Where to get EMV/Chip & Pin card in US?

ned4spd8874 · January 2013

I'm going to London in about a month for honeymoon and am having the hardest time finding chip and pin cards! I only have one credit card (capital one) but they do not offer a EMV version of the card. I checked with my bank (huntington) and they also do not offer it.

I have a friend who went to London just a month ago and he said that nobody there used the magnetic strips so he had to keep going to the ATM for money. I'm trying to avoid those hassles, but am having no luck.

I can't open up a credit card or probably even a bank account right now as I just lost my job. So a pre-paid version would be ideal at this point, however the only one I can find is from travelex, but they don't have very good reviews.

Any ides out there for me?

dazyabbey · January 2013

We went back in June and didn't really have any issues. We did take money out of the ATM every day but a lot of places did accept our card. They just have a seperate swipe machine for it.

Jells2dot0 · January 2013

We were in London not that long ago and the only place we had an issue without the EMV was at the train station. We could not buy an Oyster Card at the machine, so we just had to buy it at ticket window. We were always asked if our card was chip and pin and when we said no, they were able to swipe it another way.

hz80408 · January 2013

We were there in April and had no issues with our regular credit card. We used it at restaurants, attractions and even the grocery store with no issues.

The only place we had difficulty withOUT having one was Paris Metro-ticket vending machines (for those that didn't except cash) and Paris bike rental.

ned4spd8874 · January 2013

Interesting. My friend was animate that I get one. Like I said, he told me that he couldn't use his card anywhere. That they don't have magnetic strip readers there. Weird.

dazyabbey · January 2013

I looked on Trip Advisor and they pretty much said the same thing. They usually have swipe readers at most places but they said to get your Oyster Card bring cash. (Also make sure you bring a passport style photo too).

Also check out this website for awesome 2 for the price of 1 deals!
http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

JoanE2012 · January 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_where-to-get-emvchip-pin-card-in-us?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:11Discussion:7b0e2bd4-b9a3-4f70-86fb-4317af128b50Post:6ed1ae49-73cd-4ee1-b3c7-4b6c2846cd7e">Re: Where to get EMV/Chip & Pin card in US?</a>:
[QUOTE]Interesting. My friend was <strong>animate</strong> that I get one. Like I said, he told me that he couldn't use his card anywhere. That they don't have magnetic strip readers there. Weird.
Posted by ned4spd8874[/QUOTE]

I think you mean adamant. Anyways, you should be fine traveling most places in Europe with a magnetic strip credit card. Just make sure you always keep a little of the local currency in your pocket. Have fun!