlander wrote: »

So where do they make their money?? Does it mean that they will give you a poorer exchange rate instead? Has anyone spotted the catch yet - there must be one! They will not be doing it for free

Personally I use Nationwide Flex account for cash withdrawals and Post Office credit card for purchases. I only use these for holidays.

Abbey Zero:

25.9 per cent APR on cash advances (calculated from the day of withdrawal)

Francophile

knightstyle wrote: »

These are not credit cards! Abbey Zero is a credit card with NO Charges for cash withdrawals or purchases abroad. No annual fee and 0% on all purchases for first 6 months. Can any other CREDIT card beat that?

Just be careful. Although Abbey won't charge for withdrawing cash abroad they will charge interest on it from the day you withdraw it as with any cash withdrawal, home or away. There are no charges for purchases so best to use this card just for purchases.

mrooke

I like the sound of the Abbey Zero card.

The off putting part is the high interest rate, which is applied the mninute you withdraw cash from an ATM.

Is it possible to have a credit balance on the account, covering your projected spending, thereby dodging the interest charge?