Cash or Traveler's Checks?

[NMLady]

...When you get onboard and you need cash, see the purser. The fee is 3 percent. ... Rich

 

Are you saying the purser will give you cash, charging it to your ship account??? I've never heard of such a thing.

Purser will not cash checks, will not advance cash (even for a fee), but

will cash travelers checks -- for no fee.

[mudscraper]

Are you saying the purser will give you cash, charging it to your ship account??? I've never heard of such a thing.

Purser will not cash checks, will not advance cash (even for a fee), but

will cash travelers checks -- for no fee.

I have received cash advances charged to my account on my HAL cruises. Three percent service charge. Easy to obtain the cash needed for tips at the end of the cruise.

 

 

Rich

[NMLady]

I have received cash advances charged to my account on my HAL cruises. Three percent service charge. Easy to obtain the cash needed for tips at the end of the cruise. Rich

 

I guess you have a higher status than we do since the one time we needed cash, the front desk wouldn't add it to our account. We were able to get it from the casino cashier but nowadays that doesn't necessarily work. So now we carry plenty of cash in the form of Travelers Checks. We've found them very handy since we can save them for other cruises too. And it is much cheaper for us to get Travelers Checks than to pay a 3% fee for cash.

To those who think Travelers Checks are outdated or ridiculous, you are welcome to your opinion, but that's all it is, simply an opinion. For some of us, travelers checks are a safe way to carry cash.

[Gamelan1971]

A couple of years ago, some Nigerian criminals started using fake travelers checks. This is the main reason they have become so much more difficult to use. My mother liked to use travellers checks, particularly on cruises, but she had some friends visit from Europe and they had such a difficult time using their travelers checks during their visit, she had to take them to her bank and sign a statement that she would cover the checks if they bounced! So now she travels with cash and a debit card as a backup (she never uses a debit card normally).

 

I'm sure that HAL continues to accept the travelers checks because many HAL clientele like to use them. Unfortunately, it may be only a matter of time before HAL gets burned and they restrict use.

 

I took a cash advance at the front desk against my account to tip our staff- was very convenient.

[Aruba]

I always carry Travelers' Cheques---don't leave home without 'em. They're handy for spare cash when it's needed, and they are safe.

If/when the day comes that I can't get them anymore, I will be a sad dinosaur indeed.

Ruth, do you take travelers cheques denominated in US dollars or a foreign currency like euros (or both)?

[RuthC]

Ruth, do you take travelers cheques denominated in US dollars or a foreign currency like euros (or both)?

I get them in US dollars. I've never spent much while abroad, so have never taken foreign currency. If I did make a purchase I used a credit card.

On my next trip I will be taking some Euros, but in cash. I'm spending some time in Venice and think some cash will be necessary.

[serendipity1499]

To the OP...In Alaska we took Credit Cards, a small amount of cash & also Travelers Checks..We still have some Travelers Checks left from our last 28 day cruise..

 

 

traveler's checks are outmoded. They are a waste of money and only benefit the issuer since many don't get cashed for months or years to come and lots of places won't take them. Take cash and cards, keep most in the safe and only carry what you think you will need each day.

 

What waste of money?...Our Bank still issues them free of charge & there is no fee to cash them at the front desk of the ship..

 

There is no fee to cash travelers checks at the front office. We find them very convenient. We carry only enough cash for the first part of the cruise and cash travelers checks later in the cruise. We use the cash for tips and some small purchases. We use a debit or credit card for most in port purchases.

 

We do the same

 

I always carry Travelers' Cheques---don't leave home without 'em. They're handy for spare cash when it's needed, and they are safe.

If/when the day comes that I can't get them anymore, I will be a sad dinosaur indeed.

 

Agree with you..We take about $100 cash each in small bills for tips....

For taxi's, & independant private tours we'll cash our Travelers checks...We enjoy roaming local markets where credit cards are not always accepted..

In addition we take one Credit Card for HAL only & each of us has a Capitalone Credit Card (two different account Numbers with small credit limits) which we use for major purchases on shore..We always phone the Credit Card Company's & give them our travel dates & itinerary..

When we're abroad we use only the CapitalOne cards, which do not have foreign currency conversion charges, or cash...

Like you we would be unhappy if our bank discontinued the Traveler's checks..

Cheers....:) Betty

[Willsot]

I didn't realize Travelers Checks still existed. I use debit cards for the ATM's and credit cards all over the world and have never had a problem. Once a credit card was stolen in Europe but I got another one within 24 hours. I do carry small US and local currency for tips and small purchases.

 

I thought the same thing. Didn't realize so many people (at least on this board) still use travelers checks. I haven't used them for years.

[sapper1]

We get our US travellers' cheques at no charge and find them a very convenient and secure method of carrying cash. If we use an ATM in the States we are charged fees by our own bank at home as well as by the American bank. Travellers' cheques may be obsolete but they work for us. I have never had an issue with cashing them but that may change as they become less and less common.

[Aruba]

I get them in US dollars. I've never spent much while abroad, so have never taken foreign currency. If I did make a purchase I used a credit card.

On my next trip I will be taking some Euros, but in cash. I'm spending some time in Venice and think some cash will be necessary.

That's a good idea to have euros in cash in Venice. We have found that, for some reason, there are far more restaurants/shops etc in Italy that do NOT accept credit cards than in any other western European country. We ended up needing to get a lot more euros in cash in Venice last summer than we had expected. I used my debit card to take cash from an ATM. Italy still seems to be a cash-based economy, at least in my experience.

[donaldsc]

I did not know that anyone still used traveler's cheques. That is so 19th century.

 

DON

[Aruba]

Do you mean 20th century?

[RuthC]

I did not know that anyone still used traveler's cheques. That is so 19th century.

Sometimes low-tech is better than high-tech.

[Typhoon1]

Credit cards, everyone loves plastic.

[drowelf]

My wife and I use all forms. We like to have some Amex TCs as backup money on all trips overseas, almost all mainstream hotels will cash TC's for little or no fee. And there is always an Amex Office available for cashing them in large cities.

 

For general money, we use the ATM. Hit an ATM as soon as you land (use major banks only) for local cash. The exchange rate is much better than the kisoks, ship or other money exchange places. You generally get the Bank-to-Bank Rate with only a small service fee for currency exchange. Be sure to check with your bank on fees. Also, it does not hurt the let them know you will be doing this. Once in the mid 90's I had my ATM Card shutdown, as they thought fraud was involved. Their automated system figured that since I was withdrawing $312.45 it must be fraud. Did not notice that I was getting 200 GBP and a currency conversion was applied.

 

For medium to large purchases, credit cards, if accepted, otherwise cash.

 

Cheers,

[sagiv666]

We are going to Alaska next month and I don't know if we need to take cash, Traveler's Checks or both? Any advice would be appreciated. :)

 

I take a combination of cash, credit cards, and Traveler's Checks. I have always been able to exchange Traveler's Checks for cash on board ship; ashore, I prefer to use credit cards primarily, then cash if needed.

Since Traveler's Checks can be considered cash money. whatever remains when I return I leave at home in case of emergencies.

[sail7seas]

I always carry Travelers' Cheques---don't leave home without 'em. They're handy for spare cash when it's needed, and they are safe.

If/when the day comes that I can't get them anymore, I will be a sad dinosaur indeed.

 

We have not used Travelers Cheques for years but accumulated some we had left over from various trips through the years. I take them with us each time we travel as extra emergency cash. They are getting really old and I had a banker friend check with AmEx if they are still valid and they, indeed, are.

 

'm steve' is exactly right AmEx has made money on using our money all these years but I bought peace of mind when purchasing the checques and in the event we need them, it will be comforting to know we have additional cash on hand.

 

If it is true many business will no longer accept them, it might be time to bring them to our banker friend and cash them out.

[Y's Owl]

Thank goodness for the Euro because in 1996 on my first Maasdam cruise, I went to my bank before leaving and got about $50 to $100 worth of currency for Portugal, Spain, France, and Italy. I then had enough for tips and small purchases. If I needed more, and I did, I would hit a local ATM for more local cash. It was on that trip that I realized I didn't really need traveler's checks because I had some left over and it took me months to get rid of them. At home, it was harder to use them unless cashed at a bank. On my last two cruises, I just took about $500 in cash with me and if I needed more, I used the ATM and my credit cards. On my most recent cruise, I still had cash left over for another week after my return. I did have one phone call about my use of the credit card in a foreign country, but the call came to my iPhone and I was able to proudly tell them I was in Aruba and having a wonderful time.