Trip Tip a Day

Tip of the day: Research the foreign transaction surcharges on your credit cards and see what your bank ATM charges for international withdrawls AND their currency conversion surcharge. I didn't want to carry large amounts of cash to Europe in hopes of finding a better exchange rate overseas. So, for us it came down to a combination that relied heavily on the Travelex Cash Passport supplemented with a bit of VISA credit card use. In my pre-trip research, the Capital One card kept coming up as the card to take to Europe with no conversion fees or surcharges. Here's a little article from USA Today from May 2009 that looks at the credit card/debit card issue: http://www.usatoday.com/travel/deals/inside/2009-05-21-best-overseas-credit-card_N.htm Just check it out before you go so you don't have any surprises on your bills when you get home.

Tip of the day: Consider the Travelex Prepaid Currency Cash Passport Card Back in the day, carrying Traveler's Cheques was the way to go to Europe. Many countries, many different currencies. N o l o n g e r t h e c a s e . Now, for Western Europe you need the Euro, Swiss Francs for Switzerland, and the Pound for England. There is alot of info on the internet about money and travel to Europe (use ATMs, make sure you have a 4 digit pin, take a credit card with low to no surcharge for foreign transactions). I am going to tell you what worked for us in July 2009. The Travelex Cash Passport. If you load $2500 USD onto the Cash Passport, you'll get a better USD-Euro exchange rate than the current counter rate. We used the card in stores, restaurants, and at ATMs to withdraw Euros. It was smooth and easy. The card offers protection in case it is lost or stolen. My daughter and I each carried a card that linked to same account so we could move separately and have access to ...