Prepaid Travel Cards guide

Jptravel wrote: »

Hi, my son's setting off for a year in Java for study abroad in a few weeks. Credit cards don't seem an option because he's a student so has low credit score.

We were thinking of a Revolut card for card spending and a Caxton FX card for ATM withdrawals (because not ATM use fee)

We were also wondering about me getting a Caxton card in my name with him as additional card holder so I CD get cash to him quickly in emergencies

Any advice or better suggestions very gratefully received.

Thanks all

https://www.starlingbank.com/travel/

https://loot.io as a back up card.

For credit cards, look at Aqua Advance or Aqua Reward for purchases, hotels etc; https://www.aquacard.co.uk/credit-cards/ or perhaps even https://tandem.co.uk/credit-card/

barryheffron wrote: »

DOH! I don't know how i missed that!!!

I should have read it more carefully as i think i read it as the Loot one coming in 3 days!

I have received the Revolut and Loot cards in the post, still waiting on the Starling one.

So would i be best seeing if the Starling one comes by Monday and using it and then keep the others as back up in case it doesn't arrive?

If it doesn't which card of those two would be best to use?

I see you recommended Loot as a backup to another user above so i would assume it was that, unless there was a specific reason for their son to use Loot, maybe due to how they would be using it?

I had to add £10 to the Revolut one to open it so if i go for Loot can i transfer the £10 back to my current account?

They also charged me the £4.99 delivery charge but that is hopefully being refunded.

If the Starling card doesn't arrive on time, you are still in good stead with Revolut/Loot.

Loot is like a standard debit card in that you load it up with £s and then spend in whatever currency, getting the full Mastercard exchange rate. Very good. You can also make two ATM withdrawals abroad per month at no cost. Watch out for ATM that try to trick you into being charged in Pounds, rather than Euros. You always want to pay and be charged in Euros. Spain used to be rife with the charging in Pounds trickery.

Revolut is slightly different. I don't use mine any more, but it allows you to spend during the weekdays at a 'spot rate', a possibly better rate than even the Mastercard exchange rate. In addition, if exchange rates are volatile, it allows one to immediately swap the Pounds in your account to Euros or US$. So you can hold that currency instead of Pounds. One caveat is that you can only withdraw £200 per month from ATMs abroad.
But between Loot and Revolut, you should be fine. Just take out as much cash as you think that you will need from Loot over the two free ATM withdrawals and then try to pay for everything with the cards when you can. Keeping the cash for cash only transactions.

In this way, you should be able to avoid any foreign exchange or ATM fee/trickery.

barryheffron wrote: »

Would it be an idea to use the Revolut card during the week then and use the Loot card at the weekend???

Then i can benefit from the Revolut rate, withdraw up to £200 if needed and then at the weekend i can use one ATM withdrawal on Sat and one on Sunday if needed.

Assuming my Starling card doesn't arrive otherwise i will just use it exclusively as i'm assuming it avoids the hurdles with the other two above.

It's an idea, though the Loot rate is good enough. Starling rate will be the same as the Loot rate.