How to get the most bang for your buck when abroad

You work hard for your money. Let's make the most of it!

You may not be a travel pro, but even travel pros make mistakes. Take a few minutes to learn from mine and save yourself the hassle (and a few bucks)!

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Well, I’m off on another trip this week and as I prepare, I thought I ‘d share a few little nuggets of wisdom with my Distinguished Travelers because it’s my job to help you travel like a pro and have a seamless vacation experience. One of the most frequent questions I get from clients is, “How should I go about exchanging my dollars for the local currency?” Stay tuned for a funny story from last fall, and learn from my mistake!

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                                                         Before You Go
Before you even leave the country, go through this simple check list to ensure you will have access to funds while away.

• Be sure your credit cards DO NOT charge an international processing fee. Getting home and receiving your statement only to find you racked up a ton of fees for every credit card transaction you made while away stinks!
• Call your credit card company to inform them you will be gone so they don’t freeze your account for suspicious activity. They will likely ask you for your dates of travel and countries you plan to visit while on vacation. Keep in mind, it’s their job to spot fraudulent charges and keep your money safe, so don’t be upset if you drop the ball and find yourself trying to call them from Kathmandu because your credit card is declined.
• Take a picture of the both sides of your credit cards you are taking with you on vacation. This is extremely important in case your card is lost or stolen. You will be able to call and cancel the credit card and possibly even have a new one rush shipped to you. Without it, you’re left penniless and without recourse abroad. This will allow you to keep track of the bank’s phone number and your credit card number in case of emergency.

                                                                                            Now, GET YOUR CASH!
You have options when it comes to obtaining local currency, and I will outline them below so that you can determine which strategy best suits your needs.

1. Exchange dollars for foreign currency at your local bank before you leave. This is a good option for those that want to have a little “carrying around” money immediately upon arrival. If you have an account at the bank, they usually will not charge you a fee to exchange your dollars for foreign currency. However, you are stuck accepting the bank’s exchange rate on any given day. And, be sure you are comfortable traveling with a large sum of cash. Pickpocketing is a real threat to tourists. Also, consider the fact that you may not know exactly how much cash you’ll need for your trip, and if you haven’t made other plans, you may run out of cash and need to look for a plan B.
2. Exchange your dollars at the airport upon arrival for the local currency at one of the currency exchanges. DO NOT DO THIS! Trust me. The fees they charge are ridiculous. And, we are back to the problem in number one about traveling through airports, customs, and around town with large sums of money.
3. ATM at the airport for the win! Ok, so you do need to ensure your debit card you're traveling with won’t charge you a foreign transaction fee for this to work, but this is by far my “local currency getting” method of choice. Again, please don’t forget to call your bank and make sure they know you’re traveling. Once you get through customs go to an ATM and simply do a withdrawal. On the screen, they’ll ask you if you want your money in USD or the local currency. Select the local currency and you’re good to go. Get as much or as little as you want because you can always ATM more later anyway! This also solves the problem of having to keep large sums of money on your person. If your funds are dispensed in large bills, just go grab a bottled water at one of the airport stores and voila, you now have small change to tip your driver or your bellman at the hotel. But even this method isn't foolproof as you can see from my experience below.

I promised you a funny story that will help you learn from my mistakes. Last fall while traveling to Budapest, I charged my husband with taking care of the ATM withdrawal as soon as we landed in Budapest. We had a driver waiting for us at baggage claim to drop us at the hotel and we didn’t want to keep him waiting. So, off he went to procure the local Hungarian Forint (because even though they’re technically in the EU they still prefer Forint to Euros). Not being familiar with the exchange rate, he took out what he guesstimated was a sufficient amount. Well, he actually withdrew the equivalent of about $650! And, we were to be in Hungary for one night (less than 24 hours) before boarding out Christmas Markets river cruise that would take us through Austria and Germany where the Euro is the currency. Our hotel and gourmet dinner were both prepaid, and even I was hard pressed to spend that much cash in one evening and a morning (jet lag caused some sleeping in so I wasn’t at the top of my shopping game). We faced a dilemma – exchange our “HUFs” for Euros, and lose quite a bit on the exchange rate and fees, or discover some lovely Hungarian wines to take along on the ship. Anyone who knows us can guess which option we chose. It turns out Hungary has some delightful wine, which is produced in small enough quantities that you’ll rarely find them in the states. Silver lining!  Still, you get the moral of the story – know the exchange rates before you go. Pick a baseline amount, say $100, and know the local equivalent you should expect along your journey.
So, where are you off to next? Can I help you get there? Call or email me and let’s get planning your next great escape. Because life is short.

Stop dreaming. Start going.

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