barrier reef trip money question

[BareFootAngel]

was reading on line a list of what to take on the trip out to the outa barrier reef [diving etc] says what to take ,,cossie etc....also it says credit card for souveneers [sp] we dont use a credit card..so do they not take cash? oh sob sob..

Can't honestly imagine that they won't take cash!

You coud apply for a one to take with you for emergencies and simply cut it up when the holiday is over.

have you not heard about debit visa cards - Thomas cook do it - imagine Travelex do it - you can pay money to be put on the card and you use it like a credit card only it uses whatever amount you have on the card..... once that is gone - no credit iyswim. Might be an option.

Are you renting a car - you generally need to have a credit card for this or you have to leave a large bond.

eidsvoid,thanks will look into that we have visa electron,,diddnt know if they take that in oz,but will ask at travel agent re the others

BFA
hope you're still following this thread. Go to nationwide building socity today and open a flex account (current account). Move all the money you wer planning to spend on hol into this. this allows you to have a visa debit card which gives you FREE withdrawals from ATMs and no commission on anything. It is the cheapest way to do money abroad by far. Probably saves us hundreds of pounds on our trip. Also got a visa credit card with 6m interest free but you don't havr to get the credit card. The visa debit is like a switch/maestro type thing. It means you can just withdraw £20 if you like without it costing you an admin or commission fee. Fantastic

thanks nbl its me bfa was a name ive been using i have a visa electron[halifax] will this do the job?

that was me, that was, 12 years ago, on a catamaran, taking my open water certificate. I want to come too! What souvenirs can you buy on a barrier reef?? My top tip is to buy an underwater single use camera-they sell them all over in Cairns. You can only use them down to 3 metres depth, but on some parts of the reef it is only this deep anyway.

check the commission and fees - you may end up paying a fortune. we opened the nationwide account just for our trip because it was unbelievably good

have a look at moneysavingexpert.com for latest on which way to spend money abroad

must switch computer off. MNs gotits hooks in me again...

lol at ginger..you wanna carry my suitcase? did you like it then?

Of course you can use cash, we went to the barrier reef a couple of years ago and used cash and credit cards. Do agree with what somebody said about car hire though.

what i meant was .we are going on the trips that they have to the outa reef where they have a letter box and you can get your postcards stamped with outa barrier reef mark[yes i know im easily pleased] and on their site it says,,bring creditcard for souviners[ i am not one to miss out on a chance of some tat! i mean very nice gifts..also if you do take money or cards where do you put them when you in the water?? huh huh?

sorry if I sounded like I was barking instructions at you earlier!! Knew the kids were likely to wake up any minute so was keeping it brief.

Hope you have a fab time at the reef. We didn't go. I know, I know - all that way and we didn't go to the reef. It's not really DH's thing. DD gets very seasick and DS is too young to trust on that type of trip (ie jumping overboard). I briefly considered going on one of the half day trips by myself but decided not to.

I don't know what the Halifax card is like - it may be just as good as nationwide but def worth checking. We didn't take any currency or Tcheques at all, just withdraw cash at the first ATM we saw at the airport each time we arrived somewhere. Then just used ATM exactly as we would at home without incurring charges. Almost too good to be true

Enough of me waffling about banks. I'm sure the reef people will be glad to take your money from you in whatever form

you can either get a waterproof purse thing that goes around your neck, or you just leave the cash in your kit bag on the boat - i've dived the outer barrier reef, we just left valuables on the boat. Probably not the safest thing to do but we never had much choice.

AAA, I would limit the use of your Halifax debit card. A recent Which report on banking, Halifax came out as one of the worst offenders for ATM charges. 1.50 per transaction plus 2.75% fee!!
Nationwide card is the cheapest.

I will kindly offer to look after your cash whilst you go snorkelling!!

pmsl@gingerbear ...

thanks again for all your help .im just getting more and more wound up!!lol will need the holiday to get over it..whos idea was it anyway lol,,,