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July 2012 Weddings
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HM questions

AllyG303AllyG303 member
Eighth Anniversary 1000 Comments Combo Breaker
in July 2012 Weddings
For those of you NOT going to an AI, how much money are you taking for food and activities?

On a side note...How does it work using credit cards outside of the good ol' US of A?  I've never been anywhere where I would need large amounts of money (aka...I've only been to Mexico and the Caribbean, and used cash).  
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Re: HM questions

  • Carla1019Carla1019
    1000 Comments
    Depending on your credit card, you are charged an international transaction fee. If you are only paying for food and shopping why not use the local currency?
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  • BeachLover2885BeachLover2885 member
    500 Comments Second Anniversary
    Hi Ally!  You can call your bank and credit card company to notify them that you will be out of the country and want to use your cards. Sometimes, credit card companies will deny card purchases if they think there is a chance your card was stolen. In terms of bringing cash, FI usually brings a few hundred dollars just to have in case places don't use cards. Typically, we use our cards whenever we can. For the HM, if we receive any actual cash as wedding gifts, I think we will bring that on our trip. HTH! 
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  • BmoreBride311BmoreBride311 member
    1000 Comments Second Anniversary
    Most destinations will accept major credit cards (VISA is your best bet internationally), BUT most cards will charge foreign transaction fees that can be quite high. There are some cards that don't, so you would have to check your CC's terms and conditions to see if yours do. The ones that I know from experience don't are my Capital One no hassle rewards Visa, my Chase British Airways Visa, and my BoA Virgin Atlantic AmEx (notice the trend... it tends to be CC's associated with airlines or travel in some way that don't have the foreign fees).

    If you need to change dollars into the local currency, you can usually get better rates by going to a bank than going through one of the exchange boroughs once you get to the foreign country. Those tend to charge very high fees (or give you bad exchange rates) since that's how they make their profits.
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  • michelle11988michelle11988 member
    1000 Comments Third Anniversary
    We budgeted 2500 in total for our 10 day trip for Hawaii. But breakfast is included with our room and we booked a few things already that we aren't including in that budget. For credit cards outside of the USA they work he same but call your company first to notify them that you'll be out of the country so they don't think it's fraud and also to ask about fees. Most charge between 3 and 5 per transaction for foreign currency conversions. Some banks will let you take out cash with minimal fees as well.

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  • penny12986penny12986 member
    500 Comments Third Anniversary
    I think it depends on how long you are there, and if you will need money for excursions, souvenirs, etc.

    FI and I are planning about $100/day, each.  We don't think that we will use that much on all of the days and so we can carryover whatever is left to the next day.

    Also, be prepared that some smaller international places may not accept credit cards.  I would try to do 1/2 cash and 1/2 credit cards.  It's also a good idea to call your credit card company ahead of time so they know you are travelling. Sometimes, they think the foreign transactions are fraudulent and freeze your accounts.
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  • LADY324LADY324
    2500 Comments Combo Breaker
    I think we are going to charge most of our stuff.  We will probably bring about $500 or $600 cash on us.  However we are going to Aruba and they take the US dollar.  This cash will be used for cabs/tips/coffees etc.  All dinners and excursions will be done on a credit card. 

    We are going for 10 days and allowed for $300 spending cash a day.  Some days we won't spend it all but on the days we do excursions we will.  We are also foodies so I plan on spending about $100 bucks at dinner most nights. 
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  • bells24412bells24412
    1000 Comments
    We are staying at an AI, But we are taking our CC's with us. We just have a notify the cc company that we are using it out of the country.
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  • arunkumararunkumar
    100 Comments
    edited June 2012

    As pp said, call your bank and tell them the days you will be out of the country. They'll ask you which country and be specific about which credit card you are taking if you have more than one.

    FI and I are going to Bali for two weeks and are budgeted around $2,000 for food/activities/taxis/misc. expenses. Breakfast is already included with our hotel stay. Food is super cheap there though. I'll probably bring an extra $1000 as backup since credit cards aren't accepted nearly as much as cash in the areas we are going, and in case we want to do some shopping. I'm sure I won't spend it, but I like bringing extra and I don't plan on bringing my debit card. We'll bring one credit card though.

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  • AllyG303AllyG303 member
    Eighth Anniversary 1000 Comments Combo Breaker
    Well thanks ladies.  It makes me feel better that I'm not crazy for bringing hoards of money with me since you all are, too. :) I will be calling my CC company this week.
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  • lvisserslvissers
    500 Comments Second Anniversary
    Definitely use your credit/debit cards. You'll get a way better exchange rate compared to changing in US dollars for the local currency. It saved me a ton when I was in Europe a couple years ago. Call them though like other posters said to give them a heads up so they don't assume fraud.

    We are budgeting about $150/$200/day for ours. We will want to do some sort of beach/ocean activity(catamaran trip/snorkel dive/horseback riding, etc) everyday and then paying for all meals.
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  • MeaganR12MeaganR12
    1000 Comments
    We're going to Maui so it's still in the US. We're going to charge everything to our CC so we get the points for it. I'm budgeting $3,000k for 10 days for food and activities but hoping we spend closer to $1500-2000. We'll pay it all off again when we get home. I'm also going to bring ~$100 in ones for tips. 
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