I plan on using my debit car to get cash at the London airport on landing before I head off to Scotland.
1. Any experiences using a Credit Union bank debit card vs. a non Credit Union card even if its a VISA?
2. Should I wait until I get to Scotland as I'm not clear if the monies are the same....EU/GB currency or Scottish currency
3. I saw some posts on cell phones....I'm suspending cell service in the states then buying a SIM card at Heathrow which will give me a different cell number. If you have given your cell to others it will change when you get a SIM card. You probably already know that but it was news to me so I thought I'd share. I.E. my cell is listed with Rick Steves but it will not be useable once I leave the states so share new cell number with the tour guide.
4. My bank uses a two step verification process which means they text my cell to verify its me logging in. That won't work once I suspend my cell service so make sure you turn that feature off or change it to use your email, unless you have other arrangements. What other systems will you be logging into that will use a two step verification process? Just some thoughts to ponder.
4. Make sure you tell your bank credit card folks when you are traveling so you don't get an invalid charge somewhere on your trip.
Posted by
Atlanta, GA
208 posts
I wouldn't worry too much about getting cash. We were just in Glasgow and Portree and had 30 pounds of paper bills that we had to use (before they expire in September). We had to strain to seek out places to use them. Most places we visited were card only (and having a tap credit card worked flawlessly).
The 30 pounds were Bank of England notes, and when we did finally spend them, no one batted an eye that they weren't Scottish.
Posted by
11608 posts
When I arrive in Europe, I take the Verizon SIM card for my US carrier out of my phone and put it in a safe place. Then I buy and put a European SIM card into my phone’s slot. I use this for local calls all over Europe such as calling landlords and making dinner reservations. Why do you need a European SIM if you are on a guided tour?
On ours flight back to US, I take out the European SIM and put my US SIM card back in my phone. So easy.
My husband keeps his SIM and uses a Verizon International Plan so we are 100% covered.
Posted by
154 posts
We were in London for a week in June and never picked up local currency. We also spent 2+ weeks in Italy and Amsterdam and while we picked up some euros, we really did not need them. Even the pay toilets accept tap credit card (chase sapphire), which for us, worked flawlessly as well.
We may for a future trip use an esim on our unlocked iPhones, but for this trip, we just used the Verizon one month international plan and had no issues and no surprise charges.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7207 posts
On an earlier trip this year we could have gone cashless in London, but I had a bunch of pounds I wanted to spend. Cash or card, both worked equally well. Many credit cards no longer require one to set a travel notification, but check yours to see if it does. Visa and M/C are still the most widely accepted cards.
Scotland uses the British pound. If using cash you could get some Bank of Scotland notes in change. I spent most before leaving Scotland but had no trouble spending the remaining ones in England.
Can’t help with the 2 factor authentication since I pretty much only use the phone for texts or while connected to WiFi. For me a separate SIM is useless.
Posted by
340 posts
Our story echoes those above...
We were in london and Scotland for a month. We got 100GBP in bills from the ATM our first couple of days. The only time we really used them was when a London cab driver asked for cash instead of us using a card for services.
And only once -- at the car park in Oban -- did i have trouble with our credit cards, having to use my third choice to pay our parking bill.
And those three cards don't want/need to know we're traveling... So we don't call them anymore to say we're leaving the country.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7940 posts
Many credit unions, even big ones, are stuck in a previous generation of digital banking. Be really sure you properly notified them about Travel (even though lots of big banks no longer even demand travel notifications.) Make sure you understand what your daily limit is, and what that is in Pounds.
I'd make an ATM withdrawal (preferably at a real bank's ATM) as soon as you can after arrival, just to make sure everything is working. Did you note the overseas incoming phone number for the debit card?
Are you going to get fees for excessive transactions, or failure to do ten whatevers a month because you're not at home living your regular life?
I found that UK merchants are quite experienced with Americans who have Signature-priority Chip and PIN cards. You don't mention whether you have a nice low conversion charge on your credit cards, but I only pay cash in Europe when I absolutely have to.