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that right? so in my example (withdrawing our £1000 spending money on holiday) itd cost us £16? doesnt seem such a good deal to me, i may just be naive tho.
If you've got a debit card why carry cash in the first place? With Revolut I've only ever withdrawn enough cash to cover minor incidentals - meals, drinks, trips, shopping etc all go on the card.
If you’ve got a debit card why carry cash in the first place? With Revolut I’ve only ever withdrawn enough cash to cover minor incidentals – meals, drinks, trips, shopping etc all go on the card.
firstly, im led to believe that theres a fee for each transaction (not sure how much tho) and moneysavingexpert advice is to use clarity or revolut etc over a debit card.
secondly, in greece we prefer to pay with cash as thats what all the taverna owners prefer. we also get discounts by booking accommodation direct and using cash on arrival.
secondly, in greece we prefer to pay with cash as thats what all the taverna owners prefer. we also get discounts by booking accommodation direct and using cash on arrival.
Not sure how recently you went or where you go but in Athens over Christmas new year many places wouldn't take cash.
I guess much of this is it turns out the rampant tax evasion made claiming covid relief very difficult.
£1000 spending money on holiday) itd cost us £16?
Not many methods I know of where you’ll pay less than 1.6%, and still get an ok conversion rate.
I wrote
as to credit cards versus debit many car hire co’s and some hotel chains can be pretty awkward to impossible
intheborders
Which would you prefer to have onerous charges attached and/or frauded? Not your Bank Account is the answer. Use a CC.
I didn't put that too well - possibly for good reasons the OP didn't want to get a credit card - was trying to point out that there are places/situations that pretty much insist on a credit card... Even if don't use good to have available as a fall back and personally I'd use in preference to a bank account linked debit card any day but respect the OP's desires
Not sure how recently you went or where you go but in Athens over Christmas new year many places wouldn’t take cash.
crete last october, and everywhere preferred cash.
Not many methods I know of where you’ll pay less than 1.6%, and still get an ok conversion rate.
clueless really when it comes to things like this, i just accept the best advice (which is usually on here) 😀
so thats a decent cost for withdrawing that much then yep?
Someone mentioned a “Wise” (Previously Travelwise apparently) account to me over the weekend. It comes with an DR card and can be used all over the place.
I've had one of these accounts for a few years because i regularly transfer money between accounts in different countries (not like that).
Great transfer rates and really easy to use.
Anyone that I refer get's a discounted rate on their first +200GBP international transfer so PM me if you're interested 🙂
I ended up going with Revolut as per recommendations on here. Seems fairly painless and have transferred funds to it for the trip
Just waiting for the card to arrive and we're all good
im still trying to convince my wife that we should use revolut, however im not sure why. "because singletrack say so" is usually adequate but im not there yet 😀
i dont have the right answer for her, so could someone please let me know the answer to her question?
"why's it better than the clarity card that we've already got? just seems like more faff."
i tried the "yes but if theres a few of us out and we're splitting the bill its easier to just transfer to their cards in the right currency". to which she correctly replied that nobody else we know has one 😀
with Revolut my understanding is that if you withdraw more than GBP200 equivalent in a month from cash machines with a basic card then you get a 2% service charge….personally think this a pretty good deal compared to paying a sometimes unknown hefty fee
Not sure about that it sbeen a while since I regularly used it but when I signed up the fee didn't kick in until about £2-3000 I remember.
im still trying to convince my wife that we should use revolut, however im not sure why
I would say security and management of currencies / transactions.
[wifes voice] yes but is it actually more secure than a clarity card? and why do we need to manage currencies or transactions any better than the clarity card can do?
i can put them both in a hole in the wall and withdraw cash. and i can pay for goods just the same with them both.
why would i need to manage a currency any more than that? pay for stuff on clarity card, wait for bill and settle in full. [/wifes voice]
im still struggling to argue with my wifes point. is there something im missing? if the clarity card was lost or stolen could we lose more money for instance? i dont think so, as i think the limit is still £100 isnt it, and id guess a revolut card would almost certainly have that much on it at any one time too (and would also be contactless).....
and im guessing the difference in total cost of using either card for transactions/withdrawing over a 2 week period say would be negligible?
i get that it may be better if all of your mates had it too, but struggling to see a benefit over clarity apart from that.
thanks
As with anything, if you're happy with what you have, the benefit is going to be limited.
Are the rates better? (Honestly don't know)
Is it more secure? Well you were happy with wodges of notes, it's certainly more secure than that. Against clarity? Don't know, you can cancel/freeze etc the card very easily with the app, you can create single transaction ones should you be especially worried about somewhere/something cloning your card.
The big difference is "pay for stuff on clarity card, wait for bill and settle in full" doesn't apply, you're moving the cash first so you can't over spend, you can see exactly what you've spent immediately so when they accidentally over charge you know there and then, not at month end. In essence it's a no nasty surprises thing.
just been reading a moneysavingexpert comparison between various debit and credit cards. concentrating solely on use abroad, the clarity card which we already have states......
The Halifax Clarity is a long-term top pick as it has great feedback, no fees on overseas spending and low ATM interest.
You don't get charged interest on spending abroad as long as you repay IN FULL, but you will if you make cash withdrawals (about 5p per £100 per day) – so try to minimise these.
- No fees on spending or ATM withdrawals overseas
- 19.94%-27.94% interest on cash withdrawals, charged daily until it's paid off
- 19.9% rep APR
so altho there are no fees per se for withdrawing notes from a greek ATM, there IS interest to be paid daily, and even tho we always pay in full, im conscious that settling this can sometimes take the best part of 2 months for the statement to be sent out and then a few weeks given to pay it.
so a good card for purchases, but not withdrawing cash from an ATM. is that how you read it?
yet the starling card.....
Fee-free spending and cash withdrawals anywhere in the world. Like the Chase account above, Starling only does a 'soft' credit check (unless you also apply for an overdraft) – so if you don't get it, there won't be a permanent mark on your credit report.
If you're thinking of switching to Starling, or using it as your main bank account, read our full Starling review.
- No fees on spending or at ATMs- ATM limits: six per day, max £300/day
.....would appear to be totally free cash withdrawals and obviously no interest as its not credit? so a better choice than the clarity and revolut cards for taking money out abroad, yes?
i realise the amounts involved will only be small anyway, but just trying to get my head around the best way of using cash in greece without carrying 1000 euros around in a bag.
thanks
Revolut worked well, apart from 2 places that only took a local app or cash. Mostly though, worked like a charm.
It also messages you with how much you've spent on a given day etc.
revolut charges tho if you withdraw over £200 per month. we'd be looking at withdrawing around £1000 per holiday, maybe more. so im favouring starling which allows £300 per day with no charges i think.
Why cash if you have the card? I only took cash out twice, otherwise I just used the card.
I don't use cash in the UK, so see little point using it abroad
I always 1) put everything on Clarity CC where possible 2) take some cash, 3) load up my paid for Nationwide Flexplus account in order to make free ATM withdrawals when my cash is running out.
https://www.nationwide.co.uk/help/travel/charges-using-your-card-abroad/#withdrawals
If I wasn’t benefiting more widely from the paid account I’d find a fee free alternative like Revolut or whatever Martin recommends.
Golden rule at home or abroad is NEVER withdraw cash from an ATM using a credit card as you’ll be paying interest from day 1.
Why cash if you have the card? I only took cash out twice, otherwise I just used the card.
I don’t use cash in the UK, so see little point using it abroad
we go to crete twice a year, the tavernas and local car hire prefer cash so we're happy to use it there.
any other countries, we'd use a card.
local car hire prefer cash
I'm sure they do but I'd tell them to f++k off or I'd go somewhere else! 🤔
Seriously, who would pay cash for car hire! Madness...
I’m sure they do but I’d tell them to f++k off or I’d go somewhere else! 🤔
Seriously, who would pay cash for car hire! Madness…
not a chance, its far from madness. the local companies are always recommended over the 'big boys' and the one we use has become a friend now. totally different car hire experience to any other country we've been to, its just so relaxed. no deposit, and we were once even told that "if youre going to have an accident, try and get the damage on that side where its already been scraped" 😀
why on earth wouldnt you prefer a one-off cash payment over the threat of dirty tricks, and money taken off your credit card against your will?
Pick one of your credit cards, use it - everything has a cost, but if you want to save money, stay at home.
Anyone carrying around shedloads of cash risks losing it.
I looked at Revolut but didn't go for it due to the limit on ATM cash withdrawals. I set up a Starling account instead and it's been great - really easy to set up and manage, transferring money is instant and you get notifications every time the casrd is used. The only issue I've had has been with self-serve petrol pumps - one of them debited me twice, but that was swiftly reversed when I raised a dispute with Starling, then I have a second duplicated payment for another transaction. That's still "pending" so either it will be reversed automatically or I'll raise a dispute. Exchange rate has varied from 1.189 to 1.2108, plus they charge a transfer fee which amounts to few pence in each £100
One thing I never did was draw out money from a cash machine, but that's because we had a chunk of euros from previous trips. I think we spent about €30 in cash as opposed to over €2k on the card
Reading the above, I think the clarity card might be enough for you
No specific recommendation but last time I was in Austria (2020) I was surprised how many places were cash only. We're talking museums and cafes in Vienna too, I had to get extra cash out a couple of times. May have changed due to pandemic I suppose, but they were noticeably different to other EU countries and not that long ago.
Starling all the way. Pretty much cost-free. You get a notification with current balance every time you pop into the gelateria, so it's easy to top up from your usual current account when necessary
Starling all the way.
yep, thats my conclusion too after a bit of research. applied the other day, it was easily done all by phone, just got to wait for my card now.
then ill chuck a few hundred quid in it from my 'current' current account for now and see how it goes.
thanks for your advice.