First trip outside the USA! - Bonaire!

[rottielover]

Sounds like I need to be sure to read the bill at the resturants...

 

[under water]

If you plan to use your visa / mc or any other card you should contact your card company let them know your dates of travel and where you will be going...this will prevent your card from being declined for suspected fraud.

Hi ,
I have never had a problem using a Visa or M/C in any country that I visited (honduras, peru, china, japan, canada, carribean, europe, morocco, australia, costa rica, iceland & bonaire, etc). I would be curious if anyone has.
Bring 2 cards.
I am never going to check in with the credit companies and tell them where I'm going, heck, they probably already know, cause I used the card to buy plane tickets and heck, what's the point of having a frequent flyer cc if they don't expect you to travel.
On the tip thing.. I found it to be true that they include service charge (gratuity) in about 1/2 of the restaurants, even with just a couple dining.

 

[under water]

forgot to mention on thing...if you plan on making a night dive, be sure to wear a hood or beanie to protect against sea lice. Not life threatening but from what I hear not a fun time

I saw the dive light attracting hundreds of worms. It was fun to then shine the light on an anemone and watch the anemone feast on the them! http://delargy.com/2007_03_Bonaire/Bonaire_Reefs2.htm#anemone
Never noticed the sea lice unless they are the same thing

 

[djac5700]

Hi ,
I have never had a problem using a Visa or M/C in any country that I visited (honduras, peru, china, japan, canada, carribean, europe, morocco, australia, costa rica, iceland & bonaire, etc). I would be curious if anyone has.
Bring 2 cards.
I am never going to check in with the credit companies and tell them where I'm going, heck, they probably already know, cause I used the card to buy plane tickets and heck, what's the point of having a frequent flyer cc if they don't expect you to travel.
On the tip thing.. I found it to be true that they include service charge (gratuity) in about 1/2 of the restaurants, even with just a couple dining.

There are many factors for why you have not run into issues with your credit card. However, there are many, many people out there that do have problems. Financial institutions HIGHLY encourage you to contact them prior to travel in order to avoid any inconvenience.

While card companies use sophisticated algorithms in order to determine suspicious vs. normal transactions, it is not a perfect science. For example, buying a plane ticket on the card you will be using overseas will not prevent transactions from being declined. The easiest, smartest, and safest bet is to call your card company prior to travel. They will notate your account and you will likely not have any issues.

Regardless, it is a wise bet to bring at least two cards with you on your trip, just to be safe.

 

[pennypue]

Three trips to Mexico. Three times it happened. The first time, I hadn't called. They told me that I should call next time. I did. I also called the third time. Each and every time my card was shut down. I not only told them the dates, where I'd be, but also how much I'd be spending.

Now I just take three different cards with me!!!
Shut one down and move on to the next.
Fix 'em once I get back to the states.

 

[under water]

Three trips to Mexico. Three times it happened. The first time, I hadn't called. They told me that I should call next time. I did. I also called the third time. Each and every time my card was shut down. I not only told them the dates, where I'd be, but also how much I'd be spending.

Now I just take three different cards with me!!!
Shut one down and move on to the next.
Fix 'em once I get back to the states.

Bummer!! I have been lucky in Mexico too I guess. Maybe it's because you are in finance I always carry extra cards . you know, the no fee kind.. just in case.

 

[djac5700]

Three trips to Mexico. Three times it happened. The first time, I hadn't called. They told me that I should call next time. I did. I also called the third time. Each and every time my card was shut down. I not only told them the dates, where I'd be, but also how much I'd be spending.

Now I just take three different cards with me!!!
Shut one down and move on to the next.
Fix 'em once I get back to the states.

Penny - informing the bank twice and still having those issues is unacceptable. Mistakes are bound to happen, which is why I would always bring at least two cards, but after two times in a row, I'd definitely question the quality of service from that bank.

 

[pennypue]

Penny - informing the bank twice and still having those issues is unacceptable. Mistakes are bound to happen, which is why I would always bring at least two cards, but after two times in a row, I'd definitely question the quality of service from that bank.

Yeah. Now I don't even call them. I just plan on it happening. When I called them about it, they just said that sometimes calling doesn't even work (I suspect some bs going on there!). I only use them as the third backup now. :11: (I don't use that card for anything any more. The only charges they'll see are from outside of the country. Would make it tough to flag for suspicious foreign activity if it's only used outside of the country. ) I keep the card only because it has a high limit, and a nice long credit history on it. Closing it would remove it from my credit history. Cut my nose off to spite my face!!! I just won't smell anything pretty with that card!

 

[djac5700]

When I called them about it, they just said that sometimes calling doesn't even work (I suspect some bs going on there!).

Penny - that is absolute BS. The problem is almost definitely human error.

 

[pennypue]

Penny - that is absolute BS. The problem is almost definitely human error.

It usually is!!

I've learned to work around them.
Besides, it's nice to know that if I did lose the card that they'd be likely to shut it down pretty quickly anyway.....roflmao.