The joy of getting new foreign currency

[cruiser3775]

There is a currency exchange right at Circular Quay near Pier 6.  It does not have as good rates as some of the city exchanges, but it is convenient.  I would just change a small amount, like $US30, and ask for small bills. Our smallest bill is $A5.

Only use your credit card for paying for goods and services. Don't take a cash advance from an ATM on your credit card. It immediately attracts interest, which is often very high (one of mine charges 29%!). Worse than that, it continues charging interest until you pay the full balance on the card off, not just the amount you took in cash.

It is also worthwhile finding out how much your credit card will charge for foreign exchange purchases. Sometimes it is a flat fee, say $5, which makes a small purchase like a cup of coffee very expensive.

[arxcards]

9 hours ago, Tranquility Base said:

Are you aware of any credit cards which do not charge interest on cash withdrawals ?  

No. Your up to 55 days doesn't apply to cash advances.

 

The only option is to zero your card and go beyond to put it in credit. That way you will be drawing your cash instead of theirs, but that only works while the card remains in the black. For most cards though, they will still hit you with an ATM fee and an ordinary conversion. 28 degrees is void of most of the fees, but they don't like their cards being put into the black and have some restrictions in place.

[Jean C]

A few years back I checked with my bank and they said cash withdrawals made on my credit card would attract a cash withdrawal fee, regardless of whether the card had a credit or debit balance, so it would pay to check this with your own bank. 

[Gwendy]

On the islands in PNG there is no way to exchange $AUD to Kina, ie no banks.  An agent comes over from mainland and will exchange it for the locals at an exorbitant rate,  it is easy to get Kina before you travel, most foreign exchange places in big shopping centres will do it, or order through your bank in advance.  These people have enough to deal with without being ripped off when they try to earn a few dollars.

 

[ilikeanswers]

19 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Yes, that does seem a little strange.

 

I do know that although markets on some of the smaller Pacific island will accept AUD they are so grateful when you offer to pay in the local currency. It can be hard for them to get currencies changed and it costs them quite a bit. One guy on one of the PNG island was pleading to people passing by to change a AUD $5 to Kina. We had a bit of extra cash so I changed it for him. He was so thankful. 

 

Kind of reminds me when I was flying out of Bali these Balinese men would walk around our check in lines asking if we would take their accumulated $1 and $2 AUD coins they had been given in exchange for notes of the same value since they couldn't exchange coins at all. 

 

18 hours ago, Over from NZ said:

 there's no way the average retail assistant is versed in spotting counterfeit money from foreign currencies they very rarely see if at all. 

 

Not just counterfeit but out of date money. Unfortunately I heard on the Carribean Islands tourists who had out of date foreign currency would use it there and the retailers wouldn't find out they had been tricked till they went to exchange it and were told it can only be exchanged by a bank from the currency's country which obviously the island didn't have😕. 

[MicCanberra]

3 hours ago, Gwendy said:

On the islands in PNG there is no way to exchange $AUD to Kina, ie no banks.  An agent comes over from mainland and will exchange it for the locals at an exorbitant rate,  it is easy to get Kina before you travel, most foreign exchange places in big shopping centres will do it, or order through your bank in advance.  These people have enough to deal with without being ripped off when they try to earn a few dollars.

 

Conflict Islands only accept credit/ debit cards now, which is used to buy tokens for use on the island.

[Gwendy]

41 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Conflict Islands only accept credit/ debit cards now, which is used to buy tokens for use on the island.

 

41 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Conflict Islands only accept credit/ debit cards now, which is used to buy tokens for use on the island.

Thank you it’s been a while since I was there.  Hopefully this system will benefit the locals.

[arxcards]

4 hours ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

Kind of reminds me when I was flying out of Bali these Balinese men would walk around our check in lines asking if we would take their accumulated $1 and $2 AUD coins they had been given in exchange for notes of the same value since they couldn't exchange coins at all. 

 

The same in Port Vila, where for years we would trade notes for the $1 & $2 Aussie coins that had been given as donation for the hospital charity. They could bank our coins, but the bank charges were horrendous.

[cruiser3775]

4 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Conflict Islands only accept credit/ debit cards now, which is used to buy tokens for use on the island.

When I was there in November, they had ditched the tokens, and were just charging everything on credit cards in the normal way. Some people were caught out because they had left their CC on the ship.  They would not accept any currency at all, not AUD or Kina.

[lyndarra]

5 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Conflict Islands only accept credit/ debit cards now, which is used to buy tokens for use on the island.

That's how it was when I was there in 2019.

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, cruiser3775 said:

When I was there in November, they had ditched the tokens, and were just charging everything on credit cards in the normal way. Some people were caught out because they had left their CC on the ship.  They would not accept any currency at all, not AUD or Kina.

I knew they had ditched the taking of cash for the tokens, I suppose it makes sense to ditch the tokens as well.

[cruiser3775]

I didn't mind that they only used credit cards. What annoyed me was that the ship made no attempt to tell passengers this in advance. So some people went ashore without a credit card and couldn't buy a drink or food. One man I met even went back to the ship on the tender to get his CC.  In my case, I had some Kina I planned to spend, but could not. As this was the last port of call, I ended up back in Australia with Kina I couldn't use.

There wasn't a lot to spend money on, anyway.  If you walked over to the far side of the island, you could buy some food (eg. Aussie meat pies) and drinks, at very high prices. They also did very nice ice cream, which was great in the heat and humidity. There was a small gift shop that sold commercial items like T shirts and drink bottles and fridge magnets, also very expensive. They also had a few PNG wood carvings at stratospheric prices, compared to the huge range of quality local carvings on Kiriwina.

[lyndarra]

On my HAL cruise to Conflict we were advised well before arrival that they used a cashless system and to bring CCs. This was from the island owner who gave a couple of pre arrival talks about the islands and how he came to own them. A very interesting bloke.

[bazzaw]

Where's a good place to get Foreign Currency these days. It's been a long time since i had the need for any - but I am going to need a few hundred dollars of Japanese Yen for arrival into Japan soon. Looking mainly for convenience rather than exchange rates, etc. 

[2022cruisey]

We got ours from a place called Travelmoney.  Connected to flight centre.  Had a pop up in our local shopping centre.

[arxcards]

59 minutes ago, bazzaw said:

Where's a good place to get Foreign Currency these days. It's been a long time since i had the need for any - but I am going to need a few hundred dollars of Japanese Yen for arrival into Japan soon. Looking mainly for convenience rather than exchange rates, etc. 

When organised ahead, I still find it convenient to order currency online via Travelex for pick-up at my local post office. The conversion rates are reasonable.

[lyndarra]

11 hours ago, bazzaw said:

Where's a good place to get Foreign Currency these days. It's been a long time since i had the need for any - but I am going to need a few hundred dollars of Japanese Yen for arrival into Japan soon. Looking mainly for convenience rather than exchange rates, etc. 

I get mine from my local Post Office which only two minutes away. You have to order it but only takes about 24-48 hrs depending on time of day it's ordered.

Edited January 14 by lyndarra

[MicCanberra]

We use an ATM in a bank if we need some cash for some countries like the US, Canada, UK or Europe. For developing countries we tend to not worry about cash or most likely they take another currency like USD, Euro or AUD.

For PNG, we got some Kina in Alatou from the ATM by the supermarket and bank which was our first stop.

[ilikeanswers]

14 hours ago, bazzaw said:

Where's a good place to get Foreign Currency these days. It's been a long time since i had the need for any - but I am going to need a few hundred dollars of Japanese Yen for arrival into Japan soon. Looking mainly for convenience rather than exchange rates, etc. 

 

I got my yen straight out of the ATM at Haneda airport. For me that was the most convenient. 

[MMDown Under]

Hi everyone I am currently cruising on Resilient Lady towards Picton.  Please remind me details of recommended half day cruise tour in.Picton.

 

i am awake because I’m watching the Australian Open.

 

I’m writing to let everyone know my credit card has failed me yet again, as it did last time I was in UK on my own.

 

i have spent the $400 NZ cash, still have Aust cash I can convert.  My daughter has lent me her second credit card, so I’m financially OK.

 

Knowing how and why it happened doesnt

help me and doesn’t stop me feeling very annoyed.  The amount of time family and I have spent trying to fix my card being refused had the potential to spoil my holiday but we won’t let it.  Needless to say I will be getting a new credit card on my return to Australia

i just want to share don’t rely on credit cards totally, esp if you travel alone overseas, as I do.  you can take up to $10,000 Aust cash out of the country legally. 

[Gwendy]

47 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

Hi everyone I am currently cruising on Resilient Lady towards Picton.  Please remind me details of recommended half day cruise tour in.Picton.

 

i am awake because I’m watching the Australian Open.

 

I’m writing to let everyone know my credit card has failed me yet again, as it did last time I was in UK on my own.

 

i have spent the $400 NZ cash, still have Aust cash I can convert.  My daughter has lent me her second credit card, so I’m financially OK.

 

Knowing how and why it happened doesnt

help me and doesn’t stop me feeling very annoyed.  The amount of time family and I have spent trying to fix my card being refused had the potential to spoil my holiday but we won’t let it.  Needless to say I will be getting a new credit card on my return to Australia

i just want to share don’t rely on credit cards totally, esp if you travel alone overseas, as I do.  you can take up to $10,000 Aust cash out of the country legally. 

I also travel on my own.  I always take at least two credit cards, just in case.  I would be reluctant to take large sums of money with me.  However I always take some local currency for places I will be visiting. I would be having strong words with my bank if this is a recurring problem.

[OzKiwiJJ]

11 hours ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

I got my yen straight out of the ATM at Haneda airport. For me that was the most convenient. 

That would have been smarter but we weren't sure if there was an ATM there. We didn't see one on our very quick exit from the terminal but I guess they may have been somewhere.

 

We just got some Yen before we left, enough for the taxi fare to Yokohama. Not the best exchange rate but worry-free.

[arxcards]

3 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

Hi everyone I am currently cruising on Resilient Lady towards Picton.  Please remind me details of recommended half day cruise tour in.Picton.

 

i am awake because I’m watching the Australian Open.

 

I’m writing to let everyone know my credit card has failed me yet again, as it did last time I was in UK on my own.

 

i have spent the $400 NZ cash, still have Aust cash I can convert.  My daughter has lent me her second credit card, so I’m financially OK.

 

Knowing how and why it happened doesnt

help me and doesn’t stop me feeling very annoyed.  The amount of time family and I have spent trying to fix my card being refused had the potential to spoil my holiday but we won’t let it.  Needless to say I will be getting a new credit card on my return to Australia

i just want to share don’t rely on credit cards totally, esp if you travel alone overseas, as I do.  you can take up to $10,000 Aust cash out of the country legally. 

I hope it has all settled down OK, and you are relaxed on the Branson Lady.

 

Personally, I couldn't carry a load of cash. I would be a nervous wreck for much of the trip. It was bad enough when I used to walk 400 metres from a shop to a bank with that amount of cash. I think there is a lesson for all of us to know about the pitfalls of credit & debit cards, and what to be wary of. I don't know what has happened for you, but there are things like:

Card being blocked when the issuer isn't aware you are overseas,

Not being used to using your pin with purchases, and not being able to recall the number,

Having pre-authorisation holds lingering on your card, affecting your available balance,

Bank apps linking cards to funds at home being inaccessible at a foreign location, or not being able to do 3rd party authentication without access to your home email or mobile number.

 

The holds can happen to anyone, and I agree you need some emergency cash, but I travel with a plan B emergency credit card as well. It is also important to tick all the above boxes before departing. Cash as a primary form of payment will be pretty much gone over the next decade.

[MMDown Under]

5 hours ago, Gwendy said:

I also travel on my own.  I always take at least two credit cards, just in case.  I would be reluctant to take large sums of money with me.  However I always take some local currency for places I will be visiting. I would be having strong words with my bank if this is a recurring problem.

Two cards both failed in London. I wear cash on my body (yha singlet with zip pocket).  In London my daughter made all my theatre bookings in Australia and I just picked up tickets at each theatre. I learnt I could use one of the credit cards up to 100’pounds without it being refused.  
Yes I’m going to open an account with a different bank as I’m going to New York next

[MMDown Under]

2 hours ago, arxcards said:

I hope it has all settled down OK, and you are relaxed on the Branson Lady.

 

Personally, I couldn't carry a load of cash. I would be a nervous wreck for much of the trip. It was bad enough when I used to walk 400 metres from a shop to a bank with that amount of cash. I think there is a lesson for all of us to know about the pitfalls of credit & debit cards, and what to be wary of. I don't know what has happened for you, but there are things like:

Card being blocked when the issuer isn't aware you are overseas,

Not being used to using your pin with purchases, and not being able to recall the number,

Having pre-authorisation holds lingering on your card, affecting your available balance,

Bank apps linking cards to funds at home being inaccessible at a foreign location, or not being able to do 3rd party authentication without access to your home email or mobile number.

 

The holds can happen to anyone, and I agree you need some emergency cash, but I travel with a plan B emergency credit card as well. It is also important to tick all the above boxes before departing. Cash as a primary form of payment will be pretty much gone over the next decade.

When cash is no longer available I will stop travelling overseas!!

Two credit cards failed in London for different reasons.

This time it was a large hold put on twice in

error fixed immediately but too late!!

I failed answering both security questions 

Name of first car?

First house?

how one could fail either question is beyond me.  I still have my first car in my backyard to be used in Landscaping.

As for first house such a big unforgettable occasion. 

My daughter said it was because I replied Hillman Minx instead of just Hillman. ??

I spent hours just finding out how to call the bank in Aust from NZ

There is room for improvement by banks to improve their systems to be more user friendly to Seniors.  When my daughter said she was coming with me to Auckland for the weekend to see I got on the ship safely I laughed out loud.  Well she proved to be a life saver, even having to pay for our Auckland accommodation.  I discovered things I thought I had paid only had credit card holds on them.

when card was presented it was refused. Tried again a day ago and it still got refused.

im going into detail so travellers understand the potential pitfalls.