We learned the hard way that Citicard has a 3-4% surcharge for any international purchases (and according to the rep I spoke with, this is true for all of their cards). Luckily we had only made one purchase (our Paris hotel) but we do not want to use this card during our 19 day trip.

Is there another credit card we can sign up for that will not have a similar surcharge? I also have a Bank of America credit/debit card and will look into whether they have fees.

What do you recommend? What have you used? (and if all cards have these fees, is there a good alternative?)

TYIA!

(we will be in Italy and France)

Look into credit unions. The two credit unions I have charge 1%.

Try the Capital One World Card.

Schwab Invest First Visa Credit Card:
http://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/...ng/credit_card

1) No annual fee
2) No foreign exchange fee
3) 2% cash-back

Schwab also has a ATM card with zero foreign exchange fee.

YK's got it right. I just used my Schwab ATM in Greece with no charges whatsoever. In fact, there was a problem at first and I had to use a backup card that charged me $10 for one transaction and Schwab refunded the whole amount to me.

Capital One - available to most folks
UBS American Express debit/credit card (for account holders)

If by any chance you are a member of USAA (meaning you have at least one insurance policy with USAA) you can obtain a Visa or MC through their USAA Saving Bank which only has the 1% Visa or MC charge and nothing more. And if you have a checking account with their USAA Savings Bank you will not be pay any ATM charge and if some other bank charges you USAA will reimburse you..up to something like 10 ATM charges per month.

I am not certain but I think the Citi rep misinformed. If you are a Gold Cti customer I thinnks it's free. Just in case you are.
Call & ask for the Citigold desk if you are already a Gold customer.

My CapOne is called a Platinum account. I do think that they told me that none of their cards had transaction fees. You might double check that, though.

I go to France often. I use it for everything and never a transaction fee.

Joan

The only disadvantage with USAA is that it is not available to everyone. If you qualify:

1. Checking accounts pay interest, have no service fees, include free on-line banking and bill pay, and any ATM withdrawal fees are reimbursed (there is a more than reasonable limit however the 1% currency conversion fee of Cirrus/Pulse is not reimbursed). You can also make deposits by scanning checks with your personal computer and sending the deposit "on line".

2. Credit cards have no fees and are available with a "cash back" option of 1.25% (the 1% currency conversion free of Visa/MC is not reimbursed).

Overall the USAA package is very attractive.

These are the qualifications for membership with USAA:
https://www.usaa.com/inet/ent_utils/...me_member_main

thank you everyone! we will look into the Capital one and Schwab cards (we used to get 3% back on our Citicard but now that it's down to 1% we might switch to Schwab for everything if the card meets our needs)

I got the Capital One card for my last trip abroad last year. I applied online and had the card in my hand in less than a week. I normally use a Citi AAdvantage card (for the miles), but hate those obscene foreign exchange fees.

I always take Capital One to Europe- no fee. I just called the other day to make sure the policy wasn't changed and was assured they still do not charge the conversion fee.

yk is correct, the Schwab card is the best bet, with no fees and 2% cash back on all purchases. Otherwise, most Capital One cards do not add foreign exhange rate fees, so they are also preferable to most of the credit cards that we (Americans) have in our wallets for travel abroad. EJ

Capital One World Card. Be sure you contact whatever credit card company you deal with before your trip to let them know that you will be traveling.

If you live in Pennsylvania-PSECU -1%
Northwest Savings Bank-0%

I also applied for the CapitalOne card online prior to last fall's trip and received it within 2-3 weeks. Definitely check it out.

thanks everyone! we applied for the capital one card (and were approved) and are waiting for it to arrive. sucks that we had to pay those fees on 2 purchases but i'm glad we realized with enough time (hopefully) to sign up for a new card.

I’m part of USAA’s social media team and wanted to clarify a couple things. First, anyone can obtain USAA's deposit products, such as checking and savings accounts or certificates of deposit. Just give us a call at 1.800.531.8722, and we’ll be happy to help you.

As for the foreign transaction fee, USAA charges a 1% foreign transaction fee. Because of USAA’s commitment to serving the financial needs of our country’s military members, we will reimburse this fee for those who are deployed overseas.

From my recent experience, you'll be lucky to get anyone to take your credit card. Hardly anyone on Santorini would take our credit card, so we ended up just getting cash...which is OK also. Be sure to ask before you sit down at a restaurant if they take credit - or you may find yourself stuck like we were.