Are you planning to take a vacation or a business trip abroad? If so, then you must already be engrossed with all the necessary preparations such as the things that you should bring, your hotel accommodation, scouting for tourist destinations, and a lot more. One aspect which is sometimes overlooked is how to maximize your finances. This is not about having a huge and flexible budget but rather how you can get the most out of your money. This is about taking advantage of the best tourist rate exchange.
The Leverage of Knowing Tourist Rate Exchange
With your finances at hand, it is essential to know how far it will go in your destination country. This is of utmost importance especially if you are on a tight budget. While comparisons among different foreign rate exchanges only shows minor differences, the overall difference adds up to a considerable amount of money since you're most likely going to convert a large amount of money. A bad tourist rate exchange means you could lose a big portion of your travel budget.
Remember that in business, high demand of any product provided by only a few suppliers result in an increase in price. This also holds true with rate exchange establishments. The worst tourist rate exchange is offered at the airport. Typically, only two or three exchange centers compete in an airport. The added charge may even reach up to 20% of the exchange value. This is obviously a bad deal but a person who did not prepare ahead and is already pressed for time may have to resort to this rate.
The best option to dodge terrible rate exchange is to opt for prepaid travel money cards. Companies that offer these cards are in close competition with leading foreign rate exchange centers. Not only do they provide the best exchange rates, but you will be able to know the value of your money in your destination ahead of time.
Worry-free Travel with Currency Cards
Your travel schedule may be packed with many activities. And carrying a huge amount of money in your bag or purse is definitely an added emotional burden. What if somebody manages to steal your bag? What if you are too engrossed with your activities and you end up misplacing your bag or wallet? Using a currency card will definitely address this issue.
The fact still remains that you may still lose your purse or bag, but with a currency card you can rest assured that your money will be safe. Not only do prepaid currency cards provide the best exchange rate, they also offer money protection. If you lose your card, you can email the customer service representative and get a new one with the old balance transferred into it.
Other Advantages of Currency Cards
Avoiding terrible tourist rate exchange is not only where you can get great savings. Withdrawal fees, loading fees, and other possible added charges are generally lower compared to the traditional credit and debit cards. Prepaid currency cards also come with the usual debit card features such as possible reimbursement of purchases.
Order a FairFX card now to save on your holiday money.
Tuesday 22 June 2010, 04:04pm
Are you planning to travel to the states? If so, then you're probably aware that you have to plan a whole lot of things from what hotel to stay in, what places to visit, and what kind of activities to do. One of the most disregarded aspects of traveling is currency exchange. Travel money USA dollars can be exchanged for almost anywhere, but the challenge is in getting a good rate.
What Options Are Available?
The most well-known way of exchanging currencies is getting it done in the airport. While exchanging currencies in the airport is convenient, you should only resort to it if it's an emergency. The rates at the airport are very high and can take anywhere from 10-20% of the money you're exchanging.
Another way to get your currency exchanged is going to the High Streets. Although, this can be a lot cheaper than the airport, the rates always fluctuate so you will have to get your money exchanged at the right time. If you can plan beforehand this is something to look into.
The last method is to simply carry cash with you. While carrying cash is convenient, many people feel uneasy carrying their whole traveling budget along with them. While rare, you may lose your wallet or have your baggage stolen in the worst case scenario.
Are There Any Better Alternatives?
The answer is an absolute yes. A great alternative is to buy currency cards. With these cards, you can buy travel money USA dollars at much better rates rates. This is a relatively new way to pay for your travels and many travelers are not familiar with how prepaid currency cards work.
All you have to do is load up your currency card with the amount of money you want to spend for your trip to the US. The currency card is used as a regular credit card but this card is not linked to your bank account in any way. So if you lose it, you won't have to worry about identity theft or unauthorized withdrawal from your accounts.
Prepaid currency cards are also very safe to use. If you lose the card, you can simply call the company and request your balance to be transferred to a new card. This way, nobody will be able to use the remaining balance on your old card.
Prepaid Currency Cards Help You Stick to a Budget
Many people find themselves overspending on their trip. By loading up your currency card with a set amount of money, it will be easier to stick to your budget. But what if you need money for an emergency? No problem, you can simply call the company and transfer money into the account. The company will update your balance within a couple of hours.
In conclusion, prepaid currency cards are the way to go if you're looking for travel money USA dollars. These cards are convenient, easy to use, and safe. Next time you plan your trip, look to use prepaid cards to pay for all your expenses.
Monday 07 June 2010, 10:25am
Are you planning to go on a vacation out of the country but worried that your expenses might go overboard? If you are then that makes you one of the thousands who are worried about carrying cash, saving money while on vacation, and having to deal with travel money rates that catch you off guard. Most travelers who fail to manage their finances while on vacation often end up going over budget and are left to pay for their credit card bills.
The Traditional Solution to Changing Your Currency
There are a lot of choices that you can choose from when it comes to bringing changing currency. The traditional way is carrying cash. Having your money in your wallet might give you convenience, but you're also taking a risk as you never know what might happen. You may be pick-pocketed, lose your wallet, or even overspend. To be wise about carrying cash, it is safer to bring a small amount with you to spend on the little purchases that you make on the trip.
A lot of travelers often fall into making the mistake of changing currencies on airports; Travel money rates on airports are lower which makes it more expensive. Furthermore, commissions are charged by companies at almost 8% in general when converting currency.
Another option is your credit and debit cards. Using your credit card or debit card can be fast and handy, saving you the hassle of carrying a lot of money. But for the convenience, credit and debit card companies charge you high rates for foreign currency transactions (Credit card users are charged almost 3%).
Another popular choice is using the ATM, withdrawing your money through ATMs is convenient and it also allows you to spend within your limit. However, it does have some drawbacks. You will have to take your time in looking for ATMs to withdraw your cash, for a tourist in a foreign country this may be exhausting for you because you are not familiar with the area.
The Contemporary Advantage
The best method is the use of prepaid currency cards. It is by far the most secure and has lesser fees and minimal charges than credit cards but offers the same amount of convenience. You also don't have to worry about overspending as you get to monitor your expenses. The card also offers better exchange rates than buying cash and you won't have to deal with long lines at FOREX booths to have your money changed. If lost or stolen, the latest transaction could be cancelled and your remaining account could be transferred to another card within 24 hours.
How do I Save Money While on Holiday?
The answer is easy - by spending wisely and keeping track of the money that you are spending. If you want to think ahead of yourself and you want to do away with the trouble of auditing your cash every now and then, managing your finances and using a prepaid card to limit your expenses will go a long way in saving money. This way you won't have to deal with the high travel money rates in exchange centers.
Order your FairFX card today for much better value travel money on your next trip.
Friday 30 April 2010, 02:23pm
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So, well, here you are again with your jam packed hold all/back packer, just getting off the plane. And you know that you missed a really good opportunity to get a good foreign exchange rate in your city, before you boarded your flight, because you are in a hurry. So you have no option but to go to the airport and exchange your hard-earned cash for whatever exchange rate in foreign currency you can get there.
If you do not want to change your money at the airport, you can also go to the foreign exchange agents in the host city's High Street. Of course, you are going to be very disappointed at the exchange rate you get for your Pounds while you are changing them into dollars, yen, euros, and other foreign currency. But why operate at a loss when you have really good options for buying foreign currency, before you take the long-awaited trip abroad?
Travellers cheques
Some peripatetic travellers are surprised that Travellers cheques are still being used by other travellers. Did they not go out just about the time credit cards and ATMs came in? Well, Travellers cheques are still very popular cash substitutes, even though ATMs are going to give you a better conversion rate than an exchange counter or a bank is going to do.
ATMs
Now, is that so? You will be surprised to know that ATMs have a conversion fees and a transaction fees, which are going to add up when you are trying to get easy access to your cash abroad. Your money is being converted into the currency of the country, in which you are travelling. So, they are going to take the conversion fees.
Pre-paid Currency Cards Are Your Best Option
So this is where a traveller cheque is going to come in handy. But then here is another problem. You need to go to a branch of that particular bank which issued your travellers cheque and get it encashed. This is the only way to get easy excess to your travel money dollars right away. But what if it happens to be a lazy, hazy Sunday and the bank shutters are down? So, that means you need to fall back on the limited amount of ready travel money dollars in the form of cash at hand.
So how best can you settle this foreign exchange problem, in a really hassle free manner? Easy, you buy travel money dollars by converting your pounds into a prepaid currency card. It means that you are going to be paying pounds into your bank to get your cards made. Then go off, high, wide and free on your holiday and spend up to the limit of your prepaid currency cards.
Prepaid currency cards are the best option for a person, who does not want to pay huge amounts of fees, for buying foreign exchange. Buying cash at the airport or at the high Street is not a profitable proposition. So, save on a number of charges and fees, (much lesser than that of a number of credit cards) while getting a much better exchange rate. Buy the foreign currency of your choice, with prepaid currency cards right away!
Monday 19 April 2010, 04:10pm
