Halifax or Barclaycard for going abroad?

A_T wrote: »

I never go abroad with less than 3 cards (Clarity, Santander Zero, Post Office Platinum for purchases). ATMs abroad can be very hit and miss.

Excellent advice. We've had two many threads along the lines of:

I went to XXX and took Martin's advice and got a XXX card. One night it was refused in a shop. Can you imagine how humiliated I felt? Everybody was looking at me as if I was a criminal. I went to an ATM and guess what. It didn't work again. Terrible service! I was left stranded and fuming. Couldn't get a taxi and to walk back to the hotel. I rang the bank and held for ages. The call cost me £30. Eventually they unblocked it. A whole day ruined. I phoned XXX when I got back and told them about their awful service. I want compensation for my spoilt day, the humiliation and call costs but they were very rude on the phone...

Some cards just don't work in some machines. Some cards trigger a local charge in an ATM, others don't. Cards can be lost, stolen, maxxed out, expired, swallowed, blocked or, rarely, retained by a merchant. If a card is blocked it can be so much easier just using another one and sorting it out later when you have easier access to reliable, cheaper telephony. I remember a few years ago I was in Taiwan and Zero got blocked. I had skype set up and phoned Santander. The non-geographic number wouldn't work from Taiwan (as I expected). The "international" number wouldn't work, because I got a message saying that the number was only for people abroad. It seems Skype was presenting a UK number as I called. So, strange stuff happens!

I typically take the following cards for cash:

1. Clarity - £500 daily limit, no loading/fee - just interest.
2. Santander Zero - £300 daily limit, no loading/fee - just interest.
3. Barclaycard - £500 daily limit. 2.99% fixed fee, no additional loading. Up to 56 days interest free.

and the following for purchases:

1. Santander Zero - no loading.
2. Clarity - no loading.
3. Nationwide Select - no loading
4. Post Office - no loading.

I also carry the following:

1. MBNA - no special deals, but it has a 20K limit.
2. Amex Gold Chargecard - have some insurance. Use for £ purchases when aborad.
3. Nationwide debit* - to operate my card reader. (I carry two card readers.)

Depending on:

• where I am
• how much local cash I have
• where else I have to store cards

I carry 1 or 2 in my wallet and perhaps one more elsewhere on my person.

Remaining cards are either in a hotel safe, locked suitcase, with a trusted friend or in my office (overseas). This is probably all over the top for the average traveller. The above is where I'm away from the UK for 3 months or more and perhaps in multiple Asian countries.

*I do wish Nationwide could give me a card just to operate my card reader. I'm unhappy that I'm "forced" to carry a debit card all over the world when I have no intention of using the debit card functionality.

Biggles wrote: »

I'll remember that trick another time; if my cards aren't working, don't blame the bank, the machine or the phone line, just let someone else pay first.

Interesting. It's not just West Africa strange things happen, but in West Croydon too! (Cue some politically incorrect observations about the good folk of West Croydon...)

Occasionally I pick up multiple orders from this retailer and it suits them if I pay separately for each order. REGARDLESS of the amount of the transaction, it will only let me pay once. Further transactions are declined (at least for the period immediately following.) Perhaps I need to try your trick: let someone else pay before the later attempts.