Foreign Transaction Fees

There is a thread here about Foreign Transactions Fees when using US credit cards to pay for Viking cruises.

Has anyone been hit with this on other river cruise lines? We are about to book on AMA and I want to know what to expect.

Having read the "fine print" for our upcoming Uniworld cruise I learned that our onboard bill will be in foreign currency, thus we will have the foreign exchange charges. So I am looking for a credit card that does not have huge charges. Any suggestions? :confused:

Having read the "fine print" for our upcoming Uniworld cruise I learned that our onboard bill will be in foreign currency, thus we will have the foreign exchange charges. So I am looking for a credit card that does not have huge charges. Any suggestions? :confused:

We use our Capital One Visa when traveling outside the U.S. and do no incur a foreign transaction fee on any charges with them.

Marriott has a new credit card which does not charge foreign transaction fees. I use it whenever we travel and when we stay at Marriotts around the World.

Sheila

If you have a bank account with Schwab, you get a debit card with no foreign transaction fees and no ATM fees worldwide. But you don't get points...

Having read the "fine print" for our upcoming Uniworld cruise I learned that our onboard bill will be in foreign currency, thus we will have the foreign exchange charges.

FTF are different than Foreign exchange fees or conversion fees

We were on AMA last year and all onboard charges were in US $. Being a holder of a CDN credit card, I paid the bank exchange rate on foreign transactions, no different that if I went to the US and used the card.

I have not had this problem with Vantage or AMA.

To be clearer, the problem people reported with Viking is this: Viking is apparently an American company; they bill deposits and final payment in US dollars, so no one expects any "foreign" fees; but they process the credit cards through a bank in Chile. Many credit cards add a Foreign Transaction Fee because of the round trip the electrons take through Chile.

Apparently AMA doesn't do this, since none of the posters has mentioned it. I just wanted to make sure before I give them a Visa card.

There is a thread here about Foreign Transactions Fees when using US credit cards to pay for Viking cruises.

 

Has anyone been hit with this on other river cruise lines? We are about to book on AMA and I want to know what to expect.

Capitol one visa card is great for international travel, never have a foreign transaction fee, as always let your credit card company know you are traveling and where so they will not stop the card.

Capitol one visa card is great for international travel, never have a foreign transaction fee, as always let your credit card company know you are traveling and where so they will not stop the card.

That's a great reminder and Capital One makes it so easy. All you have to do is call the '800' number on the back of the card and there are prompts to walk you thru it. It's all automated, you just say the dates you'll be gone/return & what country/countries you'll be visiting.

That's a great reminder and Capital One makes it so easy. All you have to do is call the '800' number on the back of the card and there are prompts to walk you thru it. It's all automated, you just say the dates you'll be gone/return & what country/countries you'll be visiting.

You can also do it on line by the way :).

Cheers,

You can also do it on line by the way :).

 

Cheers,

Cool! Thanks! ;)

Unless you are buying a house full of furniture and shipping it back to wherever your home is or you are a currency trader out to make a living on currency fluctuations, I wouldn't worry too much about foreign transaction fees.

Just use a card like Capital One and don't fret your vacation time away.

Life is too short.

Just my $0.02.

Jim:)

We use the Chase Sapphire card to avoid foreign transaction fees. If you stay at a hotel for a few nights and eat and shop it can save a significant amount of money plus you accumulate points to help with your next trip. We were charged 3 per cent on each transaction on our other card we used.

We just got a notice from our Capital One Bank that beginning 8/1/12, withdrawals from ATM's outside of U.S. will be subject to a 3% fee. "This international ATM fee is in addition to fees that may be assessed by the ATM operator and the foreign ATM fee Capital One Bank charges for using a non-Capital One Bank ATM." We had heard that Captial One ATM cards were the best to use because there were no international fees. Now we get this notice from Capital One Bank. Does anyone know of an ATM card that has lower charges?

I know when my friend went to Germany four years ago, all of the ATM/CC foreign transaction fees about did her in- because they were so high and she wasn't prepared. She took travellers checks- which nobody would accept. She said next time she goes, she'll just load up on cash and take her chances- it was that ridiculous. She's been warning to to check and double check before I leave this summer for Europe.

polycarp here's a web site listing cards

http://www.cardhub.com/credit-cards/foreign-transaction-fee/?kw=credit%20card%20no%20foreign%20transaction%20fees&creative=5816074245&type=GS&cmp=GS-Exact&ag=Foreign&gclid=CJimpu_F4q8CFQrf4AodqClTiQ#searchid=2r0:11c1:v082101

There are also many banks with atm cards that have zero foreign trans fees.

pixie - get a good atm and cc. The best rates will be through an atm. Exchanging money into Euros will probably involve exchange fees as well as the conversion rates. You really don't want to walk around with loads of cash on you and yes, no travellers checks.

We just got a notice from our Capital One Bank that beginning 8/1/12, withdrawals from ATM's outside of U.S. will be subject to a 3% fee. "This international ATM fee is in addition to fees that may be assessed by the ATM operator and the foreign ATM fee Capital One Bank charges for using a non-Capital One Bank ATM." We had heard that Captial One ATM cards were the best to use because there were no international fees. Now we get this notice from Capital One Bank. Does anyone know of an ATM card that has lower charges?

If you qualify to be a member of either Navy Federal Credit Union, or Pentagon Federal Credit Union, neither of them charge foreign transaction fees on their credit card offering. Also, American Express has a card with a high annual fee, but lots of perks including no foreign transaction fees for a number of months....had seen last year that this offer of no fees was good thru September 2012, so you want to read the fine print to see if this is extended or a regular benefit.

Hope this helps.

Karen

We just received our Uniworld documents. They make it very clear that shipboard accounts are handled in Euros. If you want to pay in "Cash" with US$, they will convert.

You can't escape the conversion difference, but you can control it. Generally, the money exchanges and hotels will have the worst conversion rates. ATM and credit cards will have the best exchange rates as they will use common interchanges. It has been my experience that the credit card exchanges are the best by a few cents. Therefore, I tend to use my credit card as much as possilbe. For cash access, I use my ATM card for withdrawals from my account at readily available ATMs. I don't use a debit card. I worked in banking for 35 years and have my reasons.

You can escape foreign transaction fees by using a credit card that does not charge a special fee for foreign usage. Capital One has been mentioned a number of times. I also use my Marriott Rewards Premier card which does not charge a fee either. Both cards have rewards programs which are good although I prefer the Marriott card issued through Chase. There are also others that may not charge a fee.

We just got a notice from our Capital One Bank that beginning 8/1/12, withdrawals from ATM's outside of U.S. will be subject to a 3% fee. "This international ATM fee is in addition to fees that may be assessed by the ATM operator and the foreign ATM fee Capital One Bank charges for using a non-Capital One Bank ATM." We had heard that Captial One ATM cards were the best to use because there were no international fees. Now we get this notice from Capital One Bank. Does anyone know of an ATM card that has lower charges?

Are you using the card at an ATM to get cash from your account with Capital One or to get a cash advance on your credit card line? As far as I know, Capital One does still not charge a separate foreign transactin fee for use of the credit card at a point of sale. I don't know of any bank that does not charge some type of fee for using a foreign ATM for withdrawals.

CapitalOne does charge a fee for ATM use but it is very low.

Schwab Bank does not charge any fees for ATM use or for foreign transaction fees.

We use cards that have NO fees at all ..