Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge.com writer with her tips for handling currency overseas

The world is getting complicated and new methods to handle cash while travelling overseas are popping up - but which tools work the best?

The Wise card has gotten plenty of attention within the travel community and it allows you to hold and exchange money in 40+ different currencies and spend in 170+ countries.

BloggerAtLarge.com writer Megan Singleton has reviewed the card - read her thoughts here.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News talks'b Travel with Wendy Wu tours where the
World is Yours for.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
Now, and Megan Singleton joins me now blogger at large
dot com. Good morning, coming in, Happy Easter and to
you too, You've got a good one today. I know
that this is one of the most common things that
you get asked a lot by people when it comes
to travel, and that is what's the best way to
pay for things? What's the best way to carry cash
or whatever you need when you're traveling.

Speaker 3 (00:37):
Yeah, a lot of people ask me what cards I
take with me when I travel, and so for after
using the Wise card, which is all the chatter in
the travel community, and it's all what the young people
are using through Europe these days when they're traveling. And
I've had a digital card for a long time, so
I've been using it for my online funds. If I

(00:57):
need to pay I might have a contractor overseas US
doing US to work on my website, I might pay
them through whys it's a lot cheaper than paying through
PayPal or doing a wire transfer or something. But about
a year ago, I decided I'd get the physical card
the plastic card, and it's only fourteen dollars. There's no
annual fees, and it's a debit card, right, so you
put cash into it and then up to forty currencies

(01:21):
and it's used in about one hundred and seventy countries.
But the good thing is you don't have to have
like for example, I've just been in Mexico. I didn't
put pesos in there. I was using my US dollars
that I had in there to pay for things, so
it will convert that. But it offers probably the best
exchange rates on the market. And I've done a comparison
post looking at what the B and Z charges me

(01:41):
for things like withdrawing cash from my own debit card
in an ATM when I'm traveling versus withdrawing cash from
my wise card when I'm traveling. And so people can
have a little bit of a lock and see if
it's going to be right for them. Certainly if you're
a frequent traveler. Yeah, I really like it for keeping
the fees down, that's the main thing.

Speaker 2 (02:03):
Things like Apple Pay. You know, someone said to you know,
family member of mine made a comment about, you know,
why don't I just use that all the time because
I'm you know, I'm so not fast forward when it
comes to tech, And I was like, and then sort
of two days later their phone had died. They hadn't
charged your phone number. Well, they wouldn't be very helpful,
now what it so very helpful? So is that quite
important to have something that aside from you know, using

(02:26):
a service on your phone.

Speaker 3 (02:28):
Yes, definitely. I've got a whole little little group of
tips that I've just added in this blog post because
I always travel with more than one card. Ever since
my husband and I were on our honeymoon and a
vendor that he went to a retailer, charged him twice
and because of that, the bank stopped his card, which
is fair enough. They thought it was fraud, but we
couldn't get that sorted out for the whole duration of

(02:49):
our three week trip. So Ever since then, we've traveled
with more than one card. I did have my card
on me at the time, but it was a bit
of a you know, oh my goodness, we can't access
any of this money. So definitely, I take two credit
cards plus my debit car. I take everything, and then
now plus my Wise card. But a good tip is

(03:09):
to keep a card separate, maybe a card on each
other's wallets. Maybe leave a card with your passport back
in the hotel safe you know, God forbid you get
mugged or something like that and you lose everything, You've
still got access to some fund. So that's just a
practical travel tip. And I've got a few other tips
that I chucked in there. And do you use cash

(03:31):
March Megan, I only use it in little amounts. So
with the Wise card, you can draw up to three
hundred and fifty dollars of New Zealand dollars equivalent out
for free, like my B and Z cash would charge
me two and a half percent across whatever fee cash
I draw out, but I only draw it out in
that sort of chunks for tipping really these days, and

(03:53):
maybe a cheap you know, at this three dollars item
here and there, you know, So I mainly stick things
on the card. The other thing I would say about
the Wise card, it is a debit card, so if
you're a collect airpoints, for example, on your credit cards,
you can't do that. So I would use my credit
card for the bigger transactions like a meal or put

(04:14):
that on the hotel for incidentals. I definitely put my
credit card on for that because it's worth it to
me for what I collect. You know, because I've got
all those points, I should write another blog posts actually
about what are the best ones for collecting points on
things as well.

Speaker 1 (04:29):
There we're going.

Speaker 2 (04:30):
I think I think I think we have sorted next
week's topic. That is perfect. Thank you so much, Meghan.
If you want to read that blog, get all that information.
Blogger at large dot com as where you need to
hear to for.

Speaker 1 (04:43):
More from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin. Listen live
to news Talks there'd be from nine am Sunday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio