Hi,
We will be moving out of the US later this year (Costa Rica and Ecuador and wherever else our whim take us). Our current Mastercard does not have overseas coverage. Can we get recommendations of both Mastercard and Visa cards that have international support?
Many thanks, Gary
where are the bills going? my wife just did a month in europe using her chase business visa, and they don't charge a conversion fee on every transaction to convert from euros to dollars. she just paid the current exchange rate.
"Moving" or "extended traveling"?
Which currency are the bills going to be paid in--local or US $? If you go w/ a US-issued card, they'll do the exchange at however they choose; if you're in a place for a long-enough time it may pay to move currency via a regular financial institution and use local.
When business traveling in (primarily) England w/ some other locations the AmEx Small Business card worked very well and had generally favorable rates applied only on the monthly balance. I have no experience on personal cards overseas altho I'd think perhaps if offered one from the banking institution with which you deal routinely would perhaps be as good as it gets.
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We travel a lot and your's is the first instance I have heard of where a mastercard or visa cannot be used overseas. Are you certain of that?
Both mastercard and visa charge a 1% fee for foreign transactions. I think capital one eats that fee, but most banks pass it on to you. Some add to it, so avoid them. I have read that some investment firms issue a no fee card, also. I use USAA federal savings bank, which is consistently highly rated. I can access all my accounts by the internet and move money around when I get a little overenthusiastic with my credit cards. You should also get a debit card to withdraw local currency from ATMs wherever you are.
I would not bother with an american express card; many overseas merchants do not take it.
Some add up to 3% for exchange. Best exchange I get is from my Master Debit card at the ATM
Never had that issue, but Discover is useless in Europe.
To clarify some points: There is no problem using our credit or debit cards overseas. But support from banks while overseas is. When last in Costa Rica we had a problem, the bank was closed, it did not have an international number, and my phone did not have international service. We need a card with 24/7 international support.
We have homes in Costa Rica and Ecuador which will our billing addresses. And we will be traveling. Ecuador uses American currency so there is no conversion problem there. A card issued in CR and paid in Colones is a good idea. We will at least have a CR debit card.
We have not experienced any hostility in either Costa Rica or Ecuador (quite the contrary in Cuenca, Ec). People are people and if you are polite and friendly they will reciprocate.
In the above mentioned case the airport car rental place could accept only the card used for the reservation and it was frozen. I had informed the bank of our trip to CR but I had just subscribed to a a soccer streaming service and didn't know it would be charged from the U.K. It was a unlikely conflux of circumstances that would have been merely an inconvenience at home. After a friend had her purse stolen in Rome I always carry two cards in two places but my second, high tech card would not work everywhere in Costa Rica.
Thanks to those who responded, Gary
Ditto
You have to be extra careful Rome.
Yeah, I thought that too. I've traveled a lot and it's never been a problem - although only ever with cards that have been issued overseas, so I'm willing to believe that it might be feature of US card companies :-)
cheers
Jules
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