Travelex Money Card: No ATM charges + FREE WIFI @ Travelex

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Travelex Money Card: No ATM charges + FREE WIFI

Travelex3 Apr 17

Source: HotUKDeals | Deals > All categories

Opening post

writergirl74

3 Apr 17

I’ve tried out a few currency cards on my adventures over the years and this one looks pretty good.

The Travelex Money Card supersedes Travelex’s Multi Currency Cash Passport card – and I think it’s much better. If you already have a Multi Currency Cash Passport, you can call Travelex and get the balance transferred to a new Travelex Money Card.

Why I like it!
It’s also a serious rival to the Travelex Supercard
which was a big hit when it launched a couple of years ago and was really popular with hotukdeals members. This particular deal also has contactless payments and free wi-fi which the Supercard doesn’t offer.

The Travelex Money Card is a prepaid card so you don’t have to worry about carrying loads of cash or putting your debit card in a foreign ATM (I stopped doing that after my card was cloned in Guatemala the moment I stepped over the border, but that’s another story).

This is what you get from the Travelex Money Card:

• Free ATM cash withdrawals (but be aware some overseas ATMs have their own fees)
• Free use abroad – no foreign loading fees in shops, restaurants etc. as you load the local currency on your card
• Mastercard exchange rate at loading
• A smartphone app to top-up and check your balance (much better than doing it on a website)
• Contactless payments
• Merchant offers exclusive to Travelex
• 24/7 global emergency assistance if your card is lost or stolen, including provision of emergency cash in the local currency where you are
• Free wi-fi with Boingo

The free wi-fi a really cool perk for travellers as data roaming can cost a fortune if you venture out of Europe.
You get three months’ Boingo membership, on up to four devices, from when you register the card or top it up. Basically, if you top it up for each trip, you get free wi-fi for each trip. You’ll need to sign up before you go and you can do this on the Travelex website: go to the Money Card page, enter your card number, then create an account to find and use Boingo hotspots.
Boingo has more than 1 million hotspots around the world including numerous airports (e.g. Heathrow) so it will save you having to pay for wifi, or sit in Starbucks for hours, during long boring layovers. It also has hotspot in hotels, stadiums, shopping centres etc.

Currencies
You can load the card with up to 10 different currencies. These are:
GBP – British Pounds
EUR – Euro
USD – US Dollar
AED – United Arab Emirates Dirham
AUD – Australian Dollar
CAD – Canadian Dollar
TRY – Turkish Lira
NZD – New Zealand Dollar
ZAR – South African Rand
CHF – Swiss Franc

WARNING: Use the card for these currencies only and make sure you have enough money in the right currency before you go spending. Otherwise there’s a nasty 5.75% foreign exchange fee.

The small print
There are a couple of other things to watch out for too. Firstly, don’t load the card in GBP (why would you?) as there’s a 2% load fee. It’s free for FX (Foreign Exchange) loads though. And there are fees if you use the card in the UK – so don’t. Stick to just using it abroad. This is pretty standard stuff for prepaid FX cards – they’re designed for use abroad, not in the UK.

Also, be aware of a £2/month inactivity fee if you don’t use or top-up your card for 12 months. This won’t be a problem for regular travellers but if you go on holiday less frequently, make a diary note to add a few EUR or USD to the card each year. An additional or back-up card costs £5.

Fees:

http://image.prntscr.com/image/9b3ee42a04414c5a81be3c3949a2125c.png

There’s also an ATM limit of £500 each day.

If you’re not a big app fan you can also top up the card in Travelex store, on the Travelex website, on the phone or via bank transfer.
The Mastercard exchange rate applies when you top up the card. It’s normally a pretty good rate and if a currency you want becomes good value you can load the card when it’s cheap and lock-in a decent rate.

In my opinion as a seasoned traveller, Prepaid FX cards are an essential for holidaymakers since the number of debit cards that offer free worldwide use slowly died a death. Metro Bank, Nationwide and Norwich & Peterborough building society all offered fee-free use abroad at some point. But Metro now charges outside Europe, and Nationwide has also started charging for overseas use. Norwich & Peterborough is in the process of shutting down all its current accounts.
There are a couple of credit cards you can use fee-free abroad but I’m not a fan of getting into debt on holiday – a prepaid card is much better for budgeting. Keep your credit card for emergencies.

All comments (189)

MADMANGAMER

3 Apr 17 #1

Whats FX?

discount4cash

3 Apr 17 #2

there appears to be more fees than ever explain where is the most cost effective exchange is compared to Revolut card

PalG

3 Apr 17 #3

Can this be used in thailand? what would be the best way to load it for that reason?

writergirl74

3 Apr 17 #4

FX is shorthand for foreign exchange

siloy

3 Apr 17 #5

Get a Monzo card.. you can top up from your mobile and your mother can withdraw the cash and use the card for shopping without incuring any fees... top up is dead easy and no charges for that as well.
there are some limits on cash withdrawal, have a quick look before you sign up..

AlanS181824

3 Apr 17 #6

I live in Éire, could I in theory use this card here with no fees given it's not the Britain?

lidds

3 Apr 17 #7

Exactly this is rubbish compared with monzo. I use mine all the time I'm the UK

jackvdbuk

3 Apr 17 #8

I feel the same the only thing that got my attention was the free wifi but would defo like a list of hotspots to see if its worth entertaining

Petetobin

3 Apr 17 #9

Halifax Clarity is a great product if you meet their underwriting criteria and actually get one. You just need to be canny to make sure you pay down cash withdrawals immediately to avoid interest from the transaction date. You can do this by prepaying but they don't like it. Also be aware that ATM cash on a credit card is not good for your credit score especially in conjunction with other short term debt. You need to make sure your cash balance is always zero which again needs you to prepay.

writergirl74

3 Apr 17 #10

Travelex works in a slightly different way to Revolut. You load Revolut in pounds and when you spend in another currency it gives you the interbank rate there and then - which is great. With Travelex you can preload the card with different currencies and lock-in the exchange rate. E.g. if the pound was up against the Euro today, but you expected it to fall due to Brexit etc, you could buy Euros at today's rate and keep them on the card for your next trip.
Also I thought the free wifi perk was pretty cool.

Petetobin

3 Apr 17 #11

Supercard was best (now isn't), Revolut then was best (now not so good), Monzo currently best (soon won't be). You can't run loss making products forever.

writergirl74

3 Apr 17 #12

Eire uses the Euro? So, yes I guess you could.

matwalaboy

3 Apr 17 #13

Can existing FairFX Currency Card/Euro Card holders switch to it too - I have some balance on that card and always get charged for using the ATM - which is annoying, so be good to be able to switch to this without paying - can I do that?

writergirl74

3 Apr 17 #14

On the fee side, it seems great if you use it abroad but fees apply in the UK or if you don't use it for a year etc. And obviously don't use it in a currency not on the list.

sola35

3 Apr 17 #15

i have had halifax clarity for years, perfect card, you get the exact bank exchange rate when used, no 2.5 to 5.5% exchange fees with this card , no free wifi but you get free wifi loads of places anyway, there are free wifi finder apps that i use besides the obvious places like hotels burger king etc etc etc, no you can not pre buy at certain rates with clarity card but its a gamble anyway doing this, there is another card very similar to the halifax card called aqua rewards card, you get cash back as well with this one, and there is normally card a/c opening offers of m&s and amazon vouchers, about £20/25s worth.

AlanS181824

3 Apr 17 #16

Irish gov charges 5€ per year for debit cards and another 5€ for cards used in atms. I'm not sure if this card is liable, if it is it certainly negates the benefit!

elitom

3 Apr 17 #17

aqua rewards card has a 3% cash advance fee !!! Clarity has none

EliTom

adriandocherty

3 Apr 17 #18

If you EXCHANGE your GBP into EUR on Revolut, you have locked in the rate. It's a great product, in my opinion

Jonny133

3 Apr 17 #19

Only downside with Monzo is the low ATM limits.

shatteredneon

3 Apr 17 #20

What's the minimum load? I currently have a Caxton and I think the minimum you can load it is £100. I always end up having to load £100 on my last day of holiday.

happydeals

3 Apr 17 #21

What is the ATM limit for Monzo card? Which is better Monzo or Revolut?

JJMPSP

3 Apr 17 #22

Same here. It appears their minimum load is also £100:

But by loading £100, you're always guaranteed access to the free wifi:

mantisinc

3 Apr 17 #23

I'd also like to second Monzo against this card.

ultrak3wl

3 Apr 17 #24

The Travelex card sounds like a dissimilar alternative to Revolut that may suit some people better if they have different requirements. In many ways though Revolut is the perfect card allowing seamless UK and international use and for me Revolut wins hands down.

Anyone using more than one currency MUST get one of these type of cards - the days of the high street swindle on exchange rates are 100% finished.

rachelandgromit

3 Apr 17 #25

Used N&P bank account for years all over the world for ATM withdrawals/transactions but after August is no more. They have been amazing, helped me out when card got cloned in NY, scimmed in Argentina, even rung me up in Canada. Also use Clarity which are brilliant too.
Hoping a new debit card will be available soon too with fee free ATM withdrawal rather than having to use clarity which can be a bit of a pain for cash withdrawals and that is mainly what I tend to use unless travelling in countries where card payments are more frequently used.

phiras

3 Apr 17 #26

You can also preload and lock in rates with Revolut if you top up and exchange at the time into your chosen currency. The advantage the Travelex card has over Revolut (apart from the free WiFi) is that there appears to be no limit to ATM withdrawals apart from the daily £500 cap; whereas Revolut now limits you to only £200 of ATM withdrawals a month (both are free and unlimited for card payments). On the other hand, Revolut's exchange rates seem better. For example, the exchange rate today for one Euro is 1.1397 with Travelex, whereas it's 1.1735 with Revolut. There is also no inactivity fee with Revolut (at the moment).

benlondon

3 Apr 17 #27

Wrong, completely wrong, with Revolut you can

A) Spend using the interbank rate when you make the purchase

B) Load up with GBP and convert to any currency you wish in advance and keep a stock of that currency within your account

oonaghmcgilloway

3 Apr 17 #28

Can this be used in Bulgaria if I pre-load card with sterling ?

dannyiddo

3 Apr 17 #29

I've got a Nationwide select credit card, and intend on using that in American in two weeks time. I have dollars so don't intend on withdrawing cash. If I use that credit card, it will do the same job won't it? It says there are no fees....

lidds

3 Apr 17 #30

Or just get a monzo card.
No fees for topping up, it just get loaded with £ (takes 2 seconds to 'top up' from within the app)
No fees for spending abroad or cash withdrawals, and you can use it in the UK again no fees.
No inactive fee.
And no messing around topping up in the right currency, seems like a bit of a pain

dannyiddo

3 Apr 17 #31

Pau131g

3 Apr 17 #32

Just a silly question, i assume if i pre-load with £500 and £5 for extra card, i can add more funds later? and that there is not a charge if doing at a Travelex? also I assume there is no charge for card and no credit checks etc?
Also getting Topcashback as well :-)

justanotherpunter

3 Apr 17 #33

I never understand why you'd need this much cash each day, lots of hookers n blow on your foreign excursions?

mudisoft

3 Apr 17 #34

Revolut is better than this, unless you're big on ATM withdrawals.
Have been using them since the start and they've been great.

Conchiron

3 Apr 17 #35

What's wrong with Revolut? Considering going with them as money saving expert put them as their top buy.

thelatics

3 Apr 17 #36

Pointless, this card is all about 'buying' the currency now and using it later, hence Travelex get the benefit of your money long before they need to lay it back out to the retailer where you spend it.

If you need a card for a foreign country and don't want to pre-load it, see if you qualify for a Halifax Clarity Mastercard, same free usage (no wifi), but can be used in any country and you simply make sure you don't pay in sterling.

szferke

3 Apr 17 #37

I think you'll be okay if you won't withdraw any cash just use the card to purchase things.

thelatics

3 Apr 17 #38

Correct on all counts - no fee to top-up as you do it online/app/instore

firstofficer

3 Apr 17 #39

Are you kidding me??

justanotherpunter

3 Apr 17 #40

You've just highlighted why this deal is complete rubbish X)
Revolut must change during the day or else they'd lose money, what's it at the moment? TIA

hello55060

3 Apr 17 #41

Monzo is better

K0YS

3 Apr 17 #42

Halifax Clarity?

shatteredneon

3 Apr 17 #43

I have a Caxton. Don't use it anymore cus the app is rubbish and £100 minimum load is annoying.

Now i use a Nationwide Flex Plus for free cash withdrawals, and Halifax Clarity for card purchases. Both offer good exchange rates and no fees.

I think Nationwide offer an alternative credit card to Halifax Clarity, only difference is it's Visa not MasterCard, so slightly worse exchange.

I ideally want a single cash card that has easy top up with no load limit, a decent app, MasterCard exchange rate (same as Clarity) on cash and purchases and at least £200/day cash limit. Does this exist?

writergirl74

3 Apr 17 #44

Revolut's great but I think you can only pre-load GBP/EUR/USD - so Travelex might be a good option if you wanted to pre-load another currency, such as AUD or ZAR?

Petetobin

3 Apr 17 #45

£200 per month fee free ATM withdrawal limit, some exchange rates pretty poor (you can Google it). Still overall an amazing product. Oh and because it's "Fintech" it falls over a lot because in that world you need to smash eggs to make an omelette and it might be our eggs that get scrambled,

moob

3 Apr 17 #46

5.75% conversion charge

I use my Nationwide Flexplus - yes I pay for the account but you get the interbank rate for conversion and there are no fees. The account has many other benefits too - breakdown recovery Europe wide, worldwide travel insurance for entire family, mobile cover etc

jsoap

3 Apr 17 #47

Depends what your strategy is - on long trips paying in cash to prevent you credit card being compromised is a reasonable thing to do. At ATMs drawing out the same amount everytime also makes it easy to check statements. Depending where you are at £200 will probably be too low

bobmccluckie

3 Apr 17 #48

don't forget with any of these cards that you load up with money. If the company goes under you lose every penny.

Gregsizzle

3 Apr 17 #49

How about a card like this but for use in Vietnam? Any ideas all you knowledgeable HUKD travelers?

tonyspoons

3 Apr 17 #50

So in some ways it's better than Supercard:
- Cash withdrawals
- Free WiFi
- Locked in exchange rate if the rate goes down

However, in some ways it's worse:
- If you can't top it up for whatever reason before needing to make a purchase it's useless
- Contactless (this is not a benefit, it's a pre-paid card so someone can spend money on it if they get hold of it)
- Locked in exchange rate if the rate goes up

These things have existed for a while so I won't rate it 'hot', but it's good that the extra choice is out there for travellers.

matedodgy

3 Apr 17 #51

0.5% Quidco for Travelex for all currencies.

elitom

3 Apr 17 #52

exactly - please expalin why this is a better deal than the Halifax Clarity card

thanks

EliTom

jnm21

3 Apr 17 #53

Has Revolut changed? When I used, I loaded GBP, converted to Euro (before Brexit vote), then spent in Euro (after Brexit vote). :smile:

I did not find them very easy to deal with (basically telling me that their T&Cs were wrong & would be updated soon - they gave a €650 fee free ATM per month value, then charged me when I hit the £500 equivalent - they did refund the fee eventually, but seemed to feel summarily changing terms was fine)! Noticed recently a 400 figure (can't recall if GBP or Euro) - I certainly never saw a notification let alone notice; summarily changed again?

Also watch out for the not so publicised Revolut fee - they only give interbank rates during trading hours (or did when I used last June) - rates during closed periods were significantly worse (to cover them for jumps on opening).

phiras

3 Apr 17 #54

You're right about what currencies can be preloaded. You can, however, spend in most currencies and the conversion will be according to the exchange rate at the time of transaction.

peabrain

3 Apr 17 #55

sorry if this sounds silly. but my mother live abroad. with this card can i topup from the UK and she can withdrawn there without fees, changing the pounds to local currency is 5.75% charge only right?

thelatics

3 Apr 17 #56

Better actually, if you load the card in Euros for example, and pay by your UK £GBP debit card there is no fee, so your mum can draw her Euros fee free (so long as the ATM she uses doesn't have its own charges).

daskapital

3 Apr 17 #57

FairFX has slightly better rates.

thelatics

3 Apr 17 #58

But doesn't it have loading fees?

chris19992

3 Apr 17 #59

5.75% exchange fee and 2% loading fee for GBP?
easyfx.com/Fees

davidbrent

3 Apr 17 #60

Am I best just sticking with Halifax Clarity credit card for going to the US? Only just applied for it following advice from MSE forums. I intend to pay it off straightaway.

daskapital

3 Apr 17 #61

Loading is free. See fairfx.com/wha…sts for the breakdown of the costs. They do charge £1 to withdraw at the ATM so we always withdraw it all in one go. There is no fee for using the euro card or dollar card on transactions, only that ATM fee.

psigeek

3 Apr 17 #62

Yes, and you're better protected with a credit card with U.K. Law on your side.

duckative

3 Apr 17 #63

I'm using the n and p account, and it's worked great, only would have liked if it was under Mastercard instead of Visa, and the max £200 value atm withdrawal per day is a big pain

siloy

3 Apr 17 #64

And you can spend the unused money in GBP when you are back.. also free ATM withdrawals in UK..

leo0108uk

4 Apr 17 #65

I always use Citibank debit card to withdraw cash when I visit Vietnam, Military bank charges almost nothing for withdrawing cash. It's such a shame that Citibank closed all of uk branches and it's hard to open an account.

Halifax Clarity card is still one of the best in market.

writergirl74

4 Apr 17 #66

I'm not sure that's right but happy to be corrected. I just checked my Revolut app and you can exchange in-app between GBP, EUR and USD but no other currencies - so you can't store other currencies on the card, you can just spend at the interbank rate when you make a purchase.

jsoap

4 Apr 17 #67

About a year ago I used I used NW Flexplus and can confirm zero charges with the following banks
Vietinbank
vietcombank
mb bank
techcom

Be aware that the usual limit is 2 million vnd per transaction - though MB allowed me 4 million.
Also worth noting that not all vietcombank ATMs accept chip and pin - though I found if one did not work then the one beside it did.

As for this heap of junk deal - you get the "Travelex Exchange Rate" when loading FX - this is pretty much 2.5%
Monzo looks good until you find out that the max ATM withdrawal its £250/£1000/£3000 a day,/month/year
Revolut is 2% after the first £200 each month - and some currencys are not even at the interbank rate eg Thai baht

There are people here that have actually done the research and have already pointed out that the choices for free worldwide ATM comes down to NW Flexplus debit or Halifax Clarity credit. With Flexplus the £10pm fee (offset with 3% interest) is easily worth it for the Travel, Breakdown and maybe the mobile insurance. If not then the Halifax card works just fine if you top it up the same day as you are taking funds out

duckative

4 Apr 17 #68

£200 is not a lot if you have a family, or if you need to buy gifts? It's just not enough on the first day in the foreign country

wildwayz

4 Apr 17 #69

Anyone know how long it takes to get a Monzo card? I go off in about 4 weeks and currently position 10,397 in the queue...

sola35

4 Apr 17 #70

ok, i never use them for cash when abroad just for purchases, to be honest most people nowadays can get by with card payments, well i can anyway, i use very very little actual cash.

ldmccaig81

4 Apr 17 #71

Try MONZO instead. There are NO FEE'S. absolute zero. You get the MasterCard rate too. To too has an app for balance check, money transfer etc. £3000 max annual spend though. The pre paid card is still in beta.

Jetpac

4 Apr 17 #72

Just use Monzo.
Then you can use if for your every day card aswell.

ianmccallum

4 Apr 17 #73

What about the fees charged by the ATM machines themselves? Is there anyway around these fees? We have just come back from USA and Mexico and the fees for withdrawing cash ranged from $3 to $8. We used the Halifax Clarity and Nationwide Flex card but could not get around these rip-off ATM fees. The UK cards are also not "set-up" to get cashback as well from foreign outlets as they appear to have put a block on this as well, as this would have been a good way around the ATM fees

jtmclean

4 Apr 17 #74

What about the WeSwap card ? Right now £1,000 on the Travelex Moneycard buys you €1,139.70 compared to €1,158.37 on WeSwap.

rachelandgromit

4 Apr 17 #75

I never got any charges on my N&P account in the USA. It does sometimes depend on which ATM you use, just like the UK where some ATMs charge you like the ones in local corner shops or bars. In Vietnam I just kept trying different ATMs until I found the one with the lowest charge. If you can use the bank ATMs direct you normally find those don't charge or certainly not as much.

I've been looking for a replacement to my NandP account come August, in addition to the MasterCard with Clarity and the Nationwide Flex seems a good option. As long as you can keep a minimum of £2500 in the account you can get £74 interest and for me, the breakdown cover is really good and makes it better value than the Autoaid. That's without the other insurances, although I probably wouldn't use them.... Even so, you can easily recoupe the fee.

n_huvos

4 Apr 17 #76

I second this, same flexplus user here! A couple of months ago I hesitated to downgrade but weighing in how many insurances they provide plus the free atm use aboard with awesome exchange rates I think it's the best value out there.

sambartle_theone

4 Apr 17 #77

The biggest problem with Monzo is.. you cant actually get one.

I signed up weeks ago to use alongside my Revolut (which I used to love) as the £200/month limit and the new charges on Revolut are over the top (£5 for a spare card, plus £5 postage and they send it 1st class letter at a cost of 80p or so)

I'm still 7000+ from the top of the list for Monzo..

MrWanger

4 Apr 17 #78

Travelex have been scamming people on currency for decades.

I regularly travel all over the world and for years used FairFX, which still is a very good card.

However, now, there is no better card than Revolut.

jnm21

4 Apr 17 #79

Thanks for confirming that I am not going mad. Sorry OP, clicking the spam option as the part "Mastercard exchange rate at loading" is simply wrong & this deal deserves icing!

writergirl74

4 Apr 17 #80

There's no credit checks with prepaid cards. Not everyone will be accepted for Clarity.

terryking

4 Apr 17 #81

Check out the NEW Post Office Travel Money Card before you commit to one from Travelex or Revolut.
The offer is really good and has only recently been released. I like the fact the post office is close to me to
so its handy to pop in and do other things at the same time.

lidds

4 Apr 17 #82

Yes there is Monzo.
Card is free and you dont have a rubbish £200 a month ATM limit before you start getting charged fee's

jnm21

4 Apr 17 #83

For those using Revolut loaded in GBP & spending with the conversion done on the fly, take note that they do not always give the best rates (in fact 2 out of 7 days a week they don't; I would have thought with weekends away, this could easily account for over 1/3 of the average user's spending):

Here is an idea - apply a 5% mark up & give any excess back on Monday (including any profit when the movement is positive) - would 'protect' them much better & seems much fairer to me! :smile:

They also seem to vary their T&Cs at will - I have a card & was never made aware that the £500 had reduced to £200 (a material change IMHO).

mrew42

4 Apr 17 #84

Only for Eire bank issued cards - this isn't
thejournal.ie/ban…17/

jsoap

4 Apr 17 #85

For years the post office have claimed 0% comission, knowing that most people don't check the exchange rates. Currenly online rates are about 5% off interbank rates. I expect that this will be the same with this card, however the faqs omit this minor detail.
You might want to read some of the app reviews also.

inthedales

4 Apr 17 #86

This moneycard looked ok for the free atm use, but then I see
Inactivity fee GBP£2 per month
As a regular but not monthly traveler, I'm out.

stinkingnugget

4 Apr 17 #87

Nationwide uses visa rate still good with no limit, but not as good as inter-bank rate. I use revolut for purchases esp uber and nationwide for withdrawals.

kfs

4 Apr 17 #88

Don't specifically know about Vietnam, but Google it and look on the travel forums, or ask your travel company if you're using one. Mastercard website will show you locations of cash machines. I won't bother with one of these because it's Mastercard, which I already have. In my experience in Central and South Asia Mastercard acceptance is much lower than Visa, and cash machines which will accept Mastercard are rare.

pergylmouse

4 Apr 17 #89

UK Travelex employees losing jobs to India peterboroughtoday.co.uk/new…706

hugh1988

4 Apr 17 #90

COLD COLD COLD. So many fees. eg. 2% to just load the card with money, £2/month 'inactivity fee' wtf?

I'll stick with Monzo. which is COMPLETELY free.

saintscouple

4 Apr 17 #91

Virgin Essential Debit Card works well for me, got a joint account with the missus, so 2 free cards, no loading fees, zero fees on spending. £1.50 fee per atm withdrawal, but use visa rate.

writergirl74

5 Apr 17 #92

It's £2 a month inactivity fee AFTER 12 months of inactivity, not from month one.

writergirl74

5 Apr 17 #93

It's on the "platinum benefits" section: travelex.co.uk/tra…its

writergirl74

5 Apr 17 #94

There's not away round these ATM fees as far as I know. They are charged by the companies operating the machines. Obviously at home you can find the location of a free machine and always use it but it's tricky abroad when you don't know the destination well. Maybe there's an app for that? I will investigate!

writergirl74

5 Apr 17 #95

The 2% is only if you load in GBP. And the £2/month inactivity fee only kicks in after 12 months.

lidds

5 Apr 17 #96

Still a pain in the ****, and too much messing around. With monzo just load with GBP and spend wherever you want

wildwayz

5 Apr 17 #97

Monzo is really out of the question. As someone above said, they've been waiting 2 weeks and still around 8,000 in the queue.

I signed up yesterday and was 10,397. This morning 9,999 - and 1,295 are behind me lol Do I really see me getting one before my flight to NY on May 3rd? Nope.

axl515

5 Apr 17 #98

If you sign up for monzo through moneysavingexpert you can skip to the front of the queue, for anyone waiting in the queue, you don't need to

axl515

5 Apr 17 #99

Here is the link moneysavingexpert.com/cre…rds I did this myself and received my card the next day

wildwayz

5 Apr 17 #100

You are a LEGEND!

Skipped right to the front of the queue and card is on it's way! THANK YOU

Pau131g

5 Apr 17 #101

Can you get a second card on the account on Monzo??
Thanks for the MSE link thats great :-)

patdeal

5 Apr 17 #102

Top tip from a top man, cheers

Petetobin

5 Apr 17 #103

I was about to offer one of my Golden Tickets but I see now they are not that golden.

lidds

5 Apr 17 #104

They get through 1000+ a day so yes you will easily get it by then. Also i will dig out the link but on money saving expert you can get one right away

MADMANGAMER

5 Apr 17 #105

Monzo would be a better travelcard imo plus a better app!

axl515

5 Apr 17 #106

Glad I could help :grin:

happydeals

5 Apr 17 #107

Use the link on Martin's moneysavingexpert website and you can jump the queue. I got the card in 3 days :stuck_out_tongue:

Petetobin

6 Apr 17 #108

My wife applied for a Monzo card on Monday and it arrived on Wednesday.

iKayZee

6 Apr 17 #109

Slightly off topic guys but any advice would be appreciated.

I am travelling to US next Thursday and the budget for the trip is around £1k. I have had a Revolut account for a while so I can just order a physical card (£5 delivery) and then top up my account. It looks like it it's cheaper to top up in £ and then just convert that to dollar, am I right?

The other option, judging from the comments in this thread is Monzo, which I have not used or heard of. Would that be a better option?

I should add that I will be staying with family throughout the entire trip so cash withdrawal (beyond £200) won't be necessary. Any All I'm looking for is a card which I can load up with $ (at the best rate) and then use it in the US without any hassle (inc fees and what not).

Thanks!

patdeal

6 Apr 17 #110

Applied yesterday at 2pm, card arrived this morning.
thanks again for the tip @axl515

Petetobin

6 Apr 17 #111

I think either Monzo or Revolut would work fine. With Revolut, convert the money into USD before you go (apparently you get a better rate during the week) and off you go. I believe the Revolut rates are slightly better than the Monzo rates (during the week) and with Revolut you can fix your rate before you travel so you know where you stand.

iKayZee

6 Apr 17 #112

Thanks! One of the questions I had was whether I should directly top up my Revolut account with $ or top up with £ and then convert to $. Anytime I try and top up in $, there's a fee associated with the amount.

Petetobin

6 Apr 17 #113

Top it up in sterling and then convert it to USD in the App.

writergirl74

7 Apr 17 #114

Revolut sounds a good plan. You can load with GBP and convert to EUR or USD when you spend or when you want. Exchanges are generally done at the inter-bank exchange rate.

Not sure about Monzo - it sounds tricky to get a card quickly from what I have read on here?

cb-uk

7 Apr 17 #115

Not at all. I ordered a card yesterday using the special MSE link someone kindly posted ( monzo.com/mon…rt/ )

It took about 5 minutes to complete the application, and I was then asked to pre-load the card with £100 via an existing debit card. I was absolutely gobsmacked when a black envelope arrived this morning, containing a rather attractive fluorescent orangey pink Mondo card! As soon as I confirmed safe receipt of the card, I was sent an SMS with a temporary PIN immediately. Why don't physical banks work this way???

So, it took less than 16 hours from time of application to having the physical card in my hand. So far, I can't fault them.

HTH :wink:

axl515

7 Apr 17 #116

Nice! Again glad I could help. I was suprised also at how fast it arrived

wildwayz

7 Apr 17 #117

Mine arrived today :smile:

Fingers crossed no problems with it in Canada and America next month :smile:

Petetobin

7 Apr 17 #118

They are non-embossed/personalised cards so you just put it in the post. Banks put your name on the card.

laurieleigh

7 Apr 17 #119

I've got a P.O. credit card that I use for purchases abroad ... other than the wifi are there any benefits to this card? cheers

najim95ali

8 Apr 17 #120

I have a friend coming to the uk from the states at Christmas this year, could she use this? Or is it more focussed on uk customers going abroad

Sid.Harper

9 Apr 17 #121

Not to be confused with the post office MasterCard credit card

Sid.Harper

9 Apr 17 #122

Don't think so. I do the same and use nationwide flex for withdrawals from atms

Petetobin

10 Apr 17 #123

This Travelex product is not geared up for usage in the UK.

grazie

10 Apr 17 #124

I got the Supercard one when they first came out. Then the cancelled all of them. Then they relaunched the card and I'm still waiting, since before Christmas for my replacement. However, there's nobody to contact follow up any kind of problem. Probably not such a good idea after all.

benjus

10 Apr 17 #125

Argentina is just not a card-friendly place. For years they had currency controls meaning that you got the terrible "official" exchange rate when using cards. Now that's gone but ATMs all seem to charge at least 4% and I have yet to find a bank there that will do over-the-counter withdrawals on a foreign card. As for card purchases, make sure you have your passport with you and you're not in a hurry. And don't be surprised if you pay a fair chunk more than the cash price.

pantaiema

10 Apr 17 #126

FairFX is a history ...

HansolUK

10 Apr 17 #127

Not sure if anyone else has mentioned REVOLUT card - fantastic - mastercard based - load £ swap at bank rates to $ or Euro and back - holiday money with almost no card charges unless you spend a lot. The good part is it is contactless - money swapped back from $ or Euro can be spent in UK - I use app to transfer no issues - used for 5 or 6 trips to EU and 1 to US.

saadiya

11 Apr 17 #128

I've got family from South Africa coming to the UK for holiday. Is this card available in S.A. for then to use here in the U.K.? will they benefit from free charges and free WiFi in the U.K. or will they be charged for using it here?

writergirl74

11 Apr 17 #129

It's a bad idea. There are fees to load the card in GBP and also fees to use it in the UK. They would be better off looking around for another card with less, or zero, fees for UK usage.

borat1234

11 Apr 17 #130

How does this compare to Revolt?

grazie

11 Apr 17 #131

To me, pretty badly by the looks it.

jayjays4

11 Apr 17 #132

Ordered a Monzo card through moneysavingexpert.com after reading about it on here. it says I should get it in 3 days! Thanks.

scottjohnmulligan

11 Apr 17 #133

I will continue to use my Monzo Card as it's easier and better.

DreamerV

11 Apr 17 #134

Has anyone ordered this card? If so, how long did it take to arrive?

Thanks.

cb-uk

11 Apr 17 #135

Note that the free WiFi only applies abroad:

Link: travelex.co.uk/tra…its

Bradders9126

13 Apr 17 #136

I can't see how this is better than the 'Travelex Supercard'?

wildwayz

13 Apr 17 #137

You haven't been able to apply for a travelex supercard in over 6 months with no sign of them actually fixing their processing issue.

Bradders9126

13 Apr 17 #138

I take it my Travelex Supercard still works? I was one of the first to get it and it didn't charge for ATM withdrawal. I've just read it now charges 2.99% so I've just applied for Monzo card so got both as I go away next month

grazie

13 Apr 17 #139

If you were one of the first, that card will have been cancelled. You needed to reapply when the 2nd issue was released, with 1st issue holders getting no preferential treatment. I don't know if any of those that did reapply ever got a working card. I certainly didn't. Travelex do not appear to have any customer support for their Supercard, as far as I can tell.

UBHUDIA

13 Apr 17 #140

In the T&Cs it actually states that you can't prepay. I can't remember exactly what the penalties (but a Google search can find that out) -it was something along the lines of a penalty fee or canceling your card.

UBHUDIA

13 Apr 17 #141

kibrisli7

13 Apr 17 #142

The free Wi-fi is not really that good. Limited locations. 1 million worldwide but not really useful if most of them are in the UK!
I think the Monzo is probably a better shout but I need to look at this closer

Malabus

17 Apr 17 #143

Probably give you a poor exchange rate.

iceboy

21 Apr 17 #144

Ok i checked the exchange rates on Revolute and Travelex for the Turkish Lira.

Revolute: 4.67
Travelex: 4.43

They both use Mastercard exchange rate.

So, how come they both have different rates? Revolute sounds better in this case but they will only allow £200 worth of ATM withdrawal per month...

wrnrj

25 Apr 17 #145

I've used weswap as recommended by a friend and it works very well.

andy321a

26 Apr 17 #146

Shame the current account is being withdrawn

Footsore

3 May 17 #147

What's wrong with cash?
Cash is King. Everywhere.

1616french

9 May 17 #148

Just ordered a Monzo card through MSE

akGTR

21 May 17 #149

Apologies if already covered (cba reading all comments), anyone know how this compares with Halifax clarity credit card? Only plus I'm seeing here is wifi.

Also you can pay money onto a credit card before using it rather than going into debt.

elitom

21 May 17 #150

I posed the same question here at the start - nobody really answered!

The only advantage I can see is if you are the type of person who does not want / does not qualify for a halifax Clarity card.

I use mine all the time - both in UK and abroad and never pay any charges!

Yes you pay interest on ATM withdrawals - but as I have also a Halifax current account - as soon as I make a withdrawal from an ATM I switch the cash over from my current account to credit card via mobile app ..... simplz :smile:

Also now finding that the contactless clarity card is getting accepted in many countries too - worked in Istanbul last month and in Germany this month .... even better

I see no significant advantage to this card over the Halifax offering ...... unless somebody can prove me wrong !

EliTom

akGTR

21 May 17 #151

That's exactly what I do with regards to the cash withdrawals.

I'd say the only advantage is the free wifi.

Otherwise this card seems a lot of hassle to use with too many things to be careful of.

donnbot

21 May 17 #152

Can anyone tell me if this would be a good idea for a country with a closed currency (morocco)? I know gbp is chargeable, but would it be beneficial (security and financially wise) to use this and load with euros? TIA

arash1

25 May 17 #153

How about revolut or Monzo ?

sillyboi

27 May 17 #154

Just had a look, my Monzo ATM withdrawal limit is £400 per day.

seanlong

29 May 17 #155

i used FX a few years ago in Rhodes the card would not work in atm £1300 all my holiday money had to do a bank transfer with my bank on returning home contacted fx they did not want to know , asked for my money to be returned to my bank account and they charged me £ 125
i used the card in uk the day before we flew so i knew it worked
DONT TOUCH FX

scarl

30 May 17 #156

The Supercard has been cancelled, after 24th July it will cease to work. Travelex blamed high operating costs.

andyeveriss

30 May 17 #157

also check out Curve same as a SuperCard just link up to your bank account simples

oliverstrong

30 May 17 #158

Better to sign up for monzo.com

MMc1966

31 May 17 #159

NOTE travelex supercard is being scrapped on June 24 Daily Mail, May 31, MoneyMail pg 42

MMc1966

31 May 17 #160

Note that travelex supercard is being scrapped on June 24[, Daily Mail, May 31, MoneyMail pg 42

DannyBoy99

2 Jun 17 #161

I was gutted to get the news that Supercard was being scrapped. I was lucky enough to get one both during the pilot and then the second wave. I much prefer having a card linked to my debit card, rather than having to top up. Does anyone know of any comparable cards on offer (besides Curve, which I'm looking right now).

iliko

9 Jun 17 #162

WARNING!
WiFi is not working in the UK. As per small print which obviously I noticed after buying the card:

"...you can only access Boingo Wifi networks overseas and you cannot access Boingo Wifi in the country where you bought your Travelex Money Card."

iliko

9 Jun 17 #163

Curve is not good enough. Monzo is the best one among all the cards I have a Monzo golden ticket to grab

iliko

9 Jun 17 #164

Another Monzo Golden Ticket as previous one was grabbed by someone.

I do not want to flood the topic with Monzo, so please let PM me if you need to jump the Monzo's queue and I will get you golden ticket.

1616french

13 Jun 17 #165

I have a Golden ticket from Monzo too if anyone wants to queue jump

adriandocherty

17 Jun 17 #166

This is an awful product
Revolut or WeSwap much better

kibrisli7

22 Jun 17 #167

When you actually see that free WiFi is in very select locations and that there are more charges then I wish to count out, you may just consider getting a monzo or a revolut card. I'm not sure mono has any fees at all

iliko

23 Jun 17 #168

Monzo hasn't got any fees

Mark300ZX

23 Jun 17 #169

How is this better than the Halifax clarity card?

The_IMF

26 Jun 17 #170

A 1986 action movie starring Bryan and Brian.

missleading

26 Jun 17 #171

Don't buy into this for the free wifi. Boingo is crap. 99 times out of a hundred the app will show a signal, but fail to connect. Managed to connect once in 30 days and I paid for the privilege.

yorkie

3 Jul 17 #172

My Flex Plus CC & DC has all my needs covered.

iliko

4 Jul 17 #173

AFAIK it has got 2% non-sterling transaction fee.

iliko

4 Jul 17 #174

One is prepaid another full CC. Prepaid one has less risk when using online and offline abroad.

danielmch23

23 Jul 17 #175

About to go to canada. Had a look at the option been discussed here (so thank you for the suggestions) but the Halifax Clarity seems preferred choice. Its a credit card BUT it's hardly debt when you clear the balance each time so as to not attract any interest charges. Fee free purchases and cash. Voted hot for the informative comments.

rambo_or_mark

23 Jul 17 #176

REVOLUT REVOLUT REVOLUT

philipus

24 Jul 17 #177

This... I have used Monzo (and Starling) in Europe and Thailand now with no issues no fees and at the Mastercard exchange rate.

If you need cash you can withdraw for free but make sure you dont take the machines exchange rate!

Notis7

24 Jul 17 #178

there are better rates out there - even from your local supermarkets!

insky

24 Jul 17 #179

What am I losing if I pay in sterling in another country using Halifax Clarity? Worse exchange rate at the point of spending, i.e., I would rather let Clarity do the exchange than let the shop do it? Is there anything else?

lidds

24 Jul 17 #180

Which one are you liking best? I am tempted with starling but feel.some.sort of loyalty to monzo :smile:

philireland1

24 Jul 17 #181

moneysavingexpert just done an update an Monzo card is the top card.

palcsaky

25 Jul 17 #182

Barclaycard platinum travel credit card is better than Halifax Clarity as the non-sterling cash withdrawals are interest free whereas with Halifax you get charged interest on them from day 1. Slightly higher cashback offer for Barclaycard too (£25 via TCB). Clarity pays £20 directly to the card on your first non-sterling transaction.

L33TL33

6 Sep 17 #183

I'm glad you said this :stuck_out_tongue: . I got my Monzo card the other week and was reading this worrying that I might be better. Thanks for clearly highlighting the differences!

Speedbirdjw

6 Sep 17 #184

Because it's better if you like to use cash machines lots! No cash advance.

nigelbutler

6 Sep 17 #185

I have Monzo which is good.... great app

also Starling bank card and app do a similiar thing.... instant app notifications for contactless etc

MrMinttyy

6 Sep 17 #186

Is this better than Monzo?

bbeettaa

7 Sep 17 #187

Go Halifax Clarity

ihaveaquestion

7 Sep 17 #188

I had horrendous customer service with Revolut. I set up the account only for it to be locked for no reason. One customer service rep said it was because of my model of phone (even though is a popular phone and relatively new!). Another said it was a secrutiy check. They demanded a scan of my passport to 'validate the account', which may well have been legit but rang alarm bells.

I then just asked for them to just close the account because I was fed up with going around in circles. They refused to even do that too without having a scan of my passport, so I just deleted the app. Crap customer service and a hellish company to deal with. I emailed the high ups too and received no reply. Don't bother with Revolut, people. They do not deserve your custom and are more hassle than they are worth.

philireland1

25 Sep 17 #189

just back for usa, Monza card worked perfectly.

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