How to use your money well while travelling

Some cash for when you first arrive, a debit card and a credit card – this combination is the perfect mix to bring with you on holiday. Once you’ve added all that to your wallet, you can take a look at the tips below to help you keep an eye on your finances before and during your holiday.  

1. Rental car and hotel: make sure the deposit is reserved, not charged to your credit card

When you hire a rental car, most services will ask to keep your credit card on file as a deposit. Make sure that the deposit is reserved, not actually charged to your card. A credit card reservation is a temporary hold on money from your card, authorising the rental company to charge you in the event that the car is damaged or you return it with an empty tank. The money does not actually leave your card until such an event occurs.

Most hotels will also ask to keep your credit card on file as a deposit. The amount reserved on your card is usually the equivalent of the total fee you will be paying the hotel, although it may be slightly lower or even higher, if it is designed to cover additional services.

In both cases, the card reservation will mean that the overall amount you can charge to your card is reduced. That could put a dampener on your holiday plans. But you can prevent that by asking your bank to raise your credit limit for the duration of your travels. You could also check to see if you can transfer money to your credit card account, which also raises the amount you have availa-ble to spend.

2. Where is the best and safest place to keep your valuables? On your person, or in the hotel safe? 

It’s important that you make sure, during your holidays, that your papers, cash and bank cards are kept safe. These documents are safest when you keep them close to your body during the day. If you are travelling in a group, each of you could carry a portion of the cash, or you could split it up and keep it in different places if you are travelling solo. It’s the best way to be sure that if some of it goes missing, you won’t have lost all of it. Be aware that thieves know all the standard hiding places in hotel rooms. If you have valuables that you don’t have to take with you as you are out and about, the hotel safe is the best place for them.

3. Pay attention to the cost of exchanging or withdrawing money

If you are travelling outside the Eurozone, you have a variety of options for accessing cash in the currency of the place you will be visiting. You could go to your bank and exchange euros for the currency in question, visit a currency exchange at your destination or simply withdraw money from a bank at your destination. It’s usually cheapest to withdraw the money from an ATM when you arrive. But be wary of offers to convert the amount you are withdrawing into euros. It’s often more expensive if the money withdrawn from your account is calculated in euros as opposed to simply displayed in the foreign currency. If you have the ATM display the withdrawal amount in the local currency and let your bank do the currency conversion, it’s generally much cheaper.

One last tip: if, as is the case in some countries, the ATM operator charges additional fees for with-drawing money, it is a good idea to look at the terms and conditions of your credit card; in some cases, you will be reimbursed for these fees when withdrawing money.

And of course, in Scandinavian countries such as Sweden and Denmark, you probably won’t need cash at all. Payment with card is so ubiquitous that you can use your card wherever you go. 

4. Find out what additional services your credit card offers

Many credit cards offer additional services that allow you to save money. Depending on the type of card (silver, gold, platinum), you may have access to bonus programmes, discounts or insurance as part of the service. Pay close attention to what insurance is available. Make sure that the conditions are right and that they cover what you and your family need. You need insurance that covers all contingencies! 

5. A currency converter is a useful tool when shopping on holiday

Keep an eye on how much you are spending in a foreign currency when outside the Eurozone with help from a currency converter. The Association of German Banks offers a converter with 160 cur-rencies, using conversion rates updated daily. If you notice that the rate is different from that of-fered by a currency exchange or ATM, as these amounts may vary, then you can enter the rate on offer and have the converter do the calculation. 

6. Be prepared: write down your card information and the numbers you need to freeze your card

Make sure you are prepared for a worst-case scenario: write down the information on any credit and debit cards and the number to call if you need to stop payments, which can usually be found on the back of the card. Or simply copy the front and back of your card and make sure these cop-ies are stored in a different location from the card itself. The numbers for freezing the card can be found on your bank’s website, or you can use Germany’s national card freezing number: (+49 ) 116 116. You can view all national freezing numbers in the "SOS-Info-Pass". Put the SOS-Info-Pass in your suitcase with your other travel documents.

We hope you have a lovely and relaxing holiday!