texankelly

I'm traveling to Europe, and am not sure what to do for a debit/credit card. I know in the US you use Capital One, but we dont have them where I live. What's the cheapest way to do this? Do we take travelers check? If so where do we get them?
Thanks! I need help!!!!

teacherCanada

texankelly - You are correct. You need an American address to obtain a Capital One card with the features you want. I am not aware of any Canadian credit card that has those features. Most people on Fodor's discourage traveller's cheques because of the 5 - 7% costs attached to using them (as well as the difficulty getting them cashed). We have always found a debit card to a Canadian bank with (interac or cirrus logos) works well. The card should be tagged to a chequing account (not savings) and have a 4 digit PIN (which you remember by numbers (not letters). Many key pads in Europe have only numbers (no letters), so remembering your PIN doesn't work if you use a 4 letter word. You should also inform your bank (or credit card issuer) when and where you will be travelling internationally. They may freeze the card if they suspect it is being used fraudulently.

There are lots of discussions on this topic on the Europe forum right now, but most of them are from an American point of view. There is little regard for the Canadian banking situation.

Many people take a small amount of cash (maybe 100 Euro) with them when they travel, then use debit (ATM) or credit cards for their financial transactions when they are in Europe.

Good luck.

tC

OceanBreeze1

I spoke w/ my Bank Manager about this on Friday. He said to get Travellers' Cheques in US denominations for European travel. This surprised me....US dollars in Europe???
He said that often our bank debit cards do not work in Europe.
He suggested a combo of Travellers' Cheques, cash, debit card & Visa. And, notify Visa that the card will be used in Europe during a certain time frame. And, ditto for your bank for the debit card.

laverendrye

Your bank manager either doesn't know what he is talking about or is looking to make some money for his bank.

As teacherCanada advised, travellers' cheques are virtually obsolete in Europe and difficult to cash there. Buying US dollar cheques just adds to your cost, as you bear the cost of conversion to US dollars and then to Euros (or other European currency). You will get a better exchange rate with a debit card and at my bank the Interac fee is the same as when using a Canadian bank other than my own. I've been using a debit card when travelling in Europe for over 15 years and cannot ever recall it not working.

The only reason you might wish to buy travellers' cheques is as a reserve in case you lose your credit and debit cards. Buy them, don't cash them except in an emergency, and then return them to the bank at the end of the trip.

texankelly

This sounds like good advice. Thanks! I'll see what we can do as far as our debit card. Another question is do you need a debit card to go to Europe, or is a credit card ok?

laverendrye

I use both, the debit card for cash and the credit card for larger charges. Remember that there is usually a 3% foreign currency surcharge on most if not all credit cards issued by Canadian banks and that if you use a credit card for cash it will accumulate interest immediately.

OceanBreeze1

laverendrye, everything that you say makes perfect sense to me. I am now doubtful of any advice my bank manager has ever given!!

traveller69

I do the same as laverendrye but my bank is HSBC and being an international bank I found their ATM's all over Europe and other areas of the world. There is no ATM charge and makes it very convenient. I just take out what I need for smaller purchases for a couple of days so you don't have to carry a lot of cash around. HSBC will give you a listing of the countries where their banks are located.

teacherCanada

texankelly - I agree wholeheartedly with laverendrye. Do avoid using your credit card for cash advances if possible - use the debit card for cash. Use the credit card for purchases of size. Always try to keep some cash with you. Be prudent and cautious when using an ATM. Have a great trip.

tC

kodi

Ocean, I do think your bank manager is way behind the times.

Open an account at Bank of NOva Scotia. They have a global alliance with banks all over the world and you can use your bank card with NO fees.
Many people don't know about this alliance, and even the employees don't seem to know about it. When I was going to New Zealand, my friend went into a branch to open an account, and inconversation mentioned why.. The clerk had never heard of it.. so don't be put off.

I have used my Scotia card without any problem. If you happen to be in a country where there is no alliance, the fee is $5.00 to make a withdrawel.

If you go to ...scotiabank.ca and do a search for 'global alliance' it will take you to a site that lists all the banks they are affiliated with. ( I tried to do a copy and paste, but failed)
In the US it's Bank of America, for anyone travelling there.

Tarveller69, good to know about HSBC too.

OceanBreeze1

kodi, this is strange....my bank is BNS! Why the heck didn't the Manager tell me about this???

MargrietVanderBanck

Here's the Scotiabank webpage on the Global ATM Alliance: http://www.scotiabank.com/cda/conten..._LIDen,00.html. You can use ATMs for Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, and Westpac (in Australia) without having to pay Scotiabank's international access fee (you still pay their conversion fee).

kodi

I'm telling you Ocean, even the people that work there don't know about it, unless they are travellers. Look at the website ...thanks Margriet... and you will be surprised at all the banks they have an alliance with.

BTW, there are even Scotiabanks in Chile.

Martiet, not sure what you mean about the conversion fee. I've always got a pretty good rate and no fees tacked on.

Lynda_bcn

Travellers cheques were never as convenient for travelling in Europe as USdollar cheques were in the States as in Europe it always involved having to get them cashed at a bank or a hotel, you couldn't just spend them in a shop or restaurant. Consequently it's been years since travellers in Europe chose them routinely. The introduction of the euro has simplified things too as there are so many fewer times you need to change money as youcross borders.
I normally get some foreign currency for the first expenses (I'd suggest for you 300€ as it's not a security risk and covers more than the first taxi fare). Better not to have to search for an ATM as soon as you land, jetlagged and burdened with luggage. But don't buy euros at the airport: exchange bureaux at airports always have rip-off rates so try and order from your bank. BTW there's a daily limit for ATM withdrawals which isn't very high really so you will need to use debit and credit cards.

teacherCanada

kodi - great to see your voice again. I hope you enjoyed your time down south. Have you prepared a little report for the rest of us to enjoy?

tC

kodi

Not yet, Teacher... soon. I promise. I'm so glad winter was gentle to me on my return.

Gavin

As a plan "C" in case both your ATM card(s) and credit card(s) mysteriously fail to work in Europe you can change Canadian dollars at storefront currency exchange businesses. I have never had use this plan "C" but having a few Canadian 20s in my pocket is easy to do. The idea of taking USD travelers cheques is completely 1970s!

When considering costs don't just look at the annoying visible $5 ATM fee that many banks charge you also have to consider the exchange rate that is being used. I used to think I was being clever using an ATM card from my credit union because they only charge $2 until I crunched the numbers and found that I was getting a less favourable exchange rate than CIBC was giving me. So in spite of CIBC's $5 ATM fee the overall costs to me were similar.

texankelly

Thanks everyone! I got a debit and credit card at Scotia bank. That seems to be the best! The lady there didn't know about it so I had to tell her where to find it on their website.

kodi

Good news Texan. I think you will be pleased with it. I have never had a problem.
Have a good trip.

Jim143

Some great advice here which answers a lot of my questions. I'm going to open an account at Scotia Bank for a debit card.
Not clear on the credit card though. I have a Royal Bank VISA now. Is there any advantage in changing to Scotia VISA?