First Time Traveller with a Q about currency

I wouldn't bother with travellers cheques - they tend to be an administrative pain in the neck and don't usually attract a decent exchange rate.

Credit cards should never be used to withdraw money from an ATM, as that's a cash advance and will attract a punitive rate of interest. A credit card can be handy for paying for services such as tours but note that most credit card companies charge a commission of at least 3% for using the card overseas, plus the company you're buying from may also chuck on their own commission (very common in South America). There are some credit cards that claim to not charge the foreign usage commission, e.g. Halifax Clarity, however I haven't used one of those cards personally and I've no idea what their base exchange rates are like. If you so wish, you'll be able to use your credit card all over the place in Australia and New Zealand, but I wouldn't expect to be able to rely on it elsewhere on your travels (though when you say you need pesos, it's not clear where you're going - there are at least 8 countries whose currency is called the peso, including Mexico :-))

I never used my debit card to pay for services when I was travelling - I only used it as an ATM card, however I would guess the way the parent bank treats both kinds of transactions will be the same (hopefully someone else can chip in on this). I think currently most ATM cards charge a 3% foreign usage commission, and you may also have to pay a fixed fee for using a particular ATM. Check with your bank what their fees will be, as well as their base exchange rates.

For a long time, the Nationwide ATM card was the best one to have because there was no foreign usage fee, however I think they'll be charging a 2% fee from November this year. That's probably still lower than most banks.

There seems to be a rising level of interest in prepaid cards such as those offered by Fairfx, Caxton, and (I think) the Post Office. These still charge a foreign usage fee (I think Fairfx's fee is 1.5%) but it's lower than most banks. Unfortunately you also need to take the base exchange rate into account when figuring out who's offering the best deal. I haven't used one of these cards but, on the face of it, they might be a better alternative to a standard ATM card.

Finally, it's always good to carry some cash with you (preferably US $, though pounds or euros are a decent alternative) as a back-up.

In short, I would recommend taking one credit card (preferably one that doesn't charge extra for foreign usage), two ATM cards (preferably one on the Visa network and one on the Mastercard network), and a couple of hundred US $ for emergencies. Do some research into prepaid cards and see whether they offer a good alternative, in which case take one instead of one of the ATM cards.

HTH Reply to this

oh and make sure you have an email in your inbox which has all your card numbers written down and all the emergency phone numbers for you card companys. print a few copies for you bag as well.

on a positive note, I found my card companies pretty good when I was in trouble and they quickly got money to me across the world.

another tip is that it often recommends taking dollars to countries, i have found euros are just as good if you want a bit of cash just in case. plus they are more useful back in europe Reply to this

the fake wallet idea is really good Dominick, might start doing that myself in future Reply to this

Fake credit cards, where does somewhere get their hands on one of those? It sounds like an excellent decoy. Reply to this

I've rarely seen such excellent advice given in response to a travelblog question...even down to having recent $US bills to pay for visas. And I especially appreciate Dominick's comment "I am going around the world for the second time starting in about six weeks - the daydreaming and planning parts are almost as good as the actual traveling! I can stare at a world map for hours, experimenting with itineraries...have fun!" That's exactly what I do! Have a great trip Ceri!
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I took a credit card and a debit card last time. After reading about people here using credit cards to get money from an ATM, I asked my sister how to do it. She told me to get a PIN for my credit card, but to try hard not to use it as that money is considered a cash advance and you pay interest on it starting immediately. So I did as she suggested, and only used the credit card twice, once when the debit card didn't work, the other when I needed more than the limit to pay for a airline ticket. The bonus - I sent a text to my sister to pay the credit card the same day, so only ended up with a four dollar interest fee. It certainly helps to have someone you trust at home to help in things like this.

I also like the idea of a fake wallet. Will definitely try it out next time. Reply to this

If you will be gone a long time you may want to set up automatic bill pay and go ahead and schedule regular payments to your credit card company. There will be many times where you have internet access but don't want to sign on-- it won't be safe.

I agree with everyone that the ATM is the best way to go. Reply to this