Travel Tips

Some advice that I use on the best ways to use your money abroad – cards, cash and ATMs

Starling Card

When I’m abroad I tend to use my Starling card for paying for things and for drawing money out of ATM’s rather than my current account card. Before I go I’ll transfer some spending money across to it as there are no overseas transaction fees or surprises with the exchange rates.

One feature I find really useful when travelling with friends is the payment links. You can request money using a simple link that you can send over various messaging formats including. The recipient gets a link with the amount and if they have online banking on their phone it wil complete a secure transaction. No sending of sort code and account, just a clickable link – magic!

If the other person also has Starling, then sending money between accounts is quick and easy with the app using Bluetooth to search for nearby accounts.

Another reason I tend to us my Starling card is that if the worst does happen and my card is lost or stolen, it isn’t my primary bank card that I’m dealing with.

There are plenty of other travel cards that offer similar features, but Starling has always worked well for me, so I’ve never felt the need to change.

Before every trip, I also make sure it’s added to Apple Pay on my iPhone and Garmin Pay on my watch. It’s surprising how often that comes in handy.

Money

Travel Apps

Before travelling, I’ll make sure I’ve got Uber and Bolt installed and ready to go. Depending on the city, they can be useful for taxis, e-bikes and e-scooters, and they’re often cheaper and more convenient than hailing a cab and you don’t have the jeopardy of the meter not working or cash only cabbie.

Many cities also have their own transport apps for buses, trams or metro systems. Spending ten minutes researching and downloading the ones you’re likely to use before you leave can save a lot of time once you arrive.

I also download offline maps in Google Maps if I’m likely to be exploring on foot. It saves battery, avoids expensive roaming charges if you’re outside your mobile plan, and means you’re not standing on a street corner trying to find a signal.

Car Hire

We don’t usually bother hiring a car on city breaks, but for longer holidays it’s often the best way to get around.

I’ll happily admit that I spend way too long reading the horror stories in the reviews before eventually choosing a rental company. Fortunately, despite all the doom and gloom online, I’ve never had any unexpected charges or had any major problems.

Most recently for our trip to Carvoeiro I used Zest Car Rental who are a UK based broker. Going via them can be slightly more expensive but the deposit is normally lower and they have a UK call centre etc

That said, I always take a few precautions.

Before driving away, I’ll walk around the car filming a video while pointing out every scratch, dent and bump I can see. I’ll also take photos of the fuel level, mileage and anything else that might be useful if there’s ever a dispute when I return it.

It’s also worth checking what insurance you’re covered for before you travel. Whether that’s through the hire company, your own policy or another provider, it’s one less thing to worry about if something does go wrong.

Sim Cards

We all use O2 for our network provider at home in the UK so we get free calls, data and texts if we go to countries covered by their roaming in Europe feature. For all other travel outside of this we tend to use Airalo which is an esim you can buy and install via their app quite easily. Most recently we used it when in South Africa, Dubai and Istanbul.