How I handle money when traveling - cash, cards, and fees

If you are a traveler or DN based in the European Union, this article is for you. Lots of resources online target Americans, but when we are talking about banking, you usually have to be a resident of a country to be able to open an account. A lot of options shared here are available for non-EU people as well, just make sure you do your own research. I'm just a dude writing on the internet.

During one of my first trips when I was 18 years old, one of my friend's cards got rejected, and he had no spare. I had to lend him money but I had barely any so we had to call his parents and they transferred me some cash so I could withdraw for him. This was before ubiquitous card payments, contactless, and 4G everywhere.

It's a pretty dry subject, but I remembered my lesson and always made sure I had a redundant payment method. This becomes even more important when you go far away from home. I remember my trip a long time ago to India, where getting cash was absolutely essential, and managing banknotes was a useful skill (no one wanted to give us change). More recently in the Philippines, cash was king, and it was a bit challenging for me, as I almost never carry cash here in Spain, I just pay for everything with my phone.

You can withdraw cash everywhere

I do not travel with large wads of cash. I have never been to a country where withdrawing from an ATM was not the best solution to get money locally. I have only changed money once in my life, and that was at the land border between Russia and Mongolia to get rid of my rubles. You can withdraw cash anywhere in the world. If you have a card with no fees, this is probably the best way to get local currency.

There's no reason to only carry one card.

I always carry multiple cards. These cards are free to own, and the accounts are free to use. There is no reason not to have backups and backups of backups. Two is one and one is none, as the saying goes. Getting stuck with no access to money abroad sucks and if you are alone you'll be in deep trouble.

Make sure everything works beforehand. Make sure that you have activated the account, that you have used the card locally, and that you understand how to log in.

So, without further ado, here are my recommendation for any Europe-based digital nomad or traveler.

N26

I had an N26 account for a long time now, I use it to manage my spending money. I have used it in many countries (all around Europe, in the Philippines, in Mexico, and in various airports around the world) without any issues. 0 fees and 0 fees when withdrawing abroad (but you are limited in the total amount you can withdraw).

The UI is nice, it works well, and you can withdraw cash for free within a certain limit. They also give you the MasterCard interbank rate when withdrawing in a different currency. Make sure you read their bank fee page to avoid surprises,

Get 10€ for free by using this link.

Wise (Formerly Transferwise)

I have used Wise for years to transfer money to and from the UK, and then to get paid as a freelancer. I never had an issue, the UI is great and it's way cheaper to exchange currencies than the usual bank ripoff prices.

They also offer a card that you can use in many currencies and withdraw from. You can withdraw 2x 200GBP for free, and then you can still withdraw cash at a good rate, but you'll have to pay a small fee. Check their documentation here. It's a no-brainer since you should probably have a Wise account anyway.

Get your first transfer of up to 500€ for free by using my promo code here.

Revolut

I have a card that I have never used since I'm usually using other options. A few of my friends and colleague do use it and are really happy with it. You can store multiple currencies on the card. They also seem to provide a lot of different stuff that I am not familiar with, like travel insurance, and phone insurance.

My link here.

Your local alternative to a fully online bank.

Wherever you live in Europe (as a resident), you probably have access to multiple zero fees local or online banks. I live in Spain, and I have a free account with Openbank, a fully online bank. I even got my mortgage completely online.

These banks usually offer free debit cards with either zero or low fees abroad, or a travel-dedicated debit or credit card.

A note on credit cards

At the time of writing, I do not use credit cards. I have used them in the past when traveling to the US (to book stuff), or when I became a freelancer and had to fork out a lot of expenses before I received my first paycheck.

I'm not fundamentally against them, they can be a helpful tool. They are useful to pay large sums ahead, book a car or pay a hefty deposit beforehand. They also provide a bit of consumer protection. But for most people living in the EU, we can't really churn (earn points with spending on credit cards, a common practice in the US) and it could be too easy to think it's free money. Now with rampant inflation, the interest rate on your unpaid debts could quickly get out of hand.

I would highly recommend never getting in debt for travel, especially if you have not sorted out your remote job yet.

Be careful with local fees when getting cash

In many countries, the ATM owner will still charge you to use your card, and you won't be able to avoid it with any travel-specific credit card.

The most scandalous example is Spain, where even though I live here and I have a Spanish card from a Spanish bank, withdrawing at an ATM that does not belong to your bank network will cost you a small fee. In 2023!

Another example is the Philippines, where I always had to pay a flat fee of around 5€ for each withdrawal. I tried to withdraw the maximum amount possible every time, but ATMs often ran out of cash, or electricity would not be available, and you can end up stuck.

How I pay for stuff abroad

In general, I will always prefer card payment. With the cards listed above, I can normally pay zero fees at my destination. If I traveled to a country with a cash economy, I will do everything I can to save my cash.

For example, in the Philippines, I paid for a day of scuba diving, and the overcharge by the dive shop to pay by debit card was still lower than the fee taken at the Philipino ATM.

In general, this is what I do:

• I pay for accommodation by card (on Airbnb or Booking, or Agoda), unless it's a local hostel that only takes cash
• Food is usually paid in cash.
• For activities like scuba diving, I usually try to pay by card, but it can sometimes be a pain, as these are pricy, and finding a lot of cash in some countries can be hard.
• Always keep 200€ in cash somewhere in case of emergencies. USD are also good to have. In case shit hit the fan and you need to pay for an emergency taxi somewhere.
• Make sure whoever is traveling with you follows the same rule, so you don't have to bail them out, or suffer from their disorganization.

Happy travels!