I don’t know if I am just an oddball, but I charge everything to my credit card. And I mean, everything, when I could. I just don’t like to deal with loose change, period. When I am out and about, I don’t carry much cash. I might carry a little more cash (generally no more than $100) when I travel out of the state. I don’t personally see the need to carry too much cash when you can go to an ATM if needed.
What About When Traveling Abroad?
It’s slightly different when I travel aboard, though not by much. I tend to get a couple of hundred of dollars in the local currency (in small denominations) before I travel. That way, I can hit the ground running and have cash to pay for taxi and other incidentals.
I’d also carry my ATM card since the exchange rates are more favorable, along with at least two no-fee for foreign transaction credit cards, just in case. This has never failed me — at least until earlier this year.
What Went Wrong?
It’s no excuse, but I had tons of things to take care of before flying out to attend my grandfather’s funeral. In the rush of everything, I completely forgot to set a travel alert with my bank.
Things started off fine. I had some local currency on hand for incidentals, and I was even able to withdraw $100 from the airport’s ATM machine at arrival.
The next time I tried, my request got rejected. I checked my available balance. It should have worked.
I realized I forgot to notify my bank and I promptly went online to add a travel alert. I tried again a couple of hours later.
Rejected. Checked my available balance again. I should be able to withdraw.
Since I only have one ATM card, I called up my bank. The rep looked through my account and confirmed that everything was in order. He assured me that he could see my travel alerts, and that he removed and cleared any holds/security alerts. He said I should have no problem withdrawing from an ATM.
I tried to take money out the next morning at a ATM machine near the hotel. Rejected again. Ugh. I checked my balance again. Yes, I have available balance.
Stopped by another ATM machine. Also rejected.
Finally, I gave up trying to get money out of the ATM card. Luckily, I had some cash that I exchanged with the hotel’s front desk.
The worst part: It turned out that I got charged every time I checked my available balance. It’s a “transaction” fee (those darn fine prints that I apparently didn’t pay enough attention to).
In Summary
Remember to set a travel alert with your bank before you travel.
It’s also probably a good idea to exchange a little more in local currency before the trip even if the exchange rates aren’t as favorable. Or carry a few more bills for unexpected hiccups with the plastics. Just in case.
I should add that I recently came across a news story where CBP seized about $58,000 in life savings from an Albanian family at the Cleveland airport. Contrary to beliefs, it’s not illegal to carry large sums of cash. However, if you’re going to carry more than $10,000 in monetary instruments when traveling in and out of the states, you need to declare the asset with CBP.
Of course, if you are carrying $10 million in currency through airports, you really shouldn’t be too surprised if you end up getting investigated or arrested.
Do you have any particular system that has worked out really well for you when you travel aboard? Sound off below!
I carry as little as possible but like to have $20-50 worth of local currency for situations where a street vendor or small shop doesn’t accept credit cards. As a rule of thumb, never convert currency at the airport, always use bank ATMs, and make sure you’re using an ATM card that reimburses for foreign ATM fees.
It is good idea to have more then one ATM card. Open a Charles Schwab bank account and can take out money at any ATM worldwide and get the ATM’s fees refunded and the exchange rate is always the exact exchange rate.
Everyone should really have at least three bank accounts with ATM cards. I have one that I do all my serious banking with (pay bills etc) and two that have a couple thousand dollars that I use at ATM machines. Never use the serious bank account at ATMs.
Also ask you bank to give you a ATM card that is not a debit card for your serious bank account. Your bank might not want to give you this but demand that they do. Why on earth would you want to have a debit card linked to your serious bank account.
Also watch out when using your credit card the merchant might have you paying in USD instead of the local currency. Always choose local currency. But merchants can be sneaky and choose USD for you without giving you a choice. Look out for that and tell them to redo it in the local currency. Big scam.
Very good points. I also signed up for the Charles Schwab checking account and put money in there as a “vacation fund” and only use that ATM card while traveling but I also bring another ATM card just in case. I never exchange cash at the airport because I know the rates are terrible instead I’ll head to the nearest ATM machine and take money out. It is also wise to have a little bit of local currency with you if you’re able to get it prior to your trip.
All really good money tips. Thanks for sharing. And yes, always pay in local currency when using cc in foreign countries.
I don’t know about having 3 accounts with ATM cards, though. It was already a pretty epic day when I got my first and only. I am not kidding when I say I charge everything. 🙂 I probably should get at least one more given what happened.
Thanks for reading and great comment