Traveling with cash

[LIV 2 CRUISE]

I bought a PacSafe purse (actually, I have 2 of them) before my first trip to Europe. They are a little pricey and not real attractive, but they do the trick! I bought it on line, but I have also seen them at luggage stores.

[Kato27]

I just use my visa debit card for anything that needs a credit card, since it comes out of my bank account, its essentially cash. I won't forget to pay it off, and I won't charge up more than I have in the bank since it is deducted immediately.

 

I can use my debit card anywhere Visa is accepted.

 

I see...that actualy sounds pretty good!:) I also tend to overspend, that's why i don't use my CC for OBC.

[Kato27]

I just use my visa debit card for anything that needs a credit card, since it comes out of my bank account, its essentially cash. I won't forget to pay it off, and I won't charge up more than I have in the bank since it is deducted immediately.

 

I can use my debit card anywhere Visa is accepted.

By the way..i notice ur cruise is only a few days away!

Have a great time!:)

[hftmrock]

I would be carefull giving this advice as you cannot use a gift card onboard, it has to be one embossed with your name.

 

 

My advice is still sound as people mentioned.

 

I said prepaid card (and even sent a link). I did not say or advised on a gift card.

[chasinraynbowz]

DH and I do not use credit cards either. I usually divide the money up between DH and myself. That way if one of us gets robbed or loses our wallet, we are still ok.

 

There are a few other things you can do also....

 

Put your money in an envelope and have your husband (or yourself) pin it to the inside of your pants (a friend did this in Europe a few years ago... lol). You can also get a big purse, put the money in several envelopes and keep them in the bottom of the big purse. That way if someone reaches in and steals your wallet, you still have your money. Try to keep the zipper towards the front of your body, that way someone can't unzip it.

 

I have a slash proof purse which allows me to zip it up and lock the zipper so no one can easily get into it.

[ShermanDYAC]

I will never understand why people will keep insisting to a grown person the need for a credit card when that is not the advice she asked. :confused:

 

If you do decide to use the prepaid cards, have a look at the info here http://www.carnival.com/Funville/forums/p/219212/1144517.aspx I am only including this info since the thread veered that way.

[Unknotted]

I stick it here and there on my body. I usually keep small amounts in one of my front pockets ($20 or so) the reason being, if I buy something from a street/beach vendor they don't think I've got tons of money to spend when I pull it out to pay them and I can always say, "Oh gosh, this is all I have so I can't buy that doodad you want to overcharge me for." Then I stick bigger amounts in the other front pocket and I have a money belt too with my passport card and big bills. But I also carry a "fake" purse (with comb, chapstick and stuff in it) because my way of thinking is...a touristy woman without a purse MUST be carrying her money in her pockets, so let's throw her down and take it forcefully- but a touristy woman with a purse, let's just snatch it and run.

[hftmrock]

I will never understand why people will keep insisting to a grown person the need for a credit card when that is not the advice she asked. :confused:

 

If you do decide to use the prepaid cards, have a look at the info here http://www.carnival.com/Funville/forums/p/219212/1144517.aspx I am only including this info since the thread veered that way.

 

 

I am not sure what post you read where people are insisting anything. People are allowed to make suggestions that the OP might not have thought of. Because the OP has inquired about it further I assume it 'might' be a reasonable situation but each person is different.

 

No one 'insisted' anything so I am not sure what you are reading. People made excellent posts about cash and people made alternate suggestions about a prepaid card.. thats all I see. Since the OP came back and inquired about pre-paid cards, I dont think your snide comments about people 'insisting' anything is really appropriate... but ... I guess you will never understand it like you said

[sturderick]

I will never understand why people will keep insisting to a grown person the need for a credit card when that is not the advice she asked. :confused:

 

If you do decide to use the prepaid cards, have a look at the info here http://www.carnival.com/Funville/forums/p/219212/1144517.aspx I am only including this info since the thread veered that way.

 

I don't get that either! We don't use credit cards, do use a debit and mostly use cash. No problems. You should never ever encourage people to get credit cards that don't want them. Believe it or not, you CAN survive in this world without credit cards. I sure am glad I don't feel that I have to have one to do anything. Maybe they just don't realize you can get along without one. Hotels will take your debit card. If you don't have that, they just require a cash deposit in case something gets broken.

[bunchesofun]

I second the suggestion of a money belt. When we adopted from Ukraine we had to carry over $10,000 in cash with us. We divided the money between us and had no problems. After a while you don't even feel the belt on you.

[hftmrock]

I don't get that either! We don't use credit cards, do use a debit and mostly use cash. No problems. You should never ever encourage people to get credit cards that don't want them. Believe it or not, you CAN survive in this world without credit cards. I sure am glad I don't feel that I have to have one to do anything. Maybe they just don't realize you can get along without one. Hotels will take your debit card. If you don't have that, they just require a cash deposit in case something gets broken.

 

 

Are you really saying that no one can make a reasonable suggestion that the OP might not have thought of??? REALLY???

 

No one has pushed or demanded or insisted or made the OP feel like cash is bad. They are just making suggestions and the OP seemed interested so what are you trying to say?

 

For the record, I use cash only in 95% of the vacations I go on. But there is something to be said for prepaid cards.

 

If its not a good suggesstion for you... move on to the next post. :eek:

[MadManOfBethesda]

How about going old school and getting travelers' checks? You can then cash them as needed at the front desk.

[hftmrock]

How about going old school and getting travelers' checks? You can then cash them as needed at the front desk.

 

better be careful.. the holier than thou people only want you to answer the direct question and never make any alternative suggestions.. it really annoys them when you try to help someone with an alternate suggestion... :confused:

 

:p - I dont use them much anymore but they would work and you can get your money back if lost or stolen.

[Handsome58]

I always take between $1500 & $2000 cash. I will get $150 in singles for tips. I take out 2-$100 Bills and $50 in singles and add them to my regular cash in my money-clip. I divide what is left into 2 stacks of equal amounts as close to it as I can get. I place the money in a sandwich bag [each stack in its own bag]. I use packing tape and tape it to my foot and then just slip my footee-sock on over it. Once we get to hotel or ship I place it in the safe. I have flown using this method, when asked i just take off my shoes and no one inspects further. My foot is covered in my footee-sock. By making them even stacks it does not affect your walking.

[cruisingreena]

how about travellers cheques? that way if stolen they are insured.

[patticake1961]

For my cruise last year, I would call into BV every couple of weeks and add $$$ (from my debit card) to my onboard account. I added much more than needed for shipboard spending, then on port days I would stop at the GSD and take cash out of my account for the day. You can also do this by using the kiosks that are onboard some ships!

 

I'm doing the same thing this year for myself and my mother, (she doesn't have a debit card OR credit card, she just sends me a check), I HATE CARRYING CASH!!!

[swedish weave]

I just use my visa debit card for anything that needs a credit card, since it comes out of my bank account, its essentially cash. I won't forget to pay it off, and I won't charge up more than I have in the bank since it is deducted immediately.

 

I can use my debit card anywhere Visa is accepted.

 

I used to avoid using credit cards, until I found a card that gives me 3 points for every dollar I spend on travel. That equates to a 3 percent discount!!!! I pay it off when I get the bill, and it has no annual fees.

 

It has changed my outlook on credit cards.

 

It may help you overcome your compulsive spending if you look at it as a saving device instead of a spending device.

 

I do carry cash for shopping in the ports.

[scraphappylady]

We do our money a couple of different ways:

 

-I know traveler's checks have fallen out of favor in recent years, but our bank (PNC) still sells them. I feel much safer bringing these, usually in denominations of $50 and $100, and the main desk onboard will cash them for free. Each night, we cash the amount we think we will need for the next day, and the rest stay in the safe. We then leave a copy of the numbers with someone we trust at home in case we have problems.

 

-We also bring two credit cards, not to use but as someone else mentioned, I think, for their high limits. If you have an emergency and have to be choppered home at a cost of $10K or more, I'm not sure all insurance plans would pay that cost up front. You might be on the hook for it and the insurance would repay you later. Are you going to carry that much cash on your trip?

 

-We also take about $100 in small bills - ones and fives, split between the two of us - for easy tipping purposes.

 

 

I would worry about taking a debit card if it was directly tied into your checking or savings account. Can't a thief clean out your account before you even know you lost the card?

[MadManOfBethesda]

how about travellers cheques? that way if stolen they are insured.

 

Gee, I wish I had thought to recommend that.

 

Oh, wait..... ;)

[kayhold]

How about going old school and getting travelers' checks? You can then cash them as needed at the front desk.

 

I asked at the bank - they don't even carry them anymore! I could probably try Western Union or something but I'm not going to pay for them.

[Jenny in TX]

I always take cash with me when I cruise. It staying on my body until we board the ship and goes straight in to the safe once onboard. When we go into port I only take $100-200 with me and leave the rest in the safe. We have never had a problem.

[kayhold]

We do our money a couple of different ways:

 

-I know traveler's checks have fallen out of favor in recent years, but our bank (PNC) still sells them. I feel much safer bringing these, usually in denominations of $50 and $100, and the main desk onboard will cash them for free. Each night, we cash the amount we think we will need for the next day, and the rest stay in the safe. We then leave a copy of the numbers with someone we trust at home in case we have problems.

 

-We also bring two credit cards, not to use but as someone else mentioned, I think, for their high limits. If you have an emergency and have to be choppered home at a cost of $10K or more, I'm not sure all insurance plans would pay that cost up front. You might be on the hook for it and the insurance would repay you later. Are you going to carry that much cash on your trip?

 

-We also take about $100 in small bills - ones and fives, split between the two of us - for easy tipping purposes.

 

 

I would worry about taking a debit card if it was directly tied into your checking or savings account. Can't a thief clean out your account before you even know you lost the card?

 

Yes, but the money will be put back on as soon as I file the theft claim. Wells Fargo does this as a courtesy while they investigate.

[Cjlovestocruise]

I also have no credit cards. We pay for everything in cash and carry zero debt. To me life is much easier this way.

As far as carrying cash on vacation. We usually carry large bills, divided between us. We keep the money in our front pockets. He carries a wallet in his back pocket that has nothing but blank note paper in it and I carry a purse with junk odds and ends in it. All other valuables are in the carryon bag. We also have small bills in envelopes in the carry on and change the large bills on the ship for port days.

I do like the idea of taking cash off of your S&S card – I may try to pre load extra on there and then cash out what I need for port days on our next cruise.

[Warm Breezes]

I used to avoid using credit cards, until I found a card that gives me 3 points for every dollar I spend on travel. That equates to a 3 percent discount!!!! I pay it off when I get the bill, and it has no annual fees.

 

It has changed my outlook on credit cards.

 

It may help you overcome your compulsive spending if you look at it as a saving device instead of a spending device.

 

I do carry cash for shopping in the ports.

 

I do the same. I put as much of my normal monthly spending on my credit card as I can and pay it off completely at the end of every month. The money I get back from the card is used as my vacation money. I like spending free money on my vacations :D.

[cjjrwe]

The only advice I would give is do not use your visa check/debit card anywhere it could be compromised. I have had my check card get compromised and the charges that were made drained my bank account. I notified my bank, and they did an investigation, however, it took two weeks to get my cash back. I have also had a credit card compromised, reported it, had the card cancelled then received a new one (you can even get it overnight) and never had another issue. I always knew my bank would "protect" my account against fraudulent charges, but, what they do not disclose is while they investigate it may take 3-5 working days to ascertain that they were indeed fraudulent charges, then up to 48 hours to refund your account. It is an eye opener when a person can drain your entire checking account with your check/debit card number they have stolen. My plan for our cruise in 3 weeks is cash, then credit card. Just an FYI.