What is the best way to spend money while on vacation?
 

Hello! My husband and I are taking our first overseas vacation in a couple of weeks to Ireland, and we are not quite sure which is the best way to travel with money. I've contacted our credit cards, and they all will be charged a 3% fee for every transaction that is charged while overseas. I wasn't sure if this is the norm when travelling, or if there is a better way to do it. Not sure if carrying cash would be a safe thing to do at all. We are very green, so I was wondering if anybody had any tips they could pass along on how to manage this. Thanks so much!!

If you do a search on the Europe and Asia boards you will find MANY threads on this topic.

Basic advice: use ATMs - but find out what your bank charges AND tell them you'll be traveling. If the fees are outrageous (if you bank with Wells Fargo, for instance) consider getting a Capital One or Credit union account for travel.

Credit cards - get a Capital One (0% fee) or Credit Union (1% fee) card. Aside from a few affinity cards, all other cards charge more than 1%. Again, tell the card issuer you will be traveling.

"<i>If you do a search on the Europe and Asia boards you will find MANY threads</i>"

Probably hundreds of threads just on the Europe forums. That 3% fee may sound like a lot -- but it is much less than you'd pay to convert cash in Ireland, or buying your € in the States.

Yes -- there are banks/cards that charge less. But even if you stick w/ the 3% from your current bank -- it is cheaper than most other options. Irish banks won't charge you to use their ATMs so the only extra fee is what your own bank charges for out-of-system withdrawals. Also -- if you belong to a credit union -- they often have the smallest (or no) fees.

But go over to the Europe forum -- you'll find TONS of info . . .

Thanks for the info! I will go search over on that side :)

I think the best plan is one with a few different options. I do carry USD cash (~300) that I could exchange in a pinch. But I primarily use my ATM card to withdraw local currency from a bank every few days. I take a credit card (or two) but mostly use that for only large expenses like to pay the hotel bill or in case of emergency.

In some situations travelers checks still work.

Suze's strategy is what I do too. I've never actually had to exchange my USD, but I like having it as a back up. I also take 2 credit cards from different accounts and 2 ATM cards for different accounts.

On a trip to Madrid last year, one ATM card wouldn't work at the airport ATM, but the other did. I called the bank to see what the problem was - turns out when I called them before to let them know about my travel, only one account got flagged. The other account had no travel note attached, so when I tried to use it in Madrid, a fraud alert was issued and the card wouldn't work. Once I talked to the bank, it worked just fine. In a pinch, I could have called the bank from the airport and gotten it resolved right then, but it was nice to have another card to use and then sort things out with the bank later (i.e. the next day after I had a good night's sleep rather than right after coming off 15 hours of travel).

When I 'exchange' USD for local currency, true that's been in places like Mexico or Jamaica, not Europe (where I use ATM exclusively).

Remember you need a little USD for the trip home, especially if you are transfering flights in a US airport, or need cab fare home.

For Aussies like me Credit Card is way cheapest; and worrying about budgeting is something we do on the other 44 weeks of the year!