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UponArriving

How Much Cash Can You Travel With? (TSA & International Rules) [2023]

So you have a load of cash and you want to transport it across the country or perhaps even internationally. But exactly how much cash are you allowed to travel with?

In this article, I will break down everything you need to know about traveling with cash including important rules and limitations when flying.

I’ll also cover a number of key considerations you will want to think about before taking your cash with you when going through TSA or even traveling internationally.

Table of Contents

How much cash can you travel with?

There are no limits on the amount of cash you can travel with but there are some major considerations you need to think about when doing so.

If you are traveling domestically, your primary concern is avoiding forfeiture of your cash.

If you are traveling internationally, forfeiture is a concern but you should also be focused on remembering to declare the value of your currency and monetary instruments totaling above $10,000. Keep reading to find out more.

Tip: Use the free app WalletFlo to help you travel the world for free by finding the best travel credit cards and promotions!

Legal risks of traveling with cash

TSA is concerned about dangerous threats such as explosives and not with enforcing laws and penal codes. (This is why they do not check for arrest warrants .)

Your cash money does not present a dangerous threat and so there should be no legitimate concern about it harming other passengers on the plane.

However, in the past there have been reports of TSA agents initiating the process for seizing cash from passengers under the suspicion that it is money gained from an illegal activity or money that is intended to be used on illegal activity.

Think drugs, weapons, and organized crime activities.

The seizing of cash can be accomplished under a number of different statutes including 21 U.S. Code § 881(a)(6) which governs forfeitures.

It states that you have no property right for:

(6) All moneys, negotiable instruments, securities, or other things of value furnished or intended to be furnished by any person in exchange for a controlled substance or listed chemical in violation of this subchapter, all proceeds traceable to such an exchange, and all moneys, negotiable instruments, and securities used or intended to be used to facilitate any violation of this subchapter.

It’s possible that if a TSA agent spots a lot of cash on you or in your bag (especially a lot of smaller bills like $20 bills) they could refer you to authorities (i.e., DEA) for some type of questioning.

The authorities may check to see if you are on some type of watchlist but even if you are not they may still deem that your cash is subject to civil forfeiture, which means that it will all be taken from you.

This can happen even if you have not been charged or convicted of any crime.

Some dogs that patrol airports have a nose for cash and a lot of cash has come into contact with illegal narcotics.

In fact, a study by Yuegang Zuo of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in 2009 found that about 90 percent of banknotes contain traces of cocaine . Traces of other drugs have also been found on cash like codeine, amphetamines and methamphetamines .

That means that “false positives” could be triggered, which could potentially be used as further evidence about your illegal activity (reportedly dogs don’t usually sniff out these faint traces).

If your money is seized you should have the opportunity to petition the process and to retrieve your funds.

It’s an odd legal proceeding where your cash is literally the defendant: “United States of America v. $50,000 in United States currency.”

That’s important because it means that the legal burden of proof is at the civil level which only requires it to be more likely than not that you were up to no good.

This petition process may not be very fun, could last a long time, and could be very costly. For example, you will likely need to hire an attorney which might cost you as much money as you have at stake.

Your success rate could also be very low.

In March 2017, the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General reported that over the course of 10 years, the DEA only returned money in 8% of cases.

And if you do get your money back, if you owe taxes or judgments, those will likely have to be paid out first.

For these reasons, I would try to limit the cash I take through TSA security to maybe just a couple of thousand dollars (If that).

Personally, the most cash I ever carry on me is a couple of hundred bucks.

This may be problematic for people who want to gamble at their destination or who are looking to do things like purchase a car with cash but you should make alternative arrangements to receive your cash at your destination if possible.

Tips for traveling domestically with cash

If you are thinking about traveling through TSA with cash my advice would be the following:

Keep the amount as small as possible

First, avoid bringing more than $2,000 in cash if possible. That should be well below the level considered to be suspicious, as the lowest amount I saw subject to forfeiture was $6,000.

Also, try to avoid $20 bills since those are customarily used in drug deals.

Notify a TSA agent

If you do bring cash consider notifying a TSA agent when you enter the line and see if you can get some type of private or secondary screening.

If you have TSA Pre-Check , an agent might consider you to be less likely to be engaged in criminal activity but that is not a guarantee.

But note that cash has been seized in cases where people notified a TSA agent themselves so this is not a full proof method.

And it goes without saying but do not attempt to conceal the cash on your body such as strapping it to your chest because the full body scanners will find this quite easily.

Avoid checked baggage

You might be thinking about putting the cash in your checked baggage but that is not a good idea.

For one, if the cash was detected you will not be there to explain the situation and you may be caught off guard later when you are brought in for questioning by the DEA.

Second, if your cash is detected it’s possible that an unethical TSA agent could simply decide to take your cash.

And finally, if your luggage is lost you will not be able to retrieve that cash and cash is almost always an exception to baggage insurance policies.

Bring documentation

If you are traveling with a lot of cash because you want to purchase a vehicle or take care of some other transaction make sure that you have all of the supporting documentation already with you in case you are brought in for questioning.

Presenting anything less than an airtight explanation for transporting cash can mean instant forfeiture.

Avoid transporting suspicious items

It is a good idea to avoid transporting other items such as marijuana along with your cash since that will only reinforce the image that you are up to some type of criminal drug activity.

This is even the case if the state you are flying out of has legalized marijuana.

Consider your criminal history

And finally, if you have any type of criminal history — especially cases related to drug infractions — the odds of you encountering an issue with forfeiture go up.

That’s because it will be that much easier for them to make a case against you. Remember, we are talking about a civil court burden of proof — not criminal court.

So you should really reconsider bringing a lot of cash if that applies to you.

The International cash limit of $10,000 and the need to declare

US Customs and Border Protection is clear that you can transport “any amount of currency or other monetary instruments into or out of the United States.”

The caveat is that if the amount of currency exceeds $10,000 or it’s for an equivalent then you will need to file a FinCEN Form 105 (“Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments”) with U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

This is a pretty simple form to fill out and basically just requires you to input the following information:

Contact information including passport number
Export/import information
Shipping information if applicable
Details of the currency or monetary instrument

You can file this form electronically at FinCEN Form 105 CMIR, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (dhs.gov) but you can also file it in paper form.

In addition, if you are entering the United States you must declare if you are carrying currency or any other monetary instruments if they total over $10,000.

You can make this declaration on your Customs Declaration Form (CBP Form 6059B) and then file a FinCEN Form 105.

Do not blow off this requirement because failing to declare could mean forfeiture of your money and some pretty serious criminal penalties.

And remember each country has its own policy regarding traveling with cash so you have to make sure you are in compliance with the country you are headed to.

Monetary instrument

Unless you went to law school for three years you might be wondering what a “monetary instrument” is as it’s found on the FinCEN Form 105 .

US Customs and Border Protection defines it as:

Traveler’s checks in any form
All negotiable instruments (including personal checks, business checks, official bank checks, cashier’s checks, third-party checks, promissory notes, and money orders) that are either, in bearer form, endorsed without restriction, made out to a fictitious payee, or otherwise in such form that title passes upon delivery
Incomplete instruments (including personal checks, business checks, official bank checks, cashiers’ checks, third-party checks, promissory notes, and money orders) signed but with the payee’s name omitted
securities or stock in bearer form or otherwise, in such form that title passes thereto upon delivery.

In this article we are mostly focused on cash which would most definitely fall under “currency.”

Specifically, 19 CFR § 1010.100(m) defines “currency” as the coin and paper money of the United States or of any other country that:

(1) is designated as legal tender, (2) circulates, and (3) is customarily used and accepted as a medium of exchange in the country of issuance.
Currency includes U.S. silver certificates, U.S. notes, and Federal Reserve notes.
Currency also includes official foreign bank notes that are customarily used and accepted as a medium of exchange in a foreign country.

The big take away here is that this restriction applies to cash of the US and also other countries.

The cash of pretty much every developed country is going to meet the requirements for currency listed above so it doesn’t matter if you are transporting Great Britain Pounds, Euros, etc.

Keep in mind that each form of currency and monetary instrument counts separately, as well. So if you have $6,000 in cash and a $5,000 traveler’s check, you are above the limit.

And members of a family residing in one household entering the United States that submit a joint or family declaration must declare if the members are collectively above the $10,000 limit.

So if a husband has $4,000 and the wife has $7,000, that family must declare because they are collectively above the limit.

Items that don’t count as currency

Some items related to currency do not officially count as currency but you still may have to declare them as “merchandise.”

For example, coins of precious metals, including silver and gold, do not fall into the definition of “monetary instrument” or “currency.”

However, coins of precious metals must be declared as merchandise if they are acquired abroad.

Other articles of precious metals (including gold bullion, gold bars, and gold jewelry) also do not fall into the definition of “monetary instrument” or “currency.”

However, these articles must also be declared as merchandise if they are acquired abroad.

They also have a list of excluded items which includes:

Warehouse receipts and bills of lading
Monetary instruments that are made payable to a named person, but are not endorsed or which bear restrictive endorsements
Credit cards and prepaid cards
Virtual currencies including Bitcoin

So if you are traveling around with credit limits above $50,000 or a nice stash of cryptocurrency you don’t have to worry about declaring those items.

Factors to consider when traveling with cash

When you are traveling chances are you are going to want to spend some money on various expenses like dining and excursions. It is highly recommended to use a good travel rewards credit card for these expenses for a few reasons.

Getting through security

If you have a bag full of cash money, that bag is going to have to get through security at some point. This may be at the airport, a train station, etc.

As explained in detail above, if a screening agent notices that you have wads of cash in a bag this could potentially raise a red flag and a worst-case scenario of you losing your cash and never getting it back.

The theft risk

Traveling with cash is risky whether you keep that cash on you or you stored in your hotel room.

If you are walking around with cash on you there is always that chance that you could run into a thief. This could be someone who could pick pocket your wallet or cash right out of your clothes or bag.

Or in a more serious case, this could be someone who holds you up with some type of weapon and forces you to handover your cash.

If you are going to travel with cash on your person it’s recommended to have some type of hidden wallet and a dummy wallet in your pocket. Your dummy wallet will have a small amount of cash, perhaps a duplicate credit card and even a duplicate ID to make it look as realistic as possible.

The idea is that if someone were to take that dummy wallet they would only get away with a minimal amount of your valuables. You could then have your real stash of cash hidden beneath your clothing.

If you choose to store your cash in your hotel room you also need to be careful. Putting your cash into a hotel safe is not quite as secure as you might think . In some cases you may actually want to just hide your cash somewhere in the room where a thief would not think to look.

Either way you go, carrying a lot of cash on you is a risk that you need to weigh very carefully.

Travel insurance

You can get travel insurance by paying for your excursions and travels with a good travel credit card.

So if for some reason you purchase a nonrefundable hotel or tour and then you have to cancel because you get sick or for some other covered reason, you can get fully reimbursed for your purchase. In some cases this could put thousands of dollars back in your pocket.

But if you paid for something like your hotel with cash there is a good chance that you will simply be out of luck and get hit with the loss.

Also, you might struggle to even be able to pay cash for certain travel expenses like rental cars .

Foreign conversion fees

When you convert your cash into a foreign currency you will be paying some type of conversion fee and in some cases may be dealing with a subpar rate, especially at those kiosks .

Certain types of ATM cards will allow you to withdraw cash in the local currency with minimal fees but the best way to make purchases abroad is to simply have a credit card with no foreign transaction fees.

Travel credit cards are great about offering rewards on purchases made abroad.

You don’t have to look very far to find a credit card that will earn you extra bonus points on flights, hotels, and even your tours and events. Earning extra points on dining, even when dining abroad, is also easy with cards like the Amex Gold Card.

By paying with cash you are missing out on all of these valuable rewards.

Traveling with a lot of cash can be problematic because that is often how actors travel who are engaged in criminal activities.

Your best bet is to avoid bringing a lot of cash but if you must, try to bring as much supporting documentation as possible and be prepared for questioning and the possibility of you having to fight against the government to retrieve your money.

Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo . He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio .

Privacy Overview

Traveling With Money: Everything You Need to Know

With the COVID-19 pandemic finally fizzling away, many people are now making plans to travel internationally again. Traveling with money typically entails finding the balance between safety and utility. On one hand, it is important to have a reasonable amount of travel money with you so you can sort out all necessary expenses. And, on the other hand, you do not want to become a victim of theft.

In this article, we will discuss the best way to travel with cash internationally. How much money you should bring, using other payment alternatives, the best options for currency exchange, and how to keep your money in a secure place while traveling.

Table of Contents

So, How Much Money Should I Bring?

Calculating the amount of money you will need for your next trip will depend on a few important things. How long will your trip be? How many family members are traveling with you? What kind of activities are you planning? And, what locations are you planning to visit?

The general rule for calculating the exact amount you’ll need for a trip is to multiply $50 to $100 by the number of days you plan to spend on the trip. However, other factors can influence this, including your destination, accommodation, activities, and preferences.

While you may be tempted to bring as much money as you can, it’s not recommended to carry large amounts of cash with you. I do recommend, however, that you always carry a small amount of cash for any emergencies.

Note that if you’re carrying any amount above $10,000 us dollars, you will be required to declare it. This is a simple process that entails filing a few forms. Some countries also have different policies regarding foreigners coming in with cash. So, it is best to always research and find out what the policy for traveling with money is in the country you’re going to.

Use a Travel Budget Calculator

There are free online tools available for you to use, like the travel budget calculator . It is easy to use and can help you make a daily budget, which will give you a better idea of the exact amount of travel money you will need.

Consider Paying with Cards

As mentioned above, traveling with money, specially large sums of money, is not advisable. A good alternative to this would be to make as many payments with your bank cards as possible. Bank card payments are generally accepted in most countries. However, card payments will not always be an option. In these instances, you will need to have a reasonable amount of their local currency on hand. When traveling to small towns or less developed countries, take some extra cash with you.

It’s always a good idea to first do some research. Find out if card payments are accepted at your destination, and plan accordingly. I also recommend that you find out whether your specific credit card company works for international transactions. If it does, are there any foreign transaction fees attached?

Lastly, if traveling with money is not necessary, and you can pay with cards instead, using a credit card instead of a debit card is safer, as it protects your bank account even in the case of theft.

Bring Multiple Bank Cards

Traveling with multiple bank cards is a great way to ensure financial security and convenience while on the go. It provides a backup in case one card is lost, stolen, or declined, and also allows for access to different accounts and banks. Carrying multiple cards from different providers can also help avoid issues with merchants who may only accept certain types of cards or payment methods. For example, American Express is not accepted in many places.

If you don’t have a second travel credit card, traveling with money (an emergency stash) is necessary. If your card gets temporarily blocked, while you can resolve this issue with your bank, your cash will be your safety line.

Use ATMs Abroad Safely

When traveling in a foreign country, at one point or another, you will have to use an ATM machine to withdraw money. Using an ATM is a convenient and easy way to access your money while traveling internationally. However, there are some precautions that you should take to ensure that your transactions are safe and secure.

Firstly, before leaving for your trip, inform your bank about your travel plans, including the countries you will be visiting and the duration of your stay. This will help prevent your account from being flagged for unusual activity and potentially being frozen or blocked.

Secondly, when using foreign ATMs, choose one that is in a secure location, preferably inside a bank or a shopping center. Avoid using standalone machines that are located in isolated or poorly-lit areas, as they are more susceptible to theft and fraud.

Lastly, use a machine that belongs to your bank to avoid extra atm fees and to ensure that the machine is more secure. Additionally, make sure you are aware of your bank’s daily withdrawal maximum limit and the fees that may be associated with exceeding that limit.

Know When and Where to Exchange Money

To get the best foreign currency exchange rates, I recommend exchanging at your destination. Although you will be charged a service fee, it is still your best option.

Do note that airports offer the worst exchange rates and fees for their service. So, to get better exchange rates, it is always best to do it once you are at your final destination. Be careful, though. Ensure that the vendor is legit; otherwise, you risk getting scammed .

For ease, I also suggest you exchange a small amount at your home country before traveling. This way, you’ll have enough cash on hand for anything you want or need to buy at the airport, and a taxi to your accommodation.

Use Other Payment Alternatives

Research what options there are to make as many payments and purchases online. And, use tickets where possible. This is a great option when booking any activities or sites you plan to visit on your holidays. This way, you guarantee having an entry ticket, and you avoid traveling with money.

What to Do in Case of Theft

Experiencing money theft while traveling abroad can be a stressful and unfortunate situation. The first important thing to do is to report the criminal activity to the local police station and obtain a copy of the report for insurance purposes. Then, contact your bank or credit card company immediately to report the theft and cancel any affected cards. You can also consider informing your embassy or consulate for assistance and guidance on obtaining emergency cash or replacement documents.

Taking precautions to prevent theft while traveling is crucial for ensuring a safe and worry-free trip. By following the tips below, you can safeguard your money and enjoy your travels with peace of mind.

Safety Tips for Traveling with Money

As we have seen, flying with a lot of cash is not recommended, however, in some instances it is necessary. If this is the case, you are probably wondering how to keep money safe while traveling. No worries, I got you. Below are a few tips on how to hide money while traveling, so you and your money stay safe.

Use Discreet Storage Options

Always keep your money away from your checked bags. Those bags can be accessed by many people while they are out of your sight. If your money goes missing, it’ll be difficult to track or make a case for it.

So, where do you hide money while traveling? Your carry-on, handbag, or any hidden pocket! As long as it is always in your direct line of sight, you’re good to go. A good wallet alternative, depending on the amount of money you are traveling with, is a money belt.

Other safe spots to hide your money include, bra stashes and built-in pockets. Although these are not appropriate wallet alternatives, they can come in handy at the airport, bus station, train station, or when taking any public transportation.

It is always best to avoid conspicuous storage options like a fanny pack or travel purses, as these will automatically label you a tourist and make you more prone to theft.

Carry Different Denominations

One nifty trick I’ve picked up over the years is to carry different denominations of cash while traveling. A variety of small and big bills will be practical when you need to pay for something. It also makes it easy to keep your money safe.

Split the Money

Split your cash into different places; the small bills in your wallet for simple purchases and transactions, and the big bills in a more secure part of your bag, where it would not attract undue attention.

Invest in Anti-theft Bags

Depending on the amount of money you are traveling with, you should also consider getting a dummy wallet or an anti-theft bag. These are designed specifically for travelers and come with features such as steel cable reinforced shoulder straps, lockable zippers, slash-proof fabric, and hidden compartments that can slow down or deter pickpockets and thieves.

Ultimately, the ideal answer to how much cash you need will be: just enough. Enough money for an emergency, or to cover expenses that cannot be paid with cards. Instead, try using your cards as much as possible. Also, exchange money once at your destination. And, if absolutely necessary to bring cash, follow the tips above on how to keep money safe while traveling.

Plan ahead, do some research, carry minimal cash, and keep it safe!

ln 2017, not wanting to follow the traditional life in Mexico, I left to explore the world and live on my own terms.

Full of hunger for experience & independence, I started an online business while traveling the world.

Now, I split my time between traveling and living in Bali. Doing what I love, living the life I want.

Hiding Money When Traveling: Savvy Tips to Give You Peace of Mind

Anti-theft Products , LUGGAGE

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Traveling with money can be a bit of a challenge to figure out, but TFG readers share their favorite ways to hide cash and cards on your trip.

Hide Money When Traveling

Written By: Tae Haahr

If you’re looking for the best way to carry money while traveling , look no further. TFG readers have shared their best tips, tricks and accessories to hide cash and cards while you’re out and about exploring.

Not sure you need to be concerned about hiding money while traveling ? One TFG reader shares, “I’ve been robbed and they only got my bag one time and a dummy wallet the second. My passport and real cash and cards were always in a secret pocket on my body.”

While this is an extreme example, it’s always a good idea to prepare for the worst. Whether you’re most comfortable tucking your items into a hidden pocket, zipping it into a scarf, or carrying it in a bag, we’ve got the best things to hide money in .

Use a Conceal Wear Hidden Money Pouch

Compass Rose Secret Bra Wallet

Venture 4th Money Belt

The Venture 4th also comes highly recommended by TFG readers for this tried and true body money storage option . It has a slim, minimalist design with RFID blocking technology so your credit cards and cash are safe. And its slim, lightweight design helps ensure that the pouch is secretly hidden.

One reader shares, “For extra-large amounts of cash in Europe I have used a money belt. When out and about, I carry as little as possible in a cross body.” With its superior construction, this belt is bound to last you a lifetime!

Peak Gear Money Belt With RFID Block

Peak Gear Travel Money Belt

If you’re looking for how to carry cash without a wallet , the Peak Gear money belt is a discrete and comfortable accessory to wear under any outfit. It has added RFID technology to help keep your things even more secure.

One TFG reader shares that when they head to Europe, “we put our credit cards, cash and passport in this, and wear it under our clothes.” Another adds, “I carry my passport, main cards, and money in my money belt at all times.”

Stashbandz Sports Running Belt Waist Pack

Stashbandz Running Belt

Instead of using a traditional travel money belt, a number of TFG readers recommend using a running belt to carry money instead. The Stashbandz model has three security and one zip pocket.

One reader explains, “I use a runner’s belt because it feels like a thick yoga pant waistband.” Another adds that “it’s so comfortable I forget I’m wearing it.” It has more than enough room to hold everything you need to hide.

Venture 4th Travel Neck Pouch

If you’re looking for where to hide money when traveling , the Venture 4th Neck Pouch will not only block RFID but is also comfortable and water-resistant. It has three storage components including two zippered and one velcro closure patch with an ID window.

One TFG reader shares, “I wear a neck wallet crossbody-style under a shirt. I keep a passport, extra credit card and cash in it.” Another reader wears it a tad bit differently, “I wear a neck pouch crossbody under my clothes and tucked into the waistband of my panties. It’s not hot or uncomfortable.”

Travelon Women’s Undergarment Pouch

Travelon Undergarment Pouch

The Travelon Undergarment Pouch is a great way to keep your valuables secure and out of sight. It’s made out of a comfortable, breathable and adjustable material that you simply tuck under your clothes. And, yes, your passport will fit!

One TFG reader shares that when it comes to how to hide cash while traveling , you can wear this “around the waist and tucked into underpants for me.” While another adds, “Wear hidden under your clothes for your money.”

Eagle Creek Undercover Hidden Pocket

Eagle Creek Travel Undercover Hidden Pocket

The Eagle Creek Undercover Hidden Pocket is a handy little pouch that you can slip onto your belt and tuck into the waistband of your pants. That way you’ve got everything you need secure and hidden.

If you’re looking for how to hide money on your body , this is a great way to keep your personal items like your credit cards and cash safe. It’s also made of moisture-wicking material, so your passport and money remain dry no matter where you find yourself exploring.

Lanney Money Belt RFID Blocking

LANNEY Travel Money Belt

If you’re looking for the best way to carry passport and money when traveling , and specifically something that can help you keep ultra-organized, then look no further than the Lanney Travel Money Belt . It has two zip pockets, the larger of which has three sections for convenient organization. There is also a hidden pocket to keep something super secret.

One reader shares “I like these when I travel with my passport for my own piece of mind.” It also comes with 10 RFID sleeves, so you can keep whatever you want on you safely.

Our readers recommend the best money belts !

Clever Ways To Hide Money In Clothing While Traveling

SCOTTeVEST RFID Travel Vests

SCOTTeVEST RFID Travel Vest

The SCOTTeVEST RFID Vest was made for keeping your things safe while you travel. It has 18 pockets (no, that isn’t a mistake) so that you can organize and store all of your things safely. No need to worry about pickpockets!

One TFG reader shares, “This vest has many pockets inside so you can keep your passport and belongings safe. Not to mention it makes a good extra layer whether it’s warm or cold.”

Waypoint Goods Hidden Zipper Pocket Travel Scarf

Waypoint Goods Travel Scarf

Clothing is a great place if you’re looking for how to hide money while traveling if you find the right items like this Waypoint Goods Scarf which comes highly recommended by TFG readers. It has a hidden pocket that you can slip your belongings into and zip right up. Voila, hidden!

One TFG reader shares, “I was a little hesitant to purchase this scarf because it cost $29 but it was worth it! It’s soft, spacious, looks, and feels quality made. Plus, the zipper is well hidden so it will do the job of hiding your goods—you couldn’t tell I was hiding anything.”

Sprigs Banjees 2 Pocket Wrist Wallet

Sprigs Banjees Pocket Wrist Wallet

Getting yourself one of the handy Sprigs Banjees 2 Pocket Wrist Wallets can help ensure that you keep your cards and cash-on-hand so they can easily be accessed. The band is lightweight and stretchy and has one zipper and one foldover pocket.

One TFG reader shares, “I’m very excited to order and use these wrist wallets. They’re great to use for your ID, credit card, and cash for the day.”

Pocksie Temporary Sticky Pockets – 6 pcs.

Pocksie Temporary Sticky Pockets

If you find yourself without a convenient pocket to stash your cash in and hide money travel style, then make one! Pocksie Sticky Pockets instantly add an extra pocket to the inside of your clothing, boots or bags. And it’ll stay there until you take it off yourself or throw it in the wash.

One TFG reader shares, “I use these in all of my knee-high boots and occasionally in sweaters and jackets without pockets. They really do work! Perfect for hiding cash and credit cards, but having them easily accessible.”

Skechers Bobs Woven Mary Jane Flat

Hide Essentials in Shoes

When it comes to the best way to travel with money , it helps to get creative if you’re going to hide your cash. One of the best places to hide money when traveling is in your shoes like these Skechers Mary Jane flats , because realistically who’s going to steal your shoe while you’re wearing it!

One TFG reader shares, “I put cash under the sole insert in my shoes— shhh don’t tell anybody!” It works so long as you’re not wearing sandals. Another suggests keeping your cash in multiple spots on you, including your shoe, wallet, bra, and so forth.

Want more tips? Check out the best clothes with hidden pockets !

Hide Money While Traveling In a Purse

Longchamp Le Pliage Neo Crossbody Bag

Crossbody Purse

If you’re looking to keep your belongings safe, but don’t want to get something new or pack another item, then TFG readers recommend bringing along your favorite (functional) crossbody bag like Longchamp Le Pliage —just make sure you keep an eye on it.

One TFG reader shares that they “don’t carry more than one credit card and only use a small cross body, which I never take off!” Just make sure that your bag stays on you and in front all of the time!

Travelon Anti-Theft Essential Messenger Crossbody Bag

Anti-Theft Bag

If you want to take an extra step to keep your belongings safe, an anti-theft bag will help to make sure that your items are safe while you’re out and about. You’ll find brands like Pacsafe and Travelon that specialize in these kinds of bags.

One TFG reader shares that the “Travelon feels very safe and secure. I just left Paris where there was a reported upsurge in pickpockets and I felt very safe. I stashed my extra credit card in a suitcase in my accommodation.”

Pacsafe Anti-Theft Backpack in Blush Tan

Anti-Theft Backpack

Anti-theft bags tend to have steel mesh and wires in both their bodies and straps. They also often have zippers so that they cannot be easily opened. Another great option is backpacks.

One TFG reader shares, “I use a Pacsafe backpack . Steel in the straps and cables at all zippers.” However, one TFG reader shares that even if you’re using an anti-theft backpack, never put all of your money or cards in the same place. Great tip!

Tarriss TSA Lock

If you simply want to make sure that your bag is not easily opened by someone wandering by, then a purse lock might be in order. One TFG reader shares that “Amazon sells little S locks that are perfect for backpacks or zippers that are not secured.” Another suggested using carabiners .

Keeping your belongings protected is crucial while you’re traveling because you never know what might happen. One reader shared, “ It was so crowded around the Eiffel Tower and one of the pockets on my backpack/purse was picked. They got nasty tissues and lotion. Luckily, I have a cable lock I put on the main part of the purse.”

Get equipped with the best cross body purses for travel!

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Tips for traveling with cash.

When you’re traveling with cash or cards and trying to play things safe (realistically, when are you not) there are a few things TFG readers suggest doing to stay ahead of pickpockets. They suggest making sure that you store cash in different places. That way if something is taken, you’ll still have something left.

One reader shares, “Keep your money belt under your clothes, run and have just a daily amount of money in your purse. Don’t take the belt out in public, only in a toilet or changing room if you need more cash.”

What do you feel is the best way to carry cash or cards when traveling? Share your tips below!

For more anti-theft travel tips, please read:

Best Money Belts and Anti-theft Travel Accessories
Best Anti-theft Travel Bags for Women
Worried about Pickpockets in Europe? Read These Tips and Tricks
How to Keep Your Passport Safe When Traveling

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The Best Way to Travel with Money (and Tips on Using Money Abroad)

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What’s the best way to travel with money? I’m glad you asked.

If you’re new to traveling abroad, dealing with currency exchange can seem a bit overwhelming. What type of currency do you need? Where should you exchange your money? How much should you take? It can all be a bit stressful.

Don’t fret. We’re here to help! We’ve made dozens of trips across Europe and the Caribbean, and we’ve definitely learned a lot about handling money overseas. By following these tips, you can learn from our mistakes, save money on fees, and relax knowing that your money situation is taken care of. So, let’s get started!

Traveling with Money: Where are You Going?

Before we talk about the best way to travel with money, it’s important to talk about where you’re going. The location of your travel has a big impact on how you’re going to handle your money abroad. Each area handles money differently, and it’s important to know what you’re dealing with before you get there.

For instance, if you’re traveling to the Caribbean, you probably don’t need to worry about exchanging money at all. Most travel destinations in the Caribbean are happy to accept USD as a form of payment. So, instead of converting a a bunch of cash to the local currency, just bring a stack of USD with you. Of course, it’s always a good idea to bring smaller bills, especially if you’re leaving tips at an all-inclusive. That way, you’re not stuck with $100 bills you can’t spend.

On the other hand, if you’re traveling to Europe, you’ll definitely need to change your money into the local currency. Unlike countries in the Caribbean, Europeans will simply scoff at your attempt to use USD. So, unless you plan to exchange those dollars at a currency exchange (see why you shouldn’t below), those dead presidents hold roughly the same value as a roll of toilet paper.

Many European countries use the Euro as their currency. However, certain places – like the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and others – still use their own. Before you leave, know which currency is used in the countries you plan to visit. Then, decide how you can get your hands on it without paying a fortune in fees.

Best Way to Travel with Money: Use Your Card

When it comes to taking money abroad, there’s no contest for the best way to do it: Use your credit cards whenever possible. Not only are credit cards more convenient, they’re likely “safer” than carrying around a bunch of cash. And, if you happen to lose your card, you’re not out a bunch of money.

Of course, you can’t just take any ol’ card with you. Make sure you’ve brought along a card that doesn’t charge for foreign transaction fees! This saves you money by eliminating foreign transaction fees, eliminating currency exchange fees, and by getting you the best/current exchange rate when you go to pay. (More on that in a bit!) You can find our favorite travel cards here!

Preparing Your Money to Travel

Before heading to the airport, it’s important that you take some steps to ensure everything is working properly, including:

Alert your bank. – Even though using a credit card is generally best practice, you’ll still need some cash. (I like to get cash at a local ATM upon arrival.) Before leaving the country, it’s important to alert your bank that you’ll be traveling. Simply call your bank and let them know where you’re going and when. They’ll put a travel alert on your bank account so you’re not stuck getting a “denied” message at a foreign ATM machine. If it sounds like I’m talking from experience, it’s because I am.
Alert your credit card company. – Just like your bank, be sure to alert your credit card company (or companies) that you’ll be traveling. Even if you bank with the same company who issues the credit card, you must alert both departments. Again, you don’t want to be trying to pay for dinner and get denied.
Carry a credit card that doesn’t charge for foreign transactions. – As I mentioned above, it’s important to bring a credit card without foreign transaction fees. Typically, non-travel credit cards charge around 3% per purchase for foreign transaction fees. So, for every $1,000 you spend, you waste about $30 in fees. That’s not a ton of money, but it adds up quickly. Skip them all-together by using good travel cards without foreign transaction fees.
Bring a backup credit card. – It’s always a good idea to bring a second credit card, just in case something goes wrong. Perhaps your card doesn’t work, you lose it, or it gets compromised while you’re there. Having a second card makes this a minor inconvenience instead of a major issue. Again, it’s best to bring a card without foreign transaction fees as your backup. Like with your primary card, be sure to alert your credit card company that you are traveling.

Other Tips for Using Money Abroad

What's the best way to travel with money? Learn our favorite way to carry money while traveling, plus discover some other tips for handling money abroad!

Understand the exchange rate. – Before you go, be sure to check the exchange rate. When paying in Euros (or Pounds), it’s easy to think you’re paying less than you actually are. However, depending on the current exchange rate, a €20 item may actually cost $22 or a £100 meal may actually equal $150. Add this up over the course of your trip, and you could easily blow your budget without realizing it.
When given the option, pay in the local currency. – When using a credit card, some merchants may offer you the option of paying in USD. Don’t do it. You’ll almost always get a better exchange rate if you pay in the local currency.
Use ATM machines, not money exchange centers. – Avoid using the money exchange centers you see at airports and in popular tourist areas. These businesses typically charge higher fees and offer worse rates. Instead, use your ATM card to simply withdraw money once you get there. You’ll almost always get a better exchange rate, saving you money right off the bat. (Remember to call your bank before you leave home!!!)
Carry USD for emergencies. – With respect to the above, it’s still a good idea to bring some USD with you. (I usually bring a couple hundred dollars.) In an emergency, you can always hit the money exchange and trade your USD for the local currency. It may cost you more, but at least you’ll have it.
Always carry some cash in the local currency. – Although the best way to travel with money is using a card, it’s always a good idea to have some cash in the local currency on you. Some places are more card friendly than others, but – even in those destinations – you’ll still find merchants that are “cash only.” Smaller denominations are typically better.
Take out only what you’ll need. – Don’t take out too much cash. Withdrawing too much local currency isn’t just a pain to exchange, you’ll also take a double whacking in currency exchange fees – both when you take it out and when you exchange it back to USD.

Handling Money Abroad: Final Thoughts

Before traveling, not knowing how to deal with money can be stressful. Having money problems while on your trip can send you straight into panic city. Lord knows I’ve made my fair share of money mistakes abroad, and while you can’t plan for every eventuality, I’ve learned that preparing ahead of time can save you tons of headaches.

I hope you’ve found these travel and money tips helpful! I’m happy to answer any questions you have in the comments below. Thanks again for reading, and – until next time – happy traveling!

Free Travel Rewards Advice – Need help choosing the best rewards cards for your trip? We can help! Tell us where you want to go, and we’ll help you build a personalized travel rewards program to suit your needs. Learn more here!

Greg Johnson is the co-founder of Club Thrifty and an expert in personal finance, family travel, and credit card rewards. His work and commentary have been featured in publications like Newsweek , Kiplinger’s Personal Finance , Dough Roller , CreditCardReviews.com , and more. He also works as a freelance personal finance editor at Bankrate.com.

Greg travels the world for about 20 weeks each year and has visited over 40 countries. He holds two bachelor's degrees, is the co-author of the book Zero Down Your Debt , and owns his own independent travel agency. Learn more about Greg here.

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I agree: I think traveling with a card is the easiest thing to do. I always carry local cash AND USD with me for emergencies, but cards are so much more convenient. In places like Europe you’ll look like a total tourist if you try to use cash. It’s best to use cards and blend in (pssst–you can get better prices if you look like a local!).

I give these tips to my students as well when I take them on study tours. However, they always forget. I have to bring extra currency because I basically become the ATM. Maybe I should start charging an extra fee for doing so.

Travelling in the eurozone is sooooooo much easier now with the euro. I remember travelling in the past and ending up with coins from all sorts of currencies. I think I still have some Dutch guilder and German marks somewhere. So much easier having just one currency for all those countries.

Get an app that will do currency conversion. There are tons of them. Yeah, you think you can do the conversion in your head, but sometimes your jet lagged or have had a few drinks.

See if one of your accounts will waive/refund ATM fees. I got a Fidelity ATM card tied to my money market account that refunds all ATM fees.

Credit card is the best travel companion as long as you’re able to control your spending. I would also find it very necessary to bring extra cash when card terminals won’t work all of a sudden.

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18 tips to help you manage your money while traveling

International travel is full of excitement. Seeing new places, trying new cuisines, and navigating a different culture lead to memories that last a lifetime.

As a college student or young professional, travel can be one of the most rewarding ways to spend your well-earned money.

But with all the excitement of traveling abroad, you can’t forget about managing your money. In addition to having the right currency and understanding foreign exchange rates, you’ll want to take measures to manage your money well while on the move.

While traveling doesn’t have to be more expensive than your day-to-day life, there are extra considerations to take to keep money safe while traveling.

What’s Ahead:

Before you leave

1. alert your bank and credit card company.

Alerting your bank and credit card company used to be a standard practice when traveling abroad — so “suspicious” charges in another country didn’t put a freeze on your accounts.

These days, however, banks are a little better at tracking fraud. But alerting your bank and credit card company still can’t hurt — especially if you’ve never traveled abroad with your card and want to make sure you don’t run into any issues with your account.

2. Look into your cards’ foreign transaction fees

Foreign transaction fees — tacked onto any purchase made outside of the U.S. — can add up fast when you’re traveling abroad. If you’re not sure if your card company charges foreign transaction fees, give them a call before your trip to find out. While you’re on the phone, ask if there are specific ATMs to use that will help you avoid extra fees.

If your cards do charge foreign transaction fees and you have enough time before your trip, you might want to consider getting a credit card that doesn’t charge them. If you plan to do more traveling abroad in the future, a card without foreign transaction fees will save you a lot of money over the years.

3. Save copies of important information

Before you leave, make sure you have access to all of your important bank and credit card information in case something happens and you lose your cards. Keep an accessible digital record of the following:

Your bank’s phone number
Your credit card company’s phone number
Your credit and debit card numbers

It might be easiest to take photos of your cards and save them on your phone. The important thing is to be able to access your card numbers and contact your bank in case of an emergency.

4. Confirm or purchase travel insurance

If you have a travel credit card, chances are it comes with travel insurance benefits. These benefits can come in handy when things don’t work out as planned — like when your flight gets delayed or your rental car windshield cracks. You don’t want to be on the hook for added expenses, especially after working hard to plan a trip within your budget.

Look up the travel insurance benefits that come with your card so you know exactly what’s covered. If you don’t have a travel credit card — or your benefits don’t cover enough — consider buying travel insurance. You can compare policies online using sites like SquareMouth and Travelinsurance.com to find the best option for your trip.

5. Get some local currency

It’s always wise to have at least some local currency on hand before arriving at your destination. You never know when you’ll have unexpected card troubles and need cash when there’s no ATM or bank around. Bring at least enough cash to get you a couple of meals, a hotel room, and transportation to tide you over until you can access a bank or ATM.

And don’t wait until you get to the airport to get cash, or you’ll pay a fortune to exchange currencies. Instead, call your bank ahead of time to see if you can exchange your money there — you’ll usually get a much better deal.

6. Consider a prepaid travel debit card

If you don’t have a credit card without foreign transaction fees — or you’re worried about using your card abroad — you can always get a prepaid travel debit card to load up with cash before your trip.

These cards, while they can be costly, come with lots of perks — like fee-free transactions, 24/7 assistance, and no ATM withdrawal fees. But just like credit cards, the perks vary card-to-card — and the fees can add up — so weigh your options and do your research to pick the best card for your trip.

During your trip

7. know when to use card vs. cash.

It’s always wise to have several methods of payment while traveling abroad. Some businesses will prefer card over cash, while others may not accept a card at all.

For example, using a credit card at a local street market may not be possible — so you’ll probably want some cash on hand. And in some countries, it’s best to tip with cash rather than on your card.

Alternatively, businesses like hotels may prefer you pay with a card — and you may save money if your card doesn’t have foreign transaction fees. And depending on how you tend to spend and budget, using a card can help you categorize and analyze your spending more easily at the end of your trip.

8. Use points

Travel hacking — or using miles or points to pay for travel — has become more popular in recent years. And contrary to what you may think, you don’t need to spend a ton of time or effort to earn and make use of points.

Travel credit cards usually issue points or miles when you pay with the card, which add up over time to help you save big on flights or hotel stays. If you have a travel credit card, read the fine print to understand how to earn points and make the most of them while traveling. If you don’t have a travel credit card, pick one that maximizes benefits you’ll actually use, doesn’t clobber you with fees, and — to get you some rewards right off the bat — has an attractive sign-up bonus.

9. Avoid random ATMs

When withdrawing money in a foreign country, be smart about what ATMs you use. First of all, if your bank allows fee-free withdrawals at particular ATMs — or they have branches where you’re traveling — make sure to use those machines to save money on withdrawal fees.

Try to avoid independent ATMs — they’ll often have higher fees and lower security than bank ATMs. And don’t use any ATM in an area that feels unsafe. Use machines in public places, and check your surroundings before making a withdrawal.

10. Protect yourself from theft

A smart way to manage money while traveling is to not keep all your money in the same place. If your wallet gets lost or stolen while you’re out, you don’t want to risk losing all your cash.

If you withdraw more cash than you need to spend at once, keep the extra bills in your hotel safe. When you’re out, carry your cash securely in a money belt or tamper-proof wallet. You might even want to invest in an RFID-blocking wallet, which protects your cards from digital theft by radio-frequency identification skimmers.

11. Choose local currency when paying with a card

When you’re paying with your credit card in a foreign country, you may notice an option to select either your home currency or the local currency when checking out. It might not seem like a big deal in the moment, but you’ll save money by choosing the local currency.

Despite having a credit card without foreign transaction fees, you may still pay a fee — usually around 3% —for paying in your home currency. And though you may have to do a quick currency conversion to determine how much you’re spending, you can end up saving a lot of money with this one easy tip.

12. Understand tipping culture

In North America, it’s not just polite — it’s expected — to tip 15% or more in restaurants and for other services. But tipping culture isn’t the same across the globe, and in some countries, tipping is even considered rude.

In Europe, for example, you’ll often pay a 5-10% service charge that’s already tacked on to the bill. In Asia, however, tipping isn’t the norm (and in some countries, like Japan, can even be disrespectful). Do some research on tipping culture in the countries you’re visiting. Consult travel guides and tourism websites to find out what’s expected before you go.

13. Check your account regularly

When you’re spending a different currency than your own, it’s easy to spend more than you realize (I am definitely guilty of this ). And when you’re using a card — in any currency — it’s easy to overspend. Now that lots of restaurants and stores are now card-only, you might be spending more than you realize.

Make sure you check your account regularly to avoid overspending your budget. You don’t want to arrive home after your trip with a pile of credit card debt that you weren’t expecting to pay.

14. Bank securely while traveling

Banking securely will help you keep money safe while traveling. And since most of us bank online these days, it’s extra important.

First of all, make sure all of your devices are password-protected before you travel. Otherwise, if your computer or phone gets stolen — and you have your passwords saved automatically — someone could instantly gain access to your online accounts.

If you can help it, try to avoid using free public Wi-Fi, which could potentially put your information at risk. If you need to log into your bank accounts, make sure you’re using cellular data or a protected Wi-Fi network.

15. Don’t forget the exchange rate

No matter whether you’re paying with card or cash, keep the exchange rate in mind when you’re spending. It’s easy to lose sight of how much you’re actually spending — and think something is “cheap” when you’re really paying with a more expensive currency.

If you need to, you can use an app to convert currency prices before making a purchase. That way, you know exactly how much you’re spending each time you swipe your card.

After your trip

16. convert your leftover cash.

Unless you know you’ll be traveling again soon, try to spend any foreign currency before returning home. If you come back with foreign cash, you’ll have to exchange it back to U.S. dollars. Exchanging money twice — to a foreign currency and then back to U.S. dollars — will cost you a lot in fees.

If you do need to exchange currency back into U.S. dollars, you’ll want to return to the bank. That’s where you’ll find the best exchange rates and lower fees. Or better yet, if you have a friend who’s planning to visit the destination you just came from, see if they’ll buy your leftover currency for a reasonable, fee-free rate. You’ll both come out ahead.

17. Pay off your credit card

When you return from your trip — and before you start dreaming up the next one — make sure to pay off your credit card. If you used your card for most of your purchases abroad, you don’t want to let that hefty balance linger.

Make sure you pay off your credit card and any travel-related expenses as soon as you can so your trip doesn’t end up costing you more down the line.

18. Check on your accounts

On a similar note, make sure you check up on your accounts after returning home from your trip. Don’t let any unfamiliar charges go unnoticed — instead, if you see something suspicious, call your bank or credit card company right away to report the charges.

Next time you travel abroad, use these tips to help keep your money safe while traveling. When you take the time to make security a priority, you can travel with a lot less stress — and spend a lot more time having fun.

Featured image: HappyTime19 /Shutterstock.com

About the author

Cassidy Horton

Cassidy is a personal finance writer with an MBA and a bachelor’s degree in public relations. She has published hundreds of finance articles online covering a range of topics for variety of publications, including Forbes, The Balance and Money Under 30.

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10 Smart Ways to Carry Money While Traveling

Christine Sarkis

There's a 95 percent chance Senior Editor Christine Sarkis is thinking about travel right now. Follow her on Instagram @postcartography and Twitter @ChristineSarkis .

Christine Sarkis is an SATW-award-winning journalist and executive editor at SmarterTravel. Her stories have also appeared on USA Today, Conde Nast Traveler, Huffington Post, and Business Insider. Her advice has been featured in dozens of print and online publications including The New York Times , Conde Nast Traveler , and People magazine. She has also shared travel tips on television and radio shows including Good Morning America, Marketplace, and Here & Now. Her work has been published in the anthologies Spain from a Backpack and The Best Women's Travel Writing 2008 . She is currently working on a travel memoir.

The Handy Item I Always Pack : The Trtl Pillow . It's easy to pack and comfortable, and makes it so I can actually sleep on flights.

Ultimate Bucket List Experience : Seeing the Aurora Borealis from the comfort of somewhere warm, like a glass igloo or hot spring.

Travel Motto : Curiosity is an amazing compass.

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat : Aisle all the way.

Email Christine Sarkis at [email protected] .

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Carrying money on vacation is a balancing act between safety and utility. Making money difficult to access deters thieves, but when it comes time to pay for something, you still want to be able to get to it without stripping off clothes or playing hide-and-seek with a bag’s hidden pockets. With that in mind, here are 10 tips that will help you carry money safely and elegantly while traveling.

Some of the links featured in this story are affiliate links, and SmarterTravel may collect a commission (at no cost to you) if you shop through them.

Divide Money

Even if you disregard all other advice about carrying money, take this tip to heart: Whenever possible, divvy up your travel cash and even credit cards into multiple safe spots. If you have all your money in one place, it only takes one incident for a thief to totally wipe you out.

When possible, leave all the cards and cash you won’t need immediately in a secure location in your hotel or vacation rental. And when you’re out and about, keep some of your money attached to your person (see below for ideas about how to wear money securely), and some in a bag you carry. If you’re smart about how you distribute your funds, you’ll still have enough money to get to a police station or back to your hotel in the event your bag gets lost or snatched.

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Favor On-Body Storage

Under-clothing storage accessories have come a long way since neck pouches and money belts came onto the scene. Though those classics are still effective, newer options include bra stashes , as well as long johns , underwear , and undershirts with built-in pockets for safe storage. On-body storage accessories are particularly useful if you’re sleeping somewhere that doesn’t have a secure place for cash and other valuables.

Note that on-body storage isn’t a good wallet alternative, since fishing around under your clothes for money advertises where you’re hiding the goods.

Keep Small Bills Handy

Purse with money on old rustic wooden table

Changing or withdrawing large amounts of money minimizes the fees you’ll pay to get local currency, but it also means you’ll be traveling with far more cash—and larger bills—than you’d likely have on you at home. In addition to dividing your money, it’s also wise to make smaller denominations of currency easily accessible. That way, you won’t pull out the local equivalent of a $100 bill while attempting to buy a 30-cent souvenir. You also won’t have to reach down into your jeans to get more money from an under-clothing money pouch.

Make money preparation part of your morning routine: As you’re packing your bag, make sure you’ve got a variety of small bills and coins at the ready for purchases such as food, souvenirs, and attraction entry fees. Squirrel away larger bills in your under-clothing money pouch , or tuck them into a secure part of your wallet or bag.

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Carry an Anti-Theft Bag

Travelon anti-theft urban incognito backpack

If garbage-bag commercials have taught us anything, it’s that some bags are tougher than others. The same goes for travel purses , backpacks , and bags —some, designed specifically for travel, have features such as cut-proof, steel-cable-reinforced shoulder straps; slash-proof fabric; and locking zippers.

Since elements like these slow down thieves, anti-theft bags can do a decent job deterring opportunistic pickpockets. Anti-theft bags are available online from Arden Cove , Pacsafe , Travelon , and other retailers. Consider your purchase an investment that might save you some money.

Trim Your Wallet

Are you going to need your library card when you’re 6,000 miles from your local branch? Probably not. Before you leave, take the time to go through your wallet and take out everything except the necessities (a primary credit card and a backup, an identification card, an insurance card, etc.). Not only will it help you travel lighter, but if your wallet does get lost or stolen, you’ll have fewer items to replace.

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Use a Dummy Wallet

Close up of person stealing wallet from another person's shoulder bag

If you’re traveling in a place known for pickpockets or muggings, consider getting a cheap wallet that looks real enough to use as a decoy that you can keep in your pocket or bag. Pad the wallet with some small bills and make it look more real by slipping in one or two of those sample credit cards you get with offers in the mail. A dummy wallet can stop pickpockets before they get to your real wallet.

Buy a Travel Wallet

Person removing money from a thin wallet (left) and close up of same wallet (right)

In addition to a dummy wallet, you might also consider a wallet that you reserve specifically for travel. There’s one simple reason for this: If you’re the type of person whose day-to-day wallet is packed with cards—gym memberships, prepaid coffee cards, frequent-buyer punch cards, and the like—the card pockets are likely to be stretched out and won’t be able to securely hold just an item or two. By keeping a travel-only wallet at the ready, your cards will have snug pockets that they can’t slip out of accidentally.

As an added bonus, you won’t have to unpack and repack your day-to-day wallet; you can simply transfer what you need for your trip to your travel version.

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Adapt to the Local Money Culture

Being prepared to pay your way on vacation means different things depending on where you are. In a cash economy, you’ll need to make sure to have a variety of bills and coins on hand at all times, but your credit cards will likely just collect dust.

However, in much of Europe and parts of Asia, where automation is common and chip-and-PIN credit card technology is standard, having a compatible credit card will come in very handy, especially if you find yourself at an unattended gas station late at night or a train station after hours. Also keep in mind that in some countries, U.S. dollars are an official or unofficial secondary currency, so it’s wise to keep a few greenbacks at the ready.

Use Money Alternatives

In high-traffic settings such as metro stations and close quarters like bus lines, it’s nice to be able to forgo cash or credit card transactions and rely instead on a multi-use ticket or other cash alternative. If you’re in a city where the public transportation system offers multi-use cards (for instance, London’s Oyster card or San Francisco’s Clipper card) or where you can buy a bunch of tickets at once for a discounted price, then take advantage. You’ll reduce your chances of losing your wallet simply by retrieving and stowing it fewer times.

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Stow Valuables Securely

Hotel safe in a closet next to two hanging hotel robes

Sometimes the best way to carry money is not to carry it at all . Hotels’ in-room safes are generally pretty secure, and if you’ve got an item (or a wad of cash) you’re particularly nervous about, check to see if the hotel has a safe-deposit box behind the desk. If you do use a hotel lockbox of any sort, remember to retrieve your items when you leave. In the rush to pack up and depart, out of sight can easily mean out of mind—until you’re on your way to the airport. If you’re a forgetful type, leave a colorful note on top of your suitcase .

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2016. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

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36 Real Ways to Save Money While Traveling (Actionable Tips)

Written by Becca

Updated on March 21st, 2024

A woman standing on a bridge with a yellow suitcase.

Here are our proven best ways to save money while traveling. When traveling on a budget, there are lots of ways to make your money last longer, even during inflation.

This article may contain affiliate links. We earn a small commissions when you purchase via those links — and it's free for you. It's only us (Becca & Dan) working on this website, so we value your support! Read our privacy policy and learn more about us .

Table of contents

Travel in the off-season (aka never around Christmas)
Find things to do for free when you travel
Walk and take public transit when you travel
Minimize attractions with entrance fees or cover charges
Minimize buying drinks at bars
Avoid losing all your money with an emergency stash
Cook more and eat out less
Cook with fun local (and cheap) ingredients from markets
Compare the flight costs in low season
Save money by staying in hostels
Try house-sitting to save money on accommodations
Save money by booking accommodation for longer to get discounts
Travel in places where your home currency takes you farther
Travel on less than $50 per day
Track your spending with an app
Use Splitwise to keep track of splitting bills with friends
Avoid the most expensive places to travel (or know the reality)
Research the price of travel and the trends
Cut out shopping and take photos instead
Get connected to some locals
Drink the tap water (if it’s safe)
Buy local brands and locally-grown produce as snacks
Do your research in order to save money and avoid fines
Listen to travel and finance podcasts!
Use a credit card to get a good foreign exchange rate
Sign up for credit card a bonus to pay for your trip on miles
Don’t pay foreign transaction or ATM withdrawal fees, ever
Shop around for trip insurance online
Get Priority Pass to save on airport lounges, and get in for free
Find the best price for flights
Save money with rental cars

Save money by using ride-share-style cabs

Travel in a group and share download links for free credit
Shop around for the best hotel, Airbnb and hostel prices
Take out a weekly budget in cash
Find creative and new ways to work remotely and travel

When traveling, you may want to save as much money as possible so that you can extend your trip. The less money that you spend means that you have more money to spend on experiences, accommodations and everything else.

It’s easy to not think twice about expensive upgrades and eating at restaurants every meal. At home, you’re in control and you know your budget. When traveling, you may have different currency and don’t want to skimp!

So, how can you still have a great time on your trip while optimizing for a budget?

Let’s find out!

Travel in the off-season (aka never around Christmas)

Have you heard the term ‘high season’? It’s a real thing!

Some places become more expensive during Christmas and New Year’s, during summer (relative to the hemisphere!) and during spring breaks (depends on local university schedules).

If you avoid these times of year, you’ll find hotels that want to fill up their properties, tours that may discount prices in order to draw visitors in the off-season and lower flight prices.

Depending on where you are going, do your search to determine when high season is and try to avoid it.

Find things to do for free when you travel

All over the world, it is possible to find things to do for free. It’s a great way to beat inflation or rising costs, and enjoy activities that cost nothing.

If you’re not interested in walking for miles to see a city and its parks or buildings, you can seek out ways to enjoy nature and the arts, like for example with this list of free things to do in NYC .

In Rotterdam , which is a fairly expensive place to travel in terms of the cost of accommodation and food, we appreciated famous architecture for two days, all without paying a Euro! We took ourselves on a self-guided walking tour and snapped photos of the Cube Houses and the train station that looks like a spaceship.

A man is riding a skateboard against a blue sky.

In Tenerife, we hiked Teide National Park for free on its trails that are available when you get off the public bus. The visitors center is free as well. We avoided the tourist-heavy gondola ride up the mountain, and we somehow didn’t pay any fees aside from the public bus ride.

Woman hiking on a wide desert hiking trail with red desert rocks in El Teide National Park in Spain

In Ireland, we entered natural and historic sites like Glendalough for 0 EUR, and enjoyed priceless views and the feeling of being in ancient medieval ruins.

On a road trip in Upstate NY, we got the coolest scenic views of the Hudson River on a beautiful (and unexpected) hiking trail at Olana State Historic Site , all for free.

All these cool things we did cost us nothing and were just as memorable as lots of things we’ve done that cost us entrance fees.

A couple standing on a wooden bridge in ireland.

Walk and take public transit when you travel

We love walking, and we also focus on our daily step count. As our friends Alex and Ryan would say, “Keep moving!”

If it comes down to having some time in which we can walk rather than taking a taxi, we’ll do that! If we can’t walk, meaning if distances are too big, we first consider mass transit. Mass transit is more environmentally-friendly and usually saves money (especially if traveling solo).

In Europe, the train and bus systems are very impressive and efficient most of the time, and in Amsterdam , we immediately looked for the public train that would take us from Schipol Airport to the city center.

From there, we used Google Maps to find the correct tram to the Lloyd Hotel and the ticket-taker advised us to buy a multi-day tram pass that wound up being very efficient for our purposes in Amsterdam.

Overall, walking and figuring out the bus, subway or train routes helps us to avoid hefty prices on taxi travel.

A green railing on the side of a building.

Minimize attractions with entrance fees or cover charges

All over the world, there are attractions that cost money. During times of inflation, these types of charges will increase .

In no way am I telling you not to go to incredible wonders of the world like the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona or the Forbidden City in Beijing (both of which require paid tickets acquired beforehand for entrance), but it’s important to realize that most of enjoying a place does not require spending heaps of money.

For our days spent in Barcelona, Spain , when we did not go to the Sagrada Familia or Parque Guell (also requires a ticket purchased in advance), we walked six or seven miles, getting to know the city, its neighborhoods, its many parks and cafes.

This kind of enjoyment is free (or costs very little, depending on what you eat or drink).

When I went to Singapore in 2012, I saved money by staying with a friend, but blew my budget by taking a $40 taxi one night by myself and going to Singapore’s most famous bars and clubs, which charged cover fees of $25/person, each night of the weekend. This accounted for a chunk of my daily travel spend and gave me a bit of stress!

Conversely, we went on a day trip to the Mexican village of Izamal , where all attractions were free and we spent an entire afternoon packed with sights, without spending anything.

Minimize buying drinks at bars

If the cost of food wasn’t enough when traveling long term, the cost of alcohol has to be added on top.

If you consider that in some of the world, beer costs $0.25 (Vietnam), but in some places, $10 (San Francisco, CA), there are some very varied costs in consuming alcohol in different parts of the world.

No matter where you go, alcohol is not something required for your body. Although some people travel for beer, or travel for cocktails or wine, or consider alcohol as a way to explore a place, if you consume alcohol every day, it can become a hefty portion of your daily travel costs.

There are ways to avoid paying per-drink at bars, however - if you’re staying at a hostel and there’s a common space, backyard or rooftop, you can bring back a six-pack or bottle of wine (if rules allow it).

We did this at our hotel in Montauk, NY , where sitting around the fire pit with a can of hard seltzer was just as relaxing as it would have been in a bar in the downtown.

In some countries, drinking in parks is allowed (Spain has this type of culture, for example), and you can purchase your wine or beer at a corner store or supermarket and enjoy it in the outdoors.

Avoid losing all your money with an emergency stash

This is for of a safety trick, but it goes for saving money as well because you’ll save money if you are smart with it.

Best tip is to avoid travel with a lot of cash, but do keep an emergency stash just in case of emergencies.

Be sure to break it into smaller stashes and spread them around your gear in places people won’t think to look, like places that are not visible. Don’t ever let anyone see you handling your cash stash (or where you stash an emergency credit card (i.e. don’t keep all your credit and debit cards together).

Lastly, write down where you stash your cash so you don’t forget (write it in a place that only you can access!)

Especially when walking around places where petty theft is common (Spain, Colombia and Vietnam, to name a few) we choose to leave most credit cards and most cash in our apartment or hostel, and only leave for the day or evening with what we need.

This means having one debit card, one credit card and a non-excessive amount of cash in our wallets at any given time.

Our emergency and alternate credit cards are kept in secret places (it’s true!) in our luggage so that someone who may enter the room where we’re staying won’t find them quickly.

Cook more and eat out less

There, we said it: stop eating in restaurants (all the time!).

If you travel for longer than a three or four-day getaway, you notice how eating in restaurants adds up very quickly.

There’s tax, tip (most places), the drink from the ‘Drinks’ section that looks good, the add-in of an appetizer or a side (or three) and a little bit of dessert.

Unless you’re in Sri Lanka , where eating out for two runs you 6 USD (all following prices are listed in USD) or so (with tea and smoothies), chances are that eating out in most of the world is more expensive than cooking your own food.

Plus, cooking more and eating out less (or skipping the full sit-down meals and opting for fast casual) is a great way to save money during periods of inflation.

Cook with fun local (and cheap) ingredients from markets

For this reason, when traveling long-term, Dan and I choose to cook with fun local ingredients we find in markets and in supermarkets.

In fact, one of the first things we do when we get to a new city is to locate the nearest supermarket, and ‘star’ it in our Google Maps .

In Peru , we cooked with Peruvian chili peppers, in Colombia we cooked with arepas and in Mexico , we made everything into a taco (a package of 10-12 corn tortillas is about $1 at most corner stores).

If you’re traveling full-time or for an extended period of time, it’s a great idea to learn to cook some easy dishes, because eating out can get old, fast.

Skewers of vegetables and watermelon on a grill.

Compare the flight costs in low season

As a quick example, Dan and I compared the cost of flying from Mexico City to New York on January 1 and on January 15.

On January 1, a one-way from MEX to NYC is $577, and on January 15, the price goes down to $164, one-way. To save $413, you can schedule your trip two weeks later (when schedules permit).

An interesting way to think about this is, Will the cost of staying another X days in the city will outweigh the costs of a more expensive flight, sooner?

To date, I’ve also taken two trips to Colombia in February, which is a rarer time of year to travel, relatively-speaking. My flights were rarely more than $350, round-trip.

A beach with waves and palm trees on a sunny day.

Save money by staying in hostels

Why should you stay in hostels ?

First, it’s appropriate to point out that hostels aren’t ‘always cheap.’

In fact, in the Netherlands and on Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way , we chose to stay in Airbnbs because hostel privates cost upwards of $100 per night.

Hostels are a memorable experience

For the most part, Dan and I have traveled in many parts of the world and have stayed in awesome hostels that have been both affordable and memorable.

Why do we love hostels?

Hostels are a place to make connections, to meet people, to have access to helpful staff, to take part in group outings and to learn.

Hostels provide cultural & social experiences to remember

In Israel, Abraham Hostel Jerusalem had us take part in a hummus-making class, and in La Serrana Hostel , we met our hiking buddies for the following day at a campfire on our very first night.

Even if you would like some privacy and quiet by booking a private room, you can still socialize and meet other travelers in hostel common areas like lobby areas or hostel bars, patios, kitchens and rooftops.

We have both made lifelong friends from all around the world by traveling on our own (and together) when staying in hostels .

Plus, you may wind up with a travel buddy for a hike or side trip the next day - who knows!

Hostels are good for our budgets

For the most part, hostels have been a cost-effective way for us to travel for months on end. In Sri Lanka , we stayed in hostel privates for $40 per night, and in Guatape, Colombia , that figure was sometimes as low as $15 for the two of us.

In places like Andean South America, Central America, South and Southeast Asia, you can sometimes get a hostel dorm bed for as little as $5 to $10 USD per night. You can also find hotel rooms for as little as $16 USD on sites like Booking.com , like we did in Vietnam.

The interior of a coffee shop with a mural on the wall.

Try house-sitting to save money on accommodations

House-sitting is another great idea, and we’ve read about people who make their entire livelihoods traveling the world as house-sitters. It’s a great way to essentially get paid to travel , if you think about it like this.

Ryan and Alex recently told us that you can find free housing on TrustedHouseSitters.com with a membership fee of approximately $100 for the year.

This is a great tip for looking into, if you’re flexible, open-minded and ready for a little bit of responsibility!

Save money by booking accommodation for longer to get discounts

For long-term travelers who use Airbnb to book accommodations, you can save a significant amount of money (anywhere from 10-50%) if you book for at least four weeks, as hosts will offer monthly discounts to avoid having new guest turnover every few days.

Similarly, for the risk-takers among us, look for new properties (those with the fewest reviews), as they’ll often come with the biggest discounts from folks in need getting reviews. They’ll often be incredible hosts, as they really want the five stars.

Even if you’re planning a few side trips from wherever you are, the savings can be significant enough that you don’t have to worry about leaving the room empty for a few days, AND you won’t have to find a new place upon your return!

Our Hanoi Airbnb was booked for four weeks, so we got a 12% discount. We treated it like an apartment we were paying rent on, rather than a place that costs us X amount per night.

Travel in places where your home currency takes you farther

A great hack for lowering the price of travel, saving money and maximizing your budget during times of inflation is to travel in low-cost countries.

There’s a very important website I like called Price of Travel and I’ve used it a lot to compare the cost of travel in various places. Sometimes this can be very plain and simple, but sometimes it’s not as clear.

Travel on less than $50 per day

Whenever we travel to Asia and Central and South America, we put a maximum of $50 per person per day. Dan and I travel together if it wasn’t clear!

We almost always out perform our target and sometimes even make it close to $50 per day for the both of us combined.

Keeping a target for yourself and your family is a great way to stay on track and not exceed your means.

A person is holding a coin in front of a bokeh background.

Track your spending with an app

Apps like Mint and YNAB are staples in most households for keeping track of your day-to-day budget. When you travel, well, you can still use those apps!

If you put your expenses on a credit card, you can automatically file your expenses into the travel category. If you take out cash, you can manually enter in every line item, or put the lump sum in one line item.

Some credit card also come with a baseline categorization for transactions and may give you a monthly summary. That won’t help you for cash transactions, other cards and if you split an expense with someone.

Any time I travel, I’ll manually track everything in a Google sheet (MS Excel also works). After each trip, I reflect on my spending categories and determine the cost per day and if I overspent somewhere.

With this data, I can be better informed with how to plan my next trip .

Use Splitwise to keep track of splitting bills with friends

Splitwise is an app that allows you to be part of a group and track shared expenses and amounts owed over however long you want. We used it at Nine Coliving had to track amounts we owed to other travelers for groceries, group dinners and other expenses.

What we like about the app is that you only owe the final difference, and you can keep the tally going for the duration of your stay somewhere or for the length of a trip with other people. It’s so useful for traveling with friends or groups.

Avoid the most expensive places to travel (or know the reality)

I’ve been to Singapore, which clocks in as one of the most expensive places to travel . My cost of travel in Singapore averaged closer to $100 per day, even with staying at an American friend’s apartment.

Dan traveled to Iceland and the cost per day was comparable.

In Singapore, street food meals cost close to $20, beers in a convenience store were $7, a taxi from the bar district to my friend’s apartment was $40 and other daily expenses like snacks, coffee and taking the metro added up fast.

For places that are inherently expensive, there might not be an off season to travel in. It might be expensive all year around.

Some baseline trips that we’ve mentioned throughout this article, like leveraging hostels, shared rooms or cooking at home might help you save money through these destinations.

Research the price of travel and the trends

Figuring out the average price of travel in world cities helps us determine what we’d like to do in order to travel longer and better.

Sometimes it’s committing to cook all of our meals or cutting out drinking in bars in order to compensate for costs like rental cars, taxis we’ll need to take or costs incurred in visiting the must-see attractions of a destination.

Cut out shopping and take photos instead

If you want to stop spending money when you travel, stop buying things . It’s a great hack during periods of rising costs and inflation, or at any time, as a smart choice for travel saving.

I used to buy something every time I traveled. I considered my souvenirs as a collection of the places I’d been. I used to buy a tank top for every Southeast Asian and Central American country in which I backpacked.

I grew out of this phase when I realized that the shirts would get old and stretched out or not fit anymore, but my photos were the basis for all my memories.

Is it worth collecting souvenirs?

The truth is, now I have these eight or so tank tops sitting in a box collecting dust. For the ones I like, I wear them as pajamas.

I would also buy things to take home to my family - shot glasses for my family members, local snacks (wrapped and non-perishable) for my mom and always a bag of coffee, from Guatemala or Costa Rica, for my dad.

If you’re someone who’s very into collecting souvenirs, go for it. But if you find joy in photos, or simply memories in your mind, skip the material objects that may collect dust one day in a closet.

How to stop buying stuff when you travel

So, I stopped buying things both for myself and for others. I consider that my photos say it all.

Instead of ‘investing’ in souvenirs for yourself and others, invest in a trusty travel camera that will help you remember your travels even when souvenirs get lost or broken.

Photos don’t weigh down your luggage, and they definitely don’t spoil, rot, collect dust or break (ok, maybe they can break if you don’t take good care of it). Above all, once you stop shopping, you’ll notice how much money you can save.

Check out our favorite budget cameras!

A woman holding up a cell phone with a picture on it.

Get connected to some locals

Anywhere you go, locals know what’s up. If I have visitors in NYC , they’re thankful that I can take them to the non-touristy neighborhoods they never would have found otherwise, or take them for local activities like picnics with my friends, which cost tons less than a tour or an activity that costs a lot of money.

Old building best architecture at golden hour in Brooklyn Heights New York

Dan and I love meeting locals and meeting up with local friends of friends when we travel.

In Buenos Aires , it was my friend Ayelen who took us on a double-date with her boyfriend to their favorite place for steak and wine. We sat on the street and commented that if not for them, we never would have found such a local experience.

When I started planning my trip to Nicaragua, my parents found out that a friend of theirs had a good friend who owned a coffee plantation in Esteli.

They put me in touch, and I wound up with an airport pickup from their driver and a private stay on a coffee plantation for my first night when I flew in by myself!

For anywhere you go, reach out to your network. You never know who you may find - an old friend from years back, a relative you’ve never met before or a friend of the family, who has a connection to the destination you’ll be traveling in.

Post on your social media channels about where you’re headed, and ask around and talk about your trip to determine if any friends or family members have connections there.

The most meaningful travel experiences are the ones that happen with other people!

A group of friends holding up a glass of wine.

Drink the tap water (if it’s safe)

It’s incredible to realize the difference between a trip on which you can drink the local tap water and one on which you can’t.

When you can’t safely drink the water, there’s so much more to think about, like running out of water, or how much water to buy or how much water can you physically carry back to where you’re staying.

In Europe and Israel you can safely drink the water that comes out of the tap, no matter what. After traveling in Asia and Central America for five years, this came as a pleasant type of culture shock to me!

I love water and staying hydrated, so water availability is a big factor in my travel.

Is it OK to boil tap water?

When living in Shanghai, I would boil the water that came out of my sink in order to make it drinkable.

In all honesty, this was a fine scenario because most of the winter months, my apartment was so cold that I wanted to warm up with hot water! I would add tea, lemon and ginger to make it taste better.

Some places are a pleasant oasis for drinkable water, namely Medellin and Bogota, Colombia, where you can safely drink tap water and it even tastes pretty okay. In these places, it’s smart to pack a reusable water bottle in your luggage in order to minimize plastic.

A glass jug filled with water on a table.

Buy local brands and locally-grown produce as snacks

What’s better than trying new foods? Nothing! We love trying the ‘local stuff’ when we travel, whether it’s local tamarind candy from Mexican drugstores (only $0.30!) or dried coconut sweets in Colombia (roughly the same price tag, at $0.31 for one!).

When I lived in Shanghai, I shopped local - Asian pears, chestnuts roasted on the street, eggs from the supermarket and of course, rice and tofu.

My friends who ‘required’ imported American goods from home at the expat grocery stores would fork over lots of money to have a taste of what they missed from home like specialty flavor M&Ms and American cereal (nearly $7.00 for a small box).

In Estonia, Dan and I asked the hostel owner of our hostel which types of foods were native to Estonia and therefore would make for affordable purchases in the supermarkets.

We found out that products like potatoes, dill, apples, pickles, carrots and beets were the in-season foods that we could buy in order to shop local and lessen our carbon footprint.

We ate pan-fried potatoes with dill countless numbers of times in the following weeks, with no regrets!

When you land in a new place, ask a local - your taxi driver, a local or any other connections you can make - for what’s locally-grown. You may be in for some great surprises.

A group of people shopping at an outdoor market.

Do your research in order to save money and avoid fines

This one’s funny, but true - if you are aware of the rules in a new place, you will save money by following them. Whether it’s about open-container laws or driving regulations on the highway, asking locals or researching online can pay off.

When Dan and I were in Argentina, we rented a car and started a road trip through the Cordoba Sierra region .

The company that rented us the car had warned us to always use the daytime lights, at all times. Seems easy, right?

We stopped the car along the highway to take some photos of the mountainous views, and when we got back into the car, we forgot to turn the daytime lights back on.

Within fifteen minutes, we got stopped at a toll plaza and were issued a ticket, which we tried to fight, but we were unsuccessful.

An hour later, while closer to our destination, we stopped the car again for a break. When we got back in, we forgot to turn on the daytime lights. Would you believe it? We somehow got stopped again and were issued a second ticket for the same offense by a police officer.

It pays to keep the rules in mind! We spent our final day in Cordoba running around the city looking for the office at which to pay the fines. You could say we learned a lot about the rules in Argentina for highway driving!

Listen to travel and finance podcasts!

Ok, this isn’t really a specific way to save money while traveling; however, it’s an excellent podcast and it talks about a lot of different ways that you can save money.

We listen to podcasts super often and it’s how we’ve gotten new ideas on how to optimize travel, budgeting and finance.

Use a credit card to get a good foreign exchange rate

Whenever we can, we use credit cards when we travel, in order to get the best foreign exchange rate of the day and to also build points and miles.

Lately, we’ve been using the United Explorer card . There is no foreign transaction fee and has some really nice benefits.

We typically like using credit as much as we can while we’re away. We’ve found that we get the best conversion rates and don’t need to take out too much cash if we’re using credit often.

Using credit when you travel also (for us) shows exactly where our money went. And, if for some reason your credit card number gets stolen while you’re traveling, a company like Chase will contact you by text and email and let you know that there was fraud so you can resolve it.

This is especially relevant when purchases made abroad on a credit card can come up as a little bit dodgy for credit card companies and the security checks they may run on your account to make sure your account number is safe.

Note that when referring to a travel credit card, there is a difference between this and an “airline voucher.” For more on airline vouchers, see our guide called “ What is an Airline Voucher ?”

While you’re shopping at home, a browser extension like Honey can help you save money on everyday things!

Sign up for credit card a bonus to pay for your trip on miles

Travel costs can really start to add up. You’ll start paying for flights, hotels, things that you need to pack and the list goes on.

Lots of credit cards have sign-up bonuses that you can leverage to get either cash back or points that you can redeem toward travel.

The famous Change Sapphire Reserve used to give you 100,000 points for signing up. That was worth about $1,500 that you could use toward travel.

In order to get the bonus, you needed to spend a certain amount, like $4,000 in three months. Note, though, that making large travel purchases in an optimal timeframe is a perfect way to hit spend minimums like this.

Our travel has changed so much since we learned the points and miles games through travel hacking . My first flights completely on miles with United was round-trip to South Africa. Even though the flight path was a bit crazy (New York - Frankfurt - Johannesburg - Cape Town), I got a built-in day to spend seeing Hamburg, Germany.

We save and earn miles on Jet Blue as well, and we book flights (sometimes big flights!) on our points with our credit card rewards. This has been really exciting for us in recent years!

Also, always remember to use any airline vouchers you may have gotten or earned on past or cancelled flights, to apply when purchasing.

Don’t pay foreign transaction or ATM withdrawal fees, ever

Whether you’re taking out cash or swiping your credit card, if you travel internationally, you may be paying for foreign transaction fees.

These fees are determined by your bank or the ATM itself and usually take something like 2 or 3% of the entire purchase.

That is expensive, and wasteful. It can also add up and put a damper on your travel budget.

Looking for a new travel credit card? Consider the United Explorer card . We have this card! We like it because of the sign-up mileage bonus, Global Entry credit and no annual fee for the first year.

Avoid paying fees when taking money out of ATMs abroad

When Dan introduced me to the Charles Schwab ATM card, I couldn’t believe it. I was so accustomed to getting charged $3-4 per ATM transactions on my trips to Guatemala, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia that I didn’t think there was a way around it.

We use the Charles Schwab Investor checking and Fidelity Cash Management , which reimburses our ATM fees at the end of each month (save your receipts!) and we only use credit cards with 0 foreign transaction fees. Travel wouldn’t be the same without either of these cards in our wallets.

Now, I go to ATMs liberally on my trips and take out smaller amounts of money so that I can control my spending, and, stay safe by not having too much money in my wallet at one time.

Shop around for trip insurance online

These days, anything can come up that might prevent you from going on your trip. Lost bags? Theft? Trip cancelled?

Check out World Nomads and what this travel insurance company offers, before you go. You can save a lot of money and time by insuring parts of your trip.

A woman working on a laptop in front of a pile of books.

Get Priority Pass to save on airport lounges, and get in for free

Are you sick of getting to an airport and having to pay and arm and a leg for even a water bottle? Are you sick of the WiFi network being locked, or broken, when you’re at the gate or arriving in baggage claim?

Another way to make travel more comfortable and save when you’re in airports is to get Priority Pass for airport lounge memberships around the world. This is a great feature of the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, and probably the benefit that we love most.

A circular ceiling in the middle of the room.

Around the world, we’ve eaten buffet brunches in Hong Kong airport, taken naps in nap rooms in the Lisbon airport and had snacks on a deck of an airport in the Canary Islands all with our Priority Pass membership.

If you’re not ready for a new credit card, you can apply directly for Priority Pass in order to get a membership to airline lounges around the world and never have to buy overpriced airport food or WiFi again.

We love Priority Pass!

Priority Pass is a must-have for long airport visits.

Find the best price for flights

If you’re traveling during your trip or trying to plan your vacation, check out Google Flights and experiment with picking different days to depart and return.

You can also use a site called Skiplagged to help you find some of the cheapest flights out there. The way it works is by finding you cheaper flights that have a connection in your final destination.

I actually did this type of “flighting” back in 2016 when I was flying to Iceland. Well, technically London. I didn’t end up wanting to go to London and wanted to spend more time in Iceland.

Luckily, my flight had a connection in London and I got off the plane and missed my connection. I saved a lot of money because London is expensive and this flight was already cheaper than flying to Iceland directly.

(Note: Iceland is expensive too, and that’s why I wrote about traveling in Iceland on a budget ) .

If you have checked luggage, be careful because your bags will end up in your final destination. This only works if you have carry-on bags.

An airplane window with a view of the sky.

Lastly, consider taking a red eye flight . The prices on these flights tend to be cheaper because flying overnight isn’t as ideal as a morning or afternoon flight.

Keep in mind that when you arrive in your destination, you’ll have a lot of time to explore while waiting to check in to your accommodation.

Book a ticket in basic economy to save money on flights

Another thing you can do is book a ticket in basic economy class to get a lower flight price, if you don’t mind bringing only a personal item.

Lastly, you can sign up for Going , which will send you emails with various different flight deals. If you’ve been waiting for a vacation and looking to save the most amount of money, check it out!

Book flights on Skyscanner (or other sites) on anonymous mode

Booking flights for cheap with anonymous mode removes any cookies that may have pushed the prices up. So, when you keep searching flights on Skyscanner or other sites for bookings, the computer remembers you, and slowly the prices creep up (only sometimes).

When you’re ready to book, turn shadow mode on your browser, and sometimes you’ll get lucky and the prices will be cheaper.

The tip here is to use a trustworthy VPN like this one and incognito window is pretty pro.

Save money with rental cars

Rental cars have gotten really expensive these days.

When we traveled to Los Angeles recently, we decided that we needed a car. LA is a driving city and you can’t get very far by walking.

We checked all of the traditional sites and rental car prices were really high.

Luckily, an app called Turo exists and it worked perfectly. We rented a car from an LA local and we were able to get a great deal. In fact, we paid about half of what traditional rental car places charged.

If you’re not interested in Turo, you can shop around at different Airport locations, close by cities, through credit card market places and look for deals or promotions to save even more money while renting a car.

I’ll sometimes look at rental cars near a major train line to try and find the “local price”. For example, if an airport has a train line that takes you closer to a major city, look for a rental car location a few stops past the airport.

If you can wake to rent a car from the train, than great! Even if you need to take a taxi to and from the rental car location, you may still save some money with the total cost of the car.

I’m sure you’ve heard of Lyft and Uber . Both have really taken over the world.

Instead of renting a car, you can check out using those services. If you only need a few rides during your trip, it’ll be much cheaper than paying for gas, tolls and the daily rental car rate.

Lately, I’ve found that regular yellow cabs are often cheaper than ride shares, in NYC. Check around and ask for price quotes to determine what makes the most sense for you.

Here in New York City, I have an app called Curb , which allows you to get yellow taxis. It’s also safe, which is why we talk about it so much in our NYC safety guide.

A city street with tall buildings and taxis.

Before leaving for the airport one time, we did this and it cost half as much as what Lyft and Uber were charging.

You can get $5 off of your first ride with Curb! Download the app and use the code 32S31M .

Travel in a group and share download links for free credit

While traveling in a group, try being the first one to latch on to any apps that would be useful. This could be local food delivery apps or local ride share programs.

If you get these apps first, and then share your download links with the group, you can clock yourself up lots of free credit for bringing in new members!

This tip really works because you can be trying new things and being adventurous while also getting freebies from apps.

The more you share, the more referral credit you get, and you can also learn by talking to other travelers and expats about the most efficient apps for ordering food or for ride-sharing in a particular city.

Shop around for the best hotel, Airbnb and hostel prices

Before we go somewhere or while we’re traveling and looking for an additional place to stay , we shop around to try and find the best rates.

Sometimes we’ll check Airbnb and see what prices look like. We’ll head over to Hostelworld and see if we have any luck. Maybe we’ll search on Booking.com.

Consider that if you’re traveling with a group of friends, couples or family members, that you can save money by booking an entire multi-bedroom Airbnb house or property like this one in Upstate NY , which will typically beat the cost of everyone getting individual hotel rooms elsewhere.

Before you know it, we’ve seen listings from too many sites and it’s hard to remember where we say some of the listings that we liked.

Because we’ve been staying in hotels more recently, we like to check out HotelTonight . We’ve seen some of the best prices on this website over anything else.

The only thing with HotelTonight is you can’t book too far in advance.

We’ve been having good luck on Priceline and Kayak for hotels.

Take out a weekly budget in cash

Weekly spending budgets are a huge way of seeing if you’re on track to avoid overspending during your travels.

In some countries where cash is king and credit is not so available quiet yet (or may never be), visually seeing how much cash you have left can show you how much you’ve spent.

Find creative and new ways to work remotely and travel

Traveling doesn’t have to be expensive. Have you considered working remotely while traveling in order to make some money to pay for your expenses?

You find some types of remote work to work on while you’re away, by checking these remote work tips for travelers .

If you are a professional looking for freelance work, Flexjobs can work out nicely for finding remote work and part-time opportunities.

What we also really like is traveling with a group and getting everything under the Remote Year platform like coworking membership, housing and flights onward, all for a flat fee.

A woman typing on a laptop while sitting at a table.

The Best Ways to Travel with Money While Abroad

Traveling overseas can be an amazing experience.

One reality of international travel is that it can be very expensive, especially if you travel to certain parts of the world with high costs of living.

When you’re traveling, you need to have some way to pay for goods and services.

If you are traveling abroad, this article will discuss the different ways to can plan to have access to money while you travel.

One of the easiest ways to use money when you travel internationally is to use cash.

Just like in the U.S., you can pay with cash nearly anywhere. You don’t need to worry about the store accepting cards or fiddling with your checkbook to write a check.

You have a few options when it comes to getting cash for your trip.

One is to visit your local bank branch and ask for a currency conversion.

Many larger banks will keep some major foreign currencies, such as Pounds, Euros, or Yen on hand for customers to withdraw. The downside of this strategy is that many banks offer poor conversion rates and charge fees for the service.

On the other hand, your bank may waive fees for good customers, making it the best place to convert currency. It’s worth checking just to be sure.

You can also bring US dollars to the airport and convert the currency at the airport before you depart or after you land. Major international airports should have multiple locations to convert currency.

Even if you plan to rely on other forms of payment, it’s worth bringing some cash along with you.

It can serve as a backup form of payment and is good to have while you learn the ins and outs of using your preferred payment method in a new country.

Credit Cards

Credit cards are a great way to pay for purchases while you’re traveling abroad. They should work just like they do in the United States.

Simply swipe your card or use the chip and the purchase will be paid for.

The card issuer will automatically do the currency conversion for you.

Typically, the conversion rate will be the interbank exchange rate, plus a small fee, meaning you get one of the best rates possible. You also get the benefit of credit card perks such as extended warranties.

One thing that you need to watch out for is whether your card will be widely accepted in the country you’re visiting.

Many countries are more reliant on cash than the United States.

For example, Japanese consumers use credit cards for just 17% of purchases. Americans use credit cards for roughly 33% of purchases.

Some card networks are also more popular than others outside the United States.

While Visa and Mastercard are accepted in most places, you may have trouble if you rely on a Discover or American Express card.

Do some research to see what cards are used in the country you’re visiting.

Also, look at the terms and conditions of the card that you plan to use while traveling. Some charge significant foreign transaction fees every time you use your card overseas.

Also read: The Best Credit Cards for Foreign Travel Expenses

Consider bringing just foreign transaction fee-free cards or apply for one before you leave.

Here are a few credit cards you might want to apply:

Debit Cards

Debit cards are an important tool to have when you travel abroad. They can be used to make purchases in a pinch, and also give you an easy way to withdraw cash while you’re abroad.

Most debit cards let you use foreign ATMs to make a withdrawal in the local currency.

The downside of this is that you’ll have to pay all the relevant fees, including currency conversion fees, out-of-network ATM fees, and any fees charged by the ATM’s owner. Still, having the flexibility to withdraw cash is worth it.

Debit cards also represent a danger while you’re traveling. If someone is able to steal your card, or clones the information on it, they can easily empty your bank account.

You’re not likely to be keeping a close eye on your bank account while you’re on vacation, so you might not notice until it’s too late.

Try to keep your debit card on your person or locked up in your hotel room at all times. Ideally, keep it in a pocket sealed with a button or zipper to make pickpocketing difficult.

Traveler’s Checks

Traveler’s checks are a good emergency backup source of cash while you’re traveling.

To get a traveler’s check, you’ll need to speak to your bank or a popular issuer like American Express or Visa.

While you’re abroad, you can use a traveler’s check to withdraw cash in the local currency. This can work even if you’re unable to find an ATM that’s working or accepts your debit card.

The downside:

These checks come with fees and don’t get the best conversion rate, so they shouldn’t be used as the default plan. Instead, consider them a backup.

What to Do if You Lose Your Wallet?

Losing your wallet when you’re living at home is a difficult experience, but losing your wallet while traveling , especially if you’re overseas, can throw a massive wrench in your plans.

While nobody wants to lose their wallet or plans to have it happen, preparing for the possibility can help you minimize the impact it has on your trip.

Before you leave on your trip:

Take inventory of everything in your wallet.

Make a list of each credit, debit, and loyalty card that is in the wallet, as well as anything else that you keep in it such as pictures or notes.

For each of your cards, note the account numbers and the phone numbers on the back of the card.

It might be a good idea to write the list on physical paper and transcribe it to a note on your phone. This list will help you identify whether anything is missing from your wallet if you misplace it for a short time only to find it later.

If you do lose your wallet, the first thing you should do is disable any credit or debit cards that were in the wallet. This is where the list of account numbers and phone numbers comes in handy.

Ask the card issuers to cancel the cards and issue new ones. If possible, see if one or more companies can expedite the card to the place you’re staying. That will get you some access to money for the remainder of your trip.

The next step you should take is to file a police report in the area you lost the wallet. Even if you don’t believe the wallet was stolen, this will start a paper trail, which can come in handy in the future. Plus, if the police find your wallet, they might be able to get it back to you.

Next, contact the local U.S. Embassy.

The Embassy will be able to help you get some money and deal with paperwork related to the loss of your wallet. They can also help you contact someone at home to get help.

When you get back from your trip, you can take your time to get all of your cards replaced and reactivated. If you want to, you can set up fraud alerts with each of the major credit bureaus and get a copy of your credit report.

This will help you fight against any potential identity fraud that someone who found your wallet may perpetrate.

How to Fight Against a Lost Wallet or Theft

It’s not something people like to think about when they travel, but tourists, especially international tourists, are prime targets for pickpockets and other criminals.

You’ll be out of your element and in a location you’re not familiar with, making it more difficult to avoid theft.

The easiest thing you can do to avoid becoming a target is to avoid making yourself an easy or obvious target.

Don’t wear headphones or walk alone at night or in areas you don’t know well.

Don’t flaunt your money or wealth, and generally try to fit in with the locals.

You should also take some measures to insure yourself in the event that you are targeted.

Try to keep some cash and a card separate from your wallet. If your wallet is lost or stolen, you won’t be left completely high and dry.

Also, try to keep your belongings on your person at all times and secure your wallet in a sealed pocket of your jacket.

Traveling can be an amazing experience but dealing with foreign money can be difficult.

Make sure you plan ahead so that you’re prepared to pay for souvenirs, tours, and other things while you travel.

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Table of Contents

You don’t need to spend a lot of money to have an amazing trip

Be clear about your travel budget before traveling with friends, setting (and sticking to) an annual travel budget helps you enjoy your trips, it’s ok to splurge if you plan for it, final thoughts on budgeting for travel.

Although I’ve always had a desire to travel, I didn’t have a passport until shortly after I turned 23. Over the last 14 years, I’ve made up for lost time and visited over 55 countries on every continent except Antarctica (which I hope is soon to come).

At the same time, I’ve been laser-focused on becoming financially independent as I’m part of the Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) movement . This financial lifestyle aims to save and invest as much as you can so that you can live off your savings as soon as possible.

While it may seem that wanderlust could get in the way of financial independence, throughout my travels, I have found ways to work towards both goals, including these money lessons learned while traveling around the world.

» Learn more: Smart ways to travel cheaply

If you look at social media for travel inspiration, you may fall into a trap thinking the only way to have an amazing trip is to fly Emirates first class to an overwater villa in the Maldives. While certainly enjoyable, you should remember that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to have an amazing trip.

Even if an Emirates first-class trip to the Maldives is your dream adventure, you can find ways to go that don’t involve spending a lot of money, such as using points to book your Emirates first-class flight and for your villa in the Maldives . That said, you should keep in mind that you can have some truly incredible travel adventures that won’t break your budget. For instance, some of my favorite travel experiences include staying at hostels in Japan, Australia, and France, bus and train trips around Europe, and spending $20/night for a 2-story bungalow on a rice paddy in Bali.

» Learn more: Beat your travel budget: Find cheap activities in any city

When traveling with friends , it’s always important to be clear about your travel budget upfront. For instance, you may be traveling with a friend who makes significantly more or less than you or who has an entirely different idea of how much they want to spend on the trip.

I’ve learned that it’s crucial to discuss travel budgets and expectations before booking trips with friends. Having this conversation before you commit to a trip can help you avoid ending up in an awkward situation and also help ensure that everyone enjoys their trip to the fullest.

» Learn more: A beginner’s guide to budget travel

I enjoy traveling while participating in the FIRE movement because I set — and do my best to stick to — an annual travel budget.

In creating such a budget, you should start with your income after taxes and deduct necessary expenses (like rent/mortgage, medical expenses, food and retirement savings). What you're left with is discretionary income. From your discretionary income, you should set aside the amount that you want to be dedicated solely to travel.

When traveling, you shouldn't have to worry about money if you stay committed to your travel budget and planning. Since no one wants to be poolside fretting over how much was spent on dinner the night before, budgeting is a great way to help you maximize enjoying your trip.

» Learn more: How to stick to your annual vacation budget

You absolutely can splurge on expensive trips, provided you plan for them in advance. For instance, let’s say your dream trip can’t easily be booked with points or miles. You can still make these trips happen either by setting aside part of your travel budget each year and putting that money into a travel fund towards these trips or by using your annual travel budget for that one epic trip.

» Learn more: Famous luxury hotels you never knew you could book using points

With a bit of effort, you can travel the world while still making financially intelligent decisions and setting yourself up to meet your financial goals. On top of that, having a travel budget in place that you stick to on your trips can help ensure that you aren’t worried about money when you travel, which will add to the enjoyment of your trip.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024 , including those best for:

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

on Chase's website

1x-5x 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

60,000 Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

1.5%-6.5% Enjoy 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel; 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 3% on all other purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

$300 Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

on Capital One's website

2x-5x Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

75,000 Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

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Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

For International Visitors

Money and Other Monetary Instruments

You may bring into or take out of the country, including by mail, as much money as you wish. However, if it is more than $10,000, you will need to report it to CBP. Use the online Fincen 105 currency reporting site or ask a CBP officer for the paper copy of the Currency Reporting Form (FinCen 105). The penalties for non-compliance can be severe.

"Money" means monetary instruments and includes U.S. or foreign coins currently in circulation, currency, travelers' checks in any form, money orders, and negotiable instruments or investment securities in bearer form.

United States
United Kingdom

Travel money guide: Europe

Planning a trip to europe discover how you can get the most out of your travel money here..

In this guide

Travel card, debit card or credit card?

These are your options for spending money in europe, which credit card issuers are accepted in europe, compare travel credit cards, european currency, buying currency in the us, find cash and atms in europe, how much should i budget to travel in europe, travel insurance for europe.

Travel money type

Compare more cards

Top picks of 2024

If you’re heading to Europe to sightsee the Eiffel Tower, a Spanish flamenco dance or go on a business trip, you’ll want to find out common methods of payment in the specific country you’re visiting. Most European countries take Visa and Mastercard credit cards as a form of payment. Travel with a travel credit card to avoid all the foreign transaction fees that most credit cards charge.

However, you’ll need euros or the local currency in some countries like the Czech Republic, where restaurants and smaller shops may not be friendly to plastic. While there are European countries that use their own currency — for example, the Czech Republic and Hungary — the euro is the national currency of the majority of Western and Central European nations.

Our picks for traveling to Europe

50+ currencies supported

4.33% APY on USD balances
$0 signup or subscription fees
Withdraw $100 per month for free from ATMs worldwide
Send, spend and withdraw 50+ currencies at the live rate
Freeze and unfreeze your card instantly

Join to save up to 10% on hotels

0.50% APY on checking balance
Up to 4.60% APY on savings
$0 account or overdraft fees
Get a $300 bonus with direct deposits of $5,000 or more

Travel rewards with no annual fee

20,000 miles (equal to $200 in travel) after spending $500 in the first 3 months
Earn unlimited 1.25x miles on all purchases
Low intro rates on purchases and balance transfers

A prepaid travel card can be a good idea if you’re staying within the European financial zone and the United Kingdom. If you’re traveling to another destination like Croatia, the Czech Republic, Sweden or Hungary, you’re better off using a credit card that waives the fee for foreign transactions — no ATM fees are a bonus too.

While there are travel cards that don’t charge you for currency conversion — the back-end fees, exchange rate margin and juggling another account make a travel-friendly debit card a better option.

A credit card and debit card combination makes for a good mix to access cash and make purchases. A credit card is a must: Interest-free cards give you time to pay back your purchases, some cards offer free travel insurance and credit cards give you peace of mind through access to emergency cash.

Don’t use a credit card for cash withdrawals — it’s almost too expensive to justify. Use a debit card or a prepaid travel card to withdraw cash.

Using a credit card

Look for travel-friendly credit cards that you can swipe without being charged a foreign transaction fee — typically 2% to 3% — or international ATM fee. For example, the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card will avoid the pesky foreign transaction fees while offering travel rewards (Terms apply, see rates & fees ). Choosing a travel credit card often means that you get purchase protection, travel insurance or a rental car collision waiver as part of your benefits, helping you get more bang for your buck with your card.

May have no international ATM fees
Operator fees may apply
Cash advance fees

You’ll find Visa and Mastercard to be widely accepted in Europe. Generally speaking, you’ll find merchants in Europe willing to accept American Express cards and even fewer that will take Discover cards. If you have an American Express card, you’ll have the best luck using it in areas frequently traveled by tourists or business travelers.

Explore top debit cards with no foreign transaction fees and travel credit cards by using the tabs to narrow down your options. Select Compare for up to four products to see their benefits side by side.

Credit cards

Debit card being swiped in a POS station

Using a debit card

Visa and Mastercard branded debit cards will work throughout Europe without a problem.

There are fees that come with international debit card use — mainly currency conversion fees and ATM fees. With a Betterment Checking debit card, you can get foreign and ATM fees reimbursed as you go to keep your wallet padded on your journey.

Tip: Debit card providers like Bank of America and Barclays are members of a Global ATM Alliance that waives international ATM fees.
No ATM operator fees on European bank ATMs for cash withdrawals
International ATM fee and currency conversion fee apply when withdrawing cash

Did you know?

You may be able to avoid the cash-advance fee and interest charges if you preload your own money onto your credit card. The rules are different for each provider.

The catch: You’re waiving some anti-fraud guarantees when you preload your own funds onto your credit card.

person at laptop with credit card and phone

Using a prepaid travel card

A travel card can hold multiple international currencies, and you save on the fee for currency conversion. You can load euros and GBP on most travel cards, but few other European currencies will be supported.

Multiple international currencies load euros and GBP on most travel cards
Currency conversion may apply
Conversion fee is almost double the charge than on debit and credit cards

Must read: Countries in Europe that haven’t adopted the euro

If you’re traveling to one of these European countries, consider using a debit card or credit card rather than a prepaid travel card. A currency conversion fee applies if you’re spending in a currency not loaded on the card. In most cases, the conversion fee is almost double the charge than on debit and credit cards.

Czech Republic
Switzerland

“Although the United Kingdom is not a part of the Euro Zone, all travel cards let you load pounds sterling. Preload both euros and pounds and you can use the one card to spend on both sides of the English Channel.”

Paying with cash in Europe

There are places where you’ll need cash , but card payments are pretty standard throughout Europe. Contactless card payments are common in places like France and Germany, but cash is necessary if you’re heading off the beaten track — places like smaller Greek islands predominantly use cash.

Payment flexibility
Convenience
Difficult to manage expenses
Higher risk of theft

Using traveler’s checks

It’s not necessary to take traveler’s checks with you on your trip to Europe. Financial institutions offer money-back guarantees if you’re the victim of fraud, and there’s a limited number of places where you can cash your checks.

Can be costly with initial purchase charges
Not all merchants accept traveler’s checks

Although the euro was officially introduced in 1999, European citizens didn’t start to see the new notes and coins till sometime in 2003. The notes are all different colors and feature different architectural designs from different eras.

The main banks in Europe are:

HSBC Holdings plc, GBR
BNP Paribas SA, FRA
Crédit Agricole Group, FRA
Deutsche Bank AG, DEU
Banco Santander SA, ESP
Barclays plc, GBR
Société Générale SA, FRA
Groupe BPCE, FRA
LLoyds Banking Group plc, GBR
ING Groep NV, NLD
UniCredit SpA, ITA
Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc, GBR
Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, ITA
Crédit Mutuel Group, FRA
UBS Group AG, CHE

If you really want to buy euros before you leave, consider nonbank foreign exchange providers such as Travelex. Travelex lets you order cash online and pick it up at the airport before you leave.

You won’t need euros to pay for your visa when you arrive in Europe. Americans get an automatic 90-day visa on arrival.

Refreshing in: 60s | Sun, Apr 07, 06:50PM GMT

Exchange rate history

It’s very difficult picking the future movement of currency pairs, especially the top two traded currencies in the world. The euro was adopted in 1999, and in 2002 it was introduced as the legal tender — circulating and being used in 12 countries.

The value of the dollar next to the euro dropped significantly in 2008 when an economic crisis made its way around the world. For the last three years, 1 euro has been worth about $1.10 to $1.30.

Most airports and banks across Europe will house ATMs inside that are friendly to Visa and Mastercard, though you may see Visa’s Plus or Mastercard’s Maestro or Cirrus symbols on the machines. When you’re withdrawing cash abroad, it’s handy to use an account that doesn’t charge currency conversion or international ATM fees. The Betterment Checking debit card, for example, reimburses these foreign fees, leaving more cash in your account to spend on your travels.

Countries like France and Germany are a touch more expensive than places like Greece, but no matter where you are in Europe, your trip is going to be as low-cost or expensive as you let it be.

Some basic prices across Europe

Accommodation is likely to be your biggest expense when you’re visiting Europe. When it comes to food, if you’re eating in a restaurant, prices will be higher than grabbing a bite on the street (gyros in Greece), trapizzino in Rome, or a jambon et fromage baguette (ham and cheese sandwich — far better than it sounds) in France are all less than five euros.

We’ve included a snapshot of some prices for budget, mid-range and top-end hostels and hotels in different European countries below. All prices are in US dollars.

*Prices are approximate and based on summer seasonality and are subject to change.

In most European countries, you can expect to pay anywhere from 10 to 30 euros for a meal in a mid-tier restaurant. Once you hit 5-star restaurants, prices will be comparable to high-end restaurants in the US.

Tip: If you’re at a restaurant, the plat de jour (plate of the day) will be one of the cheapest and best-tasting dishes on the menu.

Case study: Kyle's experience

During my Eurotrip, I dropped pins on the map in Amsterdam, Bruges, Paris, Arles and Provence. I brought along my Wells Fargo Propel American Express, Wells Fargo Platinum Visa, Wells Fargo debit card and $500 USD.

When I landed in Amsterdam and was waiting at baggage claim, I spotted a local ATM and withdrew 100 euros using my debit card. The withdrawal cost me $113.49, plus a $5 non-Wells Fargo ATM transaction fee. I didn’t mind the fee because this was enough to buy a SIM card and catch a train downtown — and it left me with about 70 euros.

It didn’t take long to realize that I made a mistake with the credit cards I’d brought. While the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card had no foreign transaction fee, I neglected to research what the American Express acceptance rate was in Europe — not good. And I didn’t want to use my Wells Fargo Platinum Card because that came with a 3% fee for overseas purchases.

If I was traveling alone, I would have come home to a credit card bill riddled with fees. Luckily, my partner brought along her United℠ Explorer Card, which is a Visa (high acceptance rate) and has no foreign transaction fees. Since then, I’ve gotten my own United℠ Explorer Card.

As for withdrawing money from ATMs, I only took out another 100 euros for tipping and small purchases. And the $500 USD I brought along? That, and then some, went right to my partner to repay the money we spent on her credit card.

One piece of advice: Don’t be like me and rely on your partner’s credit card.

Eurotrips are almost a compulsory rite of passage for young Americans who want to cross the pond, but don’t let your sense of adventure get you in trouble. Protecting your European vacation with travel insurance is a smart way to ensure that you are financially protected against unexpected travel expenses. Travel insurance may cover:

Cancellation
Lost or stolen luggage
Emergency medical and dental
Personal liability

Kyle Morgan

Kyle Morgan is SEO manager at Forbes Advisor and a former editor and content strategist at Finder. He has written for the USA Today network and Relix magazine, among other publications. He holds a BA in journalism and media from Rutgers University.

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52 Money Saving Travel Tips: Save Before & On The Road

How to save money on travel is one of the most common questions we get asked.

Whether you’re looking to save up for the trip of a lifetime, or you want to stay budget conscious while on the road, the good news is there are many ways to keep costs down on travel.

Like us, most people we know include travel high on their priority list each year, as they want to get away from life’s routines and create precious memories.

But most people don’t have money trees growing in their back yards – if you do, what’s your address??

It doesn’t matter where you are from or what age you are, we have all been in a place where our wallets have been pinched due to lack of funds, but we’re here to tell you not to give up on your travel dreams.

In this guide, we share 52 of our top money saving travel tips, to help you save up for your dream vacation and also make sure you don’t overspend on the road.

1. Be Flexible with Your Flight Dates

2. adjust your times for flying, 3. fly on a midweek day, 4. go directly to the airline website, 5. join a frequent flyer program, 6. sign up for e-mail notifications & e-newsletter deals, 7. follow on social media, 8. check for family deals, 9. use coupons, 10. use credit card reward points, 11. get a travel credit card, 12. compare your currency, 13. compare rental car prices, 14. improve the efficiency of your car, 15. shop around for travel insurance, 16. do a home exchange, 17. sell some unwanted items, 18. cancel your gym membership & work out at home, 19. travel during the shoulder season, 20. stay more than 1 night, 21. call the hotel directly, 22. stay over sunday, 23. stay in hostels, 24. use hotel reward programs, 25. couch surf, 26. volunteer using wwoof, 27. house sitting, 28. go camping, 29. take night buses and sleeper trains, 30. attend time share presentations, 31. walk as much as you can walk, 32. rent a bike, 33. travel like the locals, 34. share transport costs, 35. eat out for breakfast, lunch or brunch, over dinner, 36. eat away from the tourist streets.

37. Have Picnics and BBQ's

38. Self-Cater Where You Can

39. look for accommodation with breakfast included, 40. eat street food, 41. drink in before going out, 42. leave your atm card at home.

43. Bargain – it's expected in many countries

44. Avoid Shopping Outside Tourist Attractions

45. do your laundry in the sink, 46. get an esim card or local sim card (not at the airport), 47. stay local, 48. do the free stuff, 49. get a water filter bottle, 50. use the free days, 51. get sightseeing passes / city attraction passes, 52. talk to the locals, 53. spend more time in fewer places, how can i save money for a trip in 6 months, pin to share on pinterest, how to save money on travel.

Whilst increased competition between airlines and the ever growing accommodation options has helped lower travel costs, more and more people are finding themselves with less disposable income to play with each year.

We have a motto – Travel more. Create better memories – it’s something we are very passionate about and have been following that travel motto for the past 25 years, first solo, utilizing working abroad opportunities , then as a couple , and now as a traveling family .

Below are some ideas on how to save money on travel before you hit the road. Some will be obvious to some of you, but if you’re new to travel and new to our site, I’m sure you will appreciate the heads up on a few strategies to help you save money on the road.

Afterwards, we’ll share our top tips for how to save money while on the road. Be sure to check our Book your trip page with our favorite travel booking sites for finding deals and saving money.

If possible, give yourself the best chance to capture any of the cheap flights when the prices fluctuate by searching a couple of days, or even weeks, either side of your preferred departure date.

A few flight search engines we like using include:

Skyscanner – provides instant comparison on flight prices for over 600,000 routes.
Kayak – another meta search site that compares hundreds of sites at once.
Vayama – specialises in cheap international flights.

Flying at unpopular hours, such as the red-eye or early in the AM increases your chance of getting discounted flights.

When it comes to finding cheap flights , we find that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are usually the cheapest times to fly. Try and avoid flying over holiday periods as this is always expensive.

Once you have looked at all the flight search websites and found the cheapest price, as a LAST resort go direct to that airlines own website and see if the prices are cheaper.

Many of the budget airlines have lower fares that you can only get when you book online at their site, or buy an e-ticket.

It’s also usually cheaper to pay for hold luggage this way too, which you do want to get in advance to save on expensive baggage fees at the airport.

Top tip: pack light and only travel with carry on! This way you can save on hold luggage fees.

Earn points towards cheaper fares, upgrades, and free companion tickets. It may take a while to accumulate points, but they CAN pay off big time.

I once used my points to fly round trip from the United States to South Africa.

The best airfare and hotel sales can go largely unannounced, since they save their last-minute deals for their loyal newsletter subscribers.

Sign up for your favourite travel brands e-Newsletters. Special promotion codes can save you money and you can also be notified of last minute deals in this way.

We are subscribed to a few e-newsletter’s that produce a list of current deals available on the net for any given time period.

Travel Zoo – Subscribe to their weekly FREE newsletter of their Top 20 deals – editions for different countries.
Deal Base – Sign up for there free deal alerts. They have deals of unadvertised sales and offers you won’t find anywhere else.
Going ( formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights) – this membership program (free and paid) will help you find those flight deals. Stay tuned to their email notifications and be ready to buy!

Go and “like” your favorite travel sites on facebook , Instagram, and “follow” them on X- twitter. It’s getting more common for travel companies to release hot deals directly through their social media channels.

Likewise, travel influencers on Instagram are also partnering with companies to offer deals. Keep an eye on their stories to see what deals you can get.

Always ask about discounted rates, free meals for children, and an upgrade at check in – they can only say no.

Do your research to find travel discounts and coupons for the areas you are visiting. Check out the brochure shelf in the lobby of your hotel.

Visit the local tourist information offices for free maps and ideas.

Use the following:

Tourist booklets and brochures.
Back of supermarket receipts.
Websites (local tourist boards and businesses and coupon sites).

Check the program and benefits for your particular credit card, you might be able to use your points for accommodation costs and frequent flyer points.

We currently have an AMEX card that gives us three Qantas points for every dollar spent.

To become a pro and get a deep understanding of how to accumulate and use points for flights, go and learn from these guys – The Points Guy

Using pre-paid travel money cards or travel credit cards can save you on foreign transaction fees, withdrawal fees, and currency conversion rates (you can lock in a conversion rate).

It’s also a safe and convenient way to carry your money and allows you to access local currency without being ripped off by the extortionate rate that currency exchanges use.

Some travel credit cards also have travel rewards and other benefits, such as travel insurance, healthcare and more. Bonus!

Think about traveling to countries where your currency is stronger and you will get more bang-for-your-buck.

For us as Australian’s, traveling to places like Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands , New Zealand, and South Africa will allow you to make your money go further.

Europe and the USA is always changing for value, though you will find Mexico to be a pretty cheap destination for most people.

We use sites that search all the major car hire companies around the world checking which supplier is offering the best prices for the date you need it.

We use DiscoverCars.com as a price comparison, and they tend to have better deals than the official renter’s website.

Check out our tips for saving money on rental cars.

When taking road trips from home, make sure your car is operating efficiently and is fully serviced. Traveling doesn’t mean getting on a plane and flying off on some other-worldy adventure, you can just take your car and drive.

Before you drive off, remember to:

Check the pressure of your car tires.
Drive slower.
Use the right oil to increase mile usage.
Watch your luggage – the heavier the car the more fuel you’ll use.
Pack inside your car not on top.

You can save a lot of money in shopping around for travel insurance. Use price comparison sites for the initial research, and then call them to see if they can offer a better deal if you speak to them directly (they would lose out on commission to comparison sites, so it’s in their interest to offer you a better rate).

Also, you will find most insurance companies will price match, so if you find a policy that looks really great but another company is cheaper – call them and see if they will match the price.

You can read how we did in this post on the best travel insurance for Australians travelling overseas.

Also check out our post on 15 tips for buying the best travel insurance policy.

The home exchange strategy is possibly best for families or retired people who are looking to base themselves in another country or state for an agreed period of time.

Just like the name suggests, you stay in their house whilst they stay in yours.

Go onto Craigslist and get rid of that unused ping pong table or the ratty old armchair that’s been in the house since you moved in.

Free yourself from as much bad debt as possible. You don’t want any unnecessary debt hanging over your head both financially and emotionally whilst you are on the road.

All the little things add up. Trim the fat and re-evaluate your living choices. This will be good practice for when you are on the road.

Self-discipline is key: if you have a big enough desire to do something, like travel around the world, small sacrifices in your spending habits want be too hard!

Do a good old fashioned garage sale clean out of your belongings and you’ll be able to add to your travel fund in no time.

The gym may be a large part of your life and so this is really down to personal preference, but you can save a lot of money for travel by swapping your gym memberships for home work outs.

In every destination, there is a peak season and an off-season. The off-season is not usually the best time to travel, since many hotels, tours and attractions close – hence the name, off season.

Peak season, also called the high season, is when the prices are hiked up and there are tons of other tourists around.

The best time to travel is during the shoulder season, which is the lovely time before and after the peak season when things are just starting to open up or close down.

You can usually find better deals, since hotels, tours and attractions are more desperate for your business this time, and there’s the added benefit of fewer people around.

How can I travel with less money?

Some people honestly think we are millionaires being able to travel as much as we do, if only.

But it’s mostly been about making smart choices, having different priorities, and using certain strategies to save money as we go.

As they say, a dollar saved is a dollar earned and it’s better off in your pocket than theirs. Why pay more when you don’t have to!

Below are some of our top tips for saving money while on the road.

Many hotels, hostels and certainly VRBO provide their best deals when you stay over more than one night. A few sites we like to search on include:

Booking.com is our first choice for accommodation. They have thousands of properties world wide including hotels, vacation rentals, and hostels. You get free cancellation on most rooms and a best price guarantee.

We also like Hotels.com and Expedia.com for their OneKey membership discounts.

A last minute phone call directly to a hotel, or hostel, asking about cheap rooms can prove fruitful. They don’t like having empty rooms so will discount.

Read More : 18 Killer Tips for finding Cheap Accommodation

Many hotels receive Friday-Saturday night bookings from leisure travelers and Monday-Friday bookings from business travelers who stay during the days of the week, so there can be a void on Sunday nights and again they may discount.

Hostels and apartments are usually quite expensive, but if you do find a good deal on an apartment, go for it! They are the BOMB for families or those looking for extra living space and a kitchen so you can save on food.

However, the best way to save on accommodation is to stay in hostels. It doesn’t matter if you’re a solo traveler, couple, or family, there is a room for you.

Solo travelers can stay in dorm rooms which is the cheapest way to stay, while families can take advantage of private family rooms. Plus most hostels have kitchens so you can cook. your own meals, another money saving tip for travelers.

Booking.com is the place to go to look for accommodation – they have the most options and great deals, plus you get discounts when you become a Genius member (no membership fee, just need to use the platform).

And use HostelWorld.com for hostel deals. It’s specifically geared towards hostels so is where you’ll find the most options.

Many brands have them and you can get perks like free nights or room upgrades. The Hotels.com welcome rewards program gives you one free night for every 10 booked through them.

A great way to meet locals for a drink, a tour, and accommodation is by Couchsurfing . It connects travelers with local people in various cities that offer members a place to sleep.

WWOOF or WWOOFING stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms . It is a world wide network of organisations and they link volunteers with organic farmers .

In return for volunteer help, WWOOF hosts offer food, accommodation and opportunities to learn about organic lifestyles.

Make yourself at home with a spot of house-sitting.

House sitters provide their pet and house sitting services for free in exchange for the privilege of accommodation in the owner’s home.

What a great way to save money on travel! Read more tips on housesitting here.

Trusted Housesitters is the best platform for finding a housesit and/or housesitters. We used it for our 4 week Europe trip to find someone to mind our cats. It was easy to use, we found a great match, and saved us money.

Camp in a National Park, or an RV park, or on the beach.

You’ve got to be prepared for roughing it a little, but hey camping is probably your cheapest option.

Read More: Here are our tips for tent camping + fun stories from around the world

When travelling by plane, train, or bus, try and time it so you are traveling at night. That way, you don’t have to pay for a night’s accommodation.

Not our favourite strategy – these can be aggressive sale pitches of 90 minutes or more, but just say no at the end and thank you for the free accommodation for your troubles.

Over the years we have had free accommodation in Turkey , Daytona Beach, Orlando , and Key West.

Get active and see things at a slower pace – walking is FREE. You can experience more just by wandering around a city and getting lost, talking with locals, and people watching.

Explore local markets, wander and take photos, or even hike to the top of a hill for an awesome view.

In fact, you can even join in on free walking tours, which is a great way to get to know a place and get those steps in.

Cheap price, more comfy than a bus, slightly faster pace than walking. BikesBooking.com is a great place to find bike, motorbike and scooter rental.

Use public transport where possible. You get great knowledge and insight by hanging with the locals, it costs you less, and is a more authentic travelling experience. We have done this extensively in Africa and Asia.

Listen to our crazy stories traveling this way in Uganda, Africa.

When you do travel by other means, try and share a car with another traveller. Also, sharing an Uber, mini-van, and tours etc are all more cost-effective when there’s a group of travelers to split the costs.

Try and avoid dinner as restaurants raise prices. OR, have brunch instead of 3 meals a day.

Many restaurants offer lunch specials where items on the dinner menu are offered for a fraction of the cost you’d pay in the evening.

Just go one street or one block over and it will usually be much cheaper and more authentic!

37. Have Picnics and BBQ’s

Purchase food in a local grocery store or a market and arrange a picnic in one of the city’s parks with great views. We’ve had picnics in Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens , New York’s Central Park , and BBQ’s world wide.

We make self-contained accommodation with kitchen facilities a priority. Purchasing your own supplies and cooking-in can save you big bucks – unless you are in Asia where eating out is incredibly cheap.

And take your own food on flights, buses and trains where practical.

When booking a hotel or hostel look for one with breakfast included.

The real reason you should eat street food is because it’s cheap, you help the locals, and it’s safe – you can see what is actually being cooked and is cooked fresh right in front of you. Pay attention to where the locals eat and what is popular.

Here’s why you should eat street food AND our favorite street food places in Bangkok.

Just like eating, purchase your alcohol from a store. Then, take advantage of any happy hours and don’t drink expensive import stuff – give the local stuff a go.

When out partying or out for dinner, only take a certain amount of cash, once it’s gone it’s gone. Your pocket, and your head, will thank you in the morning.

43. Bargain – it’s expected in many countries

But don’t over bargain. 50 cents is nothing to you, but may mean a days worth of meals to the person you are haggling with.

Shop for souvenirs, clothes and food where the locals shop. Look for weekend markets and outlet stores.

Wash as much of your laundry as you can by yourself by hand, instead of pumping money through laundromats or using expensive hotel laundry services. Better still, stay in apartments that have washing machines included.

When you want to stay connected, the best way to do that is to either accept you’ll have limited WiFi and connect to the hotel’s free wifi, or get an esim card.

If you have an unlocked phone the best option is an eSim card. Airalo have the best rates and availability. They have great rates and you’re connected as soon as you arrive. If not, finding a local sim card will be your best option.

NEVER get one at the airport, it’s always overpriced and never the best deals. In cities and towns seek out free wifi spots at cafes, libraries and hot spots.

Travelling doesn’t have to involve long flights and extensive road trips.

A great way to bring more travel into your life is by exploring new areas in your local region. Climb a new mountain, visit a new cafe or market, go kayaking in a nearby river, take a day trip to a new town.

The best way of saving money on the road are the many free things to do.

See a street fair, concert, or cultural event.
Catch a magnificent sunset or sunrise
Take a walk or bike ride.
Play in the park.
Free movie screenings in local cafes and hostels
Swim at the beach or lake.
Climb a mountain.
Visit a market.

Hit the street with your feet and get lost in a city or town. It’s amazing what you’ll discover around every corner.

Save money on buying bottled water by purchasing a water purifying water bottle.

Brands such as LifeStraw and Grayl have these great products where you can drink tap water. or river water and their cleverly engineered bottles will remove harmful bacteria and viruses.

Pretty cool tech, huh?

Such a simple tip I know but simple is always good. Visit museums or tourist sites on FREE days or when they are discounted or allow free admission.

Before you go anywhere, make sure you look on their website to find out if they offer free visiting hours or discounts.

You may also find the best rate on museums by purchasing a museum pass, if there is one available. Take a minute to work out whether there are any more museums you want to see and if it’s worth the investment.

One way we save money visiting popular city destinations is via Sightseeing Passes or city attraction passes. You’ll need to carefully plan your trip beforehand so you know exactly which top tourist attractions and tours you want to do. Add up the price and then compare it with an attraction pass and see if you can save money with the pass.

They usually include the top tourist attractions, some local tours and quirky attractions and sometimes discounts at restaurants and shopping. If it aligns it can save you a lot of money on sightseeing. We use them all the time.

For places like New York City that have a lot of attractions, so a New York sightseeing pass will save you a lot of money – especially those that have fast passes. We also saved money using the New Orleans Sightseeing pass and on these top attractions in San Francisco . We’ve also used them in Europe, saving money on top attractions in London and Rome.

We love the Sightseeing Pass , which is mostly USA destinations, but they have London and Malaga

There are also USA Sightseeing Passes, which gives you access to attractions in multiple destinations. It could save you a lot of money. Click here to see more.

City Pass has mostly USA destinations. We’ve used their one in New York City before on a recent trip with our teens.

Go City have great passes for more global destinations. We have used them in London and Rome.

This is how we travel. We love getting insider tips from locals. It can go a long way to good advice, a friendship and even a discount.

A good ice-breaker is to ask for directions or simple advice (“where’s a good restaurant?”).

We LOVE slow travel. Instead of racing from one end of a country to another, or tearing through 6 countries in 6 weeks, get to know a region well.

Undertaking too many flights, bus trips, train journeys and driving long distances can really eat into your budget. So slow down, take more in, and discover all the cool free stuff. (It’s also one of our travel manifesto must.)

It’s totally possible to save for a big trip in six months, you just need to adapt your lifestyle a little bit and consider how much you need to save.

The best way to start saving is to plan a REALISTIC travel budget for the amount of time you’ll be away, for example, $50 USD per day or $100 USD per day.

If you haven’t traveled much before, consider the following items when putting your budget together:

Saving for entertainment, tours and attractions on your travels
Getting there and coming home
Average Daily Costs for food, accommodation, transport, per Country
Staying in touch
Splurges and emergencies

Have a set amount from your paycheck automatically deposited into savings. If you are a couple, try living off one wage and saving the other. We did it.

Take your lunch to work instead of buying it each day and cut back the daily cups of coffee .

Cut back on luxuries like taxis, dinners out, subscriptions to magazines, and high priced drinks.

You could also consider moving back in with your parents for a while, or take in a room mate.

It’s totally possible to travel on a budget and to save up for a travel adventure in less than 6 months. Just remember to revisit your travel budget often during the travel planning process and whilst you are on the road.

Run various scenarios to see what your options are, and just know that you will always have options.

We hope you found this guide helpful and gave you some suggestions for saving money on travel.

Other Tips For Money-Saving Travel Tips

Need more money management tips about saving for travel? Here are some other helpful resources…

42 Best travel hacks for saving money
19 life hacks for luxury living
26 life hacks for everyday living expenses
Is it okay to travel with debt?
Do you feel guilty for wanting more money?
When I get a million dollars I’ll
3 Budget tips for solo travelers
How to travel Australia on a budget
How this couple travels full time on the Australian pension

How to save money on travel is one of the most common questions we get asked. Whether you’re looking to save up for the trip of a lifetime, or you want to stay budget conscious … 52 Money Saving Travel Tips: Save Before & On The Road Read More »

Cash In Thailand: Everything You Need To Know

by Melissa Giroux | Last updated Dec 5, 2023 | Thailand , Travel Finances , Travel Tips

If you’re planning to travel to Thailand, there’s one thing you should prepare for – money!

In this guide, we’ll explore all the topics related to money in Thailand .

We’ll talk about the currency, withdrawals and ATMs, Thai bank accounts, money transfers in Thailand, and some travel tips related to money.

Without further ado, let’s have a look at the Thai currency.

The official currency in Thailand is the Thai Baht (THB).

You’ll find banknotes and coins.

1 Thai Bath is divided into 100 Satang.

500 (purple)
1,000 (gold/beige)
25 Satang (I haven’t seen those)
50 Satang (I haven’t seen those)

As the currency exchange can fluctuate quickly, we recommend you keep a look at the latest rates before your trip and during your trip.

I usually take a screenshot of the latest rates the day before the trip so that I can have a quick look to get familiar with the conversion when I buy something or withdraw money.

Best Way To Get Cash In Thailand

The best way to get Thai Baht is to withdraw money in an ATM or exchange money before your trip/on arrival).

I personally use ATMs to withdraw cash in Thailand as I’m not a big fan of exchanging money abroad, but some people prefer this, so we’ll make sure to cover each topic in this guide.

Withdrawing Cash In Thailand

You can easily find ATMs in Thailand, especially in bigger cities and tourist hotspots.

You’ll find them at banks, malls, supermarkets, airports and other places like Seven-Eleven.

Most ATMs accept debit/credit cards from all over the world. You should be able to withdraw Thai Baht with no problem.

Planning your upcoming adventures? Travel by bus! (It's cheap!)

I personally use Revolut in Thailand to withdraw money.

However, Thailand has a transaction fee for each withdrawal you make. Usually, it costs THB 220, but the price can vary depending on the ATM.

To give you an idea, this transaction fee is around EUR 6 or USD 6.50.

That said, it’s better to withdraw larger sums of money, so you don’t need to pay this fee every time you get cash.

Most ATMs in Thailand allow you to withdraw up to THB 20,000 at a time, but sometimes, you’ll find some allowing you to get THB 30,000.

If you think this is too much money to withdraw at once, you can either store some of it somewhere in your accommodation or agree to pay fees every time you need more money.

How To Withdraw Money In Thailand

Follow the steps below to withdraw cash in Thailand:

Find an ATM
Insert your card
Select your language
Click on the option to make a withdrawal
If you’re given an option for the exchange rate, select the option “Without Conversion”, as you’ll get a better exchange rate this way
Accept the transaction fees (should be around THB 220)
Take your money (The ATM will give you the money first)
Take your card (The ATM will give you the card after the money)

I personally use my Revolut card to withdraw money in Thailand.

Revolut is a great option for travelers as you can freeze and unfreeze your card. There are other advantages for travelers too.

Learn more by reading our Revolut review .

Exchanging Money In Thailand

Another way to get money in Thailand is by exchanging currencies. You can find exchange offices in airports, major cities, or banks.

While some people prefer the convenience of changing money before their trip, it’s better to exchange money in Thailand.

The exchange rates you find in Thailand are usually better.

Now, you may be wondering which currency to take to Thailand. Think of the main currencies such as USD, EUR, AUD, CAD, etc.

However, in Thailand, you’ll only be able to use Thai Bath (THB).

Make sure to count your money yourself too, and check Google Map reviews if in doubt.

For example, in Bali, there are lots of scammers who can trick you and give you the wrong amount of cash.

Overall, in Thailand, you can exchange money confidently, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

Payments In Thailand

Cash in Thailand is handy, and you should always have some in your pocket.

That said, payments with debit/credit cards are becoming more popular.

Let’s take a look at the primary payment methods in Thailand.

In most cases, you’ll have to pay with cash.

So, make sure to always have some Thai Baht with you.

If you’re out of cash, you should be able to find ATMs easily, so you can always go withdraw money if needed.

Now, it’s also important to know that some shops won’t accept THB 1000 banknotes if you’re purchasing something for THB 40. It’s helpful to get change when you can.

For example, buy something cheap at Seven-Eleven to get some change.

Debit/Credit Cards

Although there are still places where you can’t pay with cards, you’ll find that some restaurants and stores accept it.

For example, modern restaurants, supermarkets, and malls accept payments by card.

When I pay with a card, I usually use my Revolut card .

In some shops, you can use the contactless method, but in most places, you’ll need to enter your PIN code.

Nowadays, most shops and restaurants use a terminal that changes the locations of the numbers on each round so that nobody can spy on your PIN code.

Finally, if you have a Thai bank account, you can scan the QR code in the shop/restaurant to pay.

This payment method has become very popular amongst Thai people and expats, as you don’t need to carry cash at all times.

Make sure to have access to mobile data to pay via QR code. It can be with a Thailand SIM card or a global eSIM .

Tipping In Thailand

Tipping isn’t necessary in Thailand. However, I always tip. Of course, it’s up to you if you want to leave a tip or not.

As there is no tipping culture in Thailand, you can round it up or leave what you want.

Some restaurants in Thailand add a service charge to the bill, usually around 10-15%. So if that’s the case, you don’t need to leave a tip.

Regarding transportation, if you use a Grab or a taxi, you can also round it up.

Finally, you can also tip when you get a massage or go to the hairdresser. While it’s not mandatory, it’s always appreciated.

Thailand Travel Money Tips

The best way to get Thai Baht is to use an ATM to get cash or exchange currencies in Thailand.

The best way to travel with money in Thailand is by using a travel card, like Revolut . This way, you can pay by card when you can or withdraw money easily.

Having a Thai SIM card to access the Internet in Thailand can be handy if you want to see the currency exchange rates or find an ATM nearby.

When withdrawing larger sums like THB 20,000, we recommend the following:

Put your money somewhere safe (wallet or money belt ). You can hide some money in different compartments of your wallet if possible. I usually use one hidden pocket for a larger stack of money and put THB 2,000 in the main section. This way, when I open my wallet, nobody sees a stack of THB 1,000 banknotes.
If you’re driving a scooter in Thailand , put your wallet or money inside the seat.
Once you arrive at your accommodation , find a safe spot for your money. You don’t need to carry all your money at all times (unless you want to). If you stay in a hostel , make sure to keep your money hidden and locked in a locker. If you stay in a hotel, you can also hide and lock your money or simply put the “don’t disturb sign” on the door. As a result, you’ll get no cleaning and no strangers in your room.

How Much Money To Bring To Thailand

It all depends on your travel style and budget. I always get money on arrival, so I don’t really “bring money to Thailand”.

Although, if you wish to have money on arrival, you can exchange money before your trip.

Here are some pointers to keep in mind to figure out the right amount of money to bring to Thailand:

How long is your trip?
Is your accommodation paid for, or will you need to pay on arrival?
Are your tours and activities paid for, or will you need to pay on arrival?
How are you planning on getting around Thailand?
What’s your budget for Thailand?

Once you know the answers to these questions, you should be able to have a rough idea of how much money is needed in Thailand.

Alternatively, you can withdraw cash on arrival instead of bringing money with you. ATMs in Thailand are available in airports, shopping centers, and most cities. So, you’ll be able to get cash easily.

Opening A Bank Account In Thailand

If you plan to stay in Thailand for a while, consider opening a bank account. It will make your life easier and allow you to pay with the QR code.

You can open a bank account in Thailand with almost any bank. Some banks are recommended for foreigners (Bangkok Bank is a good example).

It’s also important to note that opening a bank account in Thailand requires some paperwork.

For example, you’ll need to show the following documents:

Residence certificate (if you’re based in Chiang Mai, read our guide to getting the Chiang Mai Residence Certificate )
Rental agreement

Thailand Money Transfers

The best way to transfer money to Thailand is with Wise .

I’ve used Wise several times to send money to a Thai bank account, and it works fine.

It usually takes a few days, so make sure to send money ahead of time if required.

Alternatively, you could also use Revolut to transfer money to Thailand.

That said, it’s worth comparing your options to find the best currency exchange rate and transfer fees.

Let’s see why you may need to transfer money to Thailand:

Paying rent to the landlord
Buying a property in Thailand
Making a payment for a visa (for example, the Elite visa)
Payment of utility bills

Final Thoughts On Money In Thailand

And that’s all you need to know about money in Thailand!

Having a travel card from Revolut is the best way to manage your money.

It’s easy to top up, gives you an excellent exchange rate, and you can use it to pay for things in Thailand.

As you can see, having cash is still a must in Thailand. Just make sure to be smart about it and pay attention to where you put your money.

Traveling to Thailand soon? Read one of the following guides:

Things to do in Ao Nang
How many days in Chiang Mai
Phuket to Krabi

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Big Holiday Vacation Plans? Memorize These Tips For Traveling With Money

Mother and daughter at a farmers market on vacation — traveling with money.

With travel restrictions finally easing up in many places, the idea of heading somewhere exciting and new is not just appealing — it’s attainable. But among the million-and-a-half things you have to worry about when you’re planning your family trip (hello, motherload!), panic about traveling with money may start to creep into your brain. What’s the best and safest way to travel with money? Are traveler’s checks even a thing anymore? The last thing any parent wants is to run into a situation where they lose their money on vacation with the kids, effectively stranding the entire fam.

And, no, cleavage is not the right place to stash your cash for a major trip. Of course, there’s no argument a bra is a highly functional phone, keys, and money holder for a quick run to the store, but it’s not exactly practical for a long vacation. So, here are a few tips on traveling with money that doesn’t involve reaching down your top to pay for an affogato or those rose gold Minnie Mouse macarons at Disney your tween just couldn’t live without.

What is the best way to travel with money?

Of course, no single form of payment will work in all cases. Depending on where you plan to travel with your money, it’s smart to have a combination of methods. Let’s take a closer look at the most common forms of travel money.

Credit Cards and Debit Cards

Credit cards should be your go-to method of payment during a trip, especially internationally. Travel guru Rick Steves recommends those traveling to Europe, for example, should carry one primary credit card and a backup in case of emergencies. “Upon returning home, verify the balance and charges on your debit and credit cards,” Steves says. “Some travelers monitor balances as they travel, though it’s important to be careful when accessing a financial account online.”

Steves advises against debit cards since once someone swipes the money from the account, it’s gone until the bank is convinced the charges aren’t yours. “Because a debit card pulls funds directly out of your bank account, potential charges incurred by a thief are scary — it’s your money that’s gone, and it will stay gone until the fraudulent use is investigated by your bank,” Steves warns. “For that reason, I limit my debit card use to cash-machine withdrawals. To make purchases, I pay with cash or a credit card.”

Another benefit of credit cards? Travel rewards cards allow you to rack up things like reward points and frequent flyer miles. Plus, many boast no foreign currency transaction fees and even allow you to earn free hotel stays.

No matter which type of card you use, don’t forget to call and let the bank know you’ll be traveling. It can also be a big help to carry money like the locals. Although in some places, you probably can’t use your credit cards as freely, depending on which country you visit, you can make spending a lot easier by putting your money in a chip and PIN credit card. Get a compatible credit card and put your funds on that. This is especially helpful in Europe and certain parts of Asia. That way, you don’t have to worry about carrying around cash and can cancel the card if you misplace it.

Cash is king. But ballers, beware: If you plan on traveling outside the U.S. with more than $10,000 cash , you have to declare it with customs. Law enforcement is trying to deter money laundering, so if you can’t come up with some sort of explanation for where you got the money, they can seize it . But within the U.S., there’s no limit to the amount of cash you can carry.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you’ll need to exchange U.S. cash for the local currency when you’re traveling abroad. Do your research upfront, and you should be able to avoid overpaying. According to NerdWallet , airport kiosks and stores should be your last resort when converting currency — the exchange rates are generally terrible, and the fees are high. If you plan ahead, you can have your bank or credit union order the local currency of your destination prior to your trip. Or you could even use an online currency converter and have the local currency delivered to your home.

But, if you’re a procrastinator (hey, hi, hello… welcome to the club), you should still be able to get cash in the local currency from your bank’s ATM network once you’ve reached your destination. So, make sure you use your institution’s app to map out the closest ATMs to where you’re going.

Traveler’s Checks

Yep, they’re still around! The good thing about this OG alternative to credit and debit cards is that they can be replaced if they’re stolen or lost, making them a safer bet than cash. While it’s true that traveler’s checks are almost extinct, you can still find them at a few big banks. American Express still issues their traveler’s checks with no service fee in a variety of currencies, and they never expire. Some establishments may charge a fee to take traveler’s checks, meaning you might want to call ahead and find out the policy.

Traveler’s checks are great for trips to locales without ATMs, or if the local ATM is glitchy. If this form of travel money feels like too much of a relic for your taste, though, USA Today recommends prepaid travel cards as a more modern alternative. Fair warning: They typically involve more fees than traveler’s checks. Still, they make an excellent backup payment method.

How can I carry money while traveling?

Now that you’ve established you should have a combination of payment methods on hand while traveling (especially internationally), you need to know about the logistics. Although it sucks to think about — particularly when you’re traveling — carrying money can make you a target for seasoned, slick thieves and everyday pickpockets. With that in mind, here are a few must-know travel money tips.

1. You’ve Gotta Keep ‘Em Separated

Seriously, if singing the lyrics to that Offspring song in your head helps you remember this, so be it. Because the cold hard truth here is that your go-to money-carrying method of stashing everything (cards, cash, coins, whatever) into one wallet puts you at greater risk when traveling. There are countless ways to do this, so you’ll have to play around with it to figure out what you’re most comfortable with. One scenario? You could hold onto your primary credit card and a bit of cash, your partner could carry the backup credit card and a prepaid debit card, and you could leave the rest of your cash in the safe at your hotel.

2. Hide Your Money Strategically

Just as you’ll be splitting up your payment sources between various locations and persons, you want to mix up where you’re carrying that money on your actual body. Split your bills up into different hiding spots. That way, if a crook nabs one source, it won’t leave you stranded. A wallet in your front pocket makes it trickier for a pick-pocket to access without catching your attention. And you can get money belts that go under your clothing around your neck, waist, thigh, ankle, and more that are practically undetectable and keep your money safely stashed close to your body. You can even carry a decoy wallet in your back pocket to thwart thieves.

Of course, you don’t want to have to strip down in the middle of a pub to pay for a pint. So, keep some money accessible — a few dollars in your sock or, yes, even a few bucks in your bra might be a good idea.

Pro safety tip: If you usually put money in your bra, put it in a plastic bag before popping it into your shirt. That way, none of the money touches your skin, which helps you avoid harmful bacteria cash sometimes carries. One of the cool yet gross things about money is that it’s literally been everywhere, so although your bra is an excellent place to keep cash close, it can be a little unsanitary.

Is it safe to travel with money?

As they say, money makes the world go ’round. So, sorry, Mama — you can’t exactly take that dream family vacation to Paris without bringing some funds with you. Sure, you can pay for a lot of your travel arrangements in advance. But there will inevitably be moments during your travels when you’ll need pocket change. Still, in the immortal words of ol’ Ben Franklin, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Taking the following precautions can potentially save you a whole lot of frustration when traveling with money.

1. Don’t Flash Your Cash in Public

Years of watching true-crime shows have convinced you crowded, busy places equal safety. However, to a pick-pocket, a busy marketplace means plenty of distracted tourists that make good marks. This is where having a small sum of money easily accessible — and separate from the bulk of your travel money — comes in handy.

2. Be Mindful When Using ATMs

First, try to only use ATMs during banking hours. If you wind up having any issues, you’ll know you can go into the branch and speak to someone in person. When it’s 9 p.m., your kid is crying their eyes out, and you need cash fast, you don’t want to be stuck in the dark at a defunct ATM. And always give the device you insert your card into a little shake before using it. If it’s a skimmer, it’ll fall off. Similarly, hide the numbers you push as you enter your pin. Some thieves use mini-cameras to record card numbers and accompanying pins.

3. Have a Point Person Back Home

If you do happen to lose all of your travel money, you’re going to want to have someone back home who is armed and ready with information to help. For starters, you should make copies of all of your credit cards before leaving for your trip. Your point person should know where those are (or have the login info for your online accounts). That way, they can quickly and efficiently relay the numbers you need to contact credit card companies, etc. Plus, they can wire you the funds you need to get home, which, you know, is kind of a big deal.

4. Get Travel Insurance

Traveling internationally is a big-ticket item for most families, so it makes sense to cover the cost of that investment. The right travel insurance can help with everything from rebooking flights to covering expenses incurred during travel delays, and even finding lost luggage. There are a lot of options out there, so give yourself plenty of time to research before your trip.

How much money should you travel with?

Although this is highly subjective, a good rule-of-thumb is to prepay for as much of your trip as possible and then bring $50 to $100 per person per day. And remember, you’ll want to diversify that money — splitting it between cash and cards (or even traveler’s checks). You’ll also need to consider the affordability of the destination you’re traveling to when making your budget. Some locales are much more affordable than others, meaning you may be able to get away with spending less.

What are clever places to hide money?

When traveling abroad, it’s also important to keep your money in a secure place in your hotel or wherever you plan on staying. A few foolproof spots to hide your money include:

An opaque plastic bottle
In your socks in your suitcase
In a medicine bottle
In a random book
Inside of a coffee container
Inside of DVD case

This article was originally published on November 12, 2021

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The 8 Best Travel Money Belts of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Our top picks can hold your phone, passport, and more.

Katherine Alex Beaven is a Los Angeles-based travel, food and drink, and culture writer.

Our Testing Process

Tips for Buying
Why Trust T+L

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more .

Travel + Leisure / Jessica Juliao

Money belts can be a hot topic in the travel community: to wear or not to wear one, that is the question. When it comes down to it, if having your essentials close by and on your person makes you feel more secure, or if you want a hands-free, worry-free way to carry your stuff, we say go for it — with a few caveats. Travel money belts can either be conspicuous or well-hidden. If you’re buying one for security against potential theft, you’ll want to factor in how obvious it is when you access your items. If you’re looking for more convenience, then double down on comfort and zero in on the right capacity for what you plan to carry.

We handpicked 18 travel money belts to put through a series of controlled tests in our lab. We gave a sharp eye to each money belt’s ease of use, comfort, capacity, performance, and quality. We also included a water test to mimic sweat and other water exposure. We’ll continue to test these products for the next six months to see how they stack up over time, but we’ve already got picks for this year’s best travel money belts. Whether you’re looking for a compact one for just the basics, need something while you’re off on an active adventure, or are looking for RFID protection, we’ve got a pick for you.

Best Overall

Raytix rfid money belt.

Ease of Use 5 /5
Comfort 5 /5
Capacity 5 /5
Performance 5 /5
Quality 5 /5

It’s comfortable and easy to wear while still fitting all our travel items.

The sizing is limited compared to other belts on the market.

This classic-style money belt has a deceptively slim profile with five pockets. A larger main zippered pocket has two interior mesh slip pockets for stashing smaller items like coins, transit tickets, or an earbud case. There’s also a hidden back mesh pocket ideal for paper money, plus a medium front zippered pocket. We found it easy to load up all of the items on our testing list and were happy to see it fits a passport without any struggle with the zipper. The back mesh pocket is breathable and slightly padded and feels comfortable against your skin.

The money belt has an unusual, round double-release button that seems sturdier than the typical three-prong side release buckle on most others. We didn’t feel the waist strap dig into our sides while wearing and noted the straps are easily adjustable and feel smooth. The waist strap will fit waists between 27-41 inches, and the belt comes in black as well as fun colors like bright pink and green. The slim profile did bulk up once the belt was fully loaded, though, making it easy to spot even under two layers of clothes. Still, this belt felt secure and durable, and it didn’t shift around while wearing.

The Details: Ripstop nylon | 11 x 5.5 x 0.04 inches | 5 pockets | RFID-blocking capabilities

Travel + Leisure / Jessica Juliao

Most Versatile

Anj money belt.

It’s lightweight and slim but holds more than expected.

The largest adjustment will only fit a 41-inch waist at most.

The ANJ Outdoors Water-resistant Money Belt has a two-layer, single-pocket design that translates to an ultra-thin and lightweight belt. At the same time, the soft lycra material provides a decent stretch that allowed us to fit all of our tester travel items inside, but not much else (and we had to squeeze in our passport). This belt is technically designed for runners, giving the water-resistant material an athleticwear level of comfort which we appreciated. However, during our three-month test, we did feel that this belt gets pretty sweaty in hot weather. An added feature we didn’t even know we were missing is the built-in headphone jack, though it won’t make a difference for travelers sporting wireless earbuds. The adjustable waist strap has reflective strips and fits sizes 26-41 inches. And, not only did the belt not dig into our skin, it actually also felt stylish and very secure, too.

The Details: Lycra | 7.5 x 4.5 x 0.04 inches | 1 pocket

Best Anti-theft

Peak gear hidden travel money belt.

Ease of Use 4.5 /5

It includes theft insurance and lifetime recovery service.

There are only two basic color options.

This Peak travel money belt comes with built-in RFID protection lining, but what makes it a standout anti-theft wallet for us is that it also comes with $250 worth of theft protection and two recovery decals for lifetime recovery services of lost or stolen items. Recovery services are available via a 24/7 phone line and work by helping to return items to you from anywhere across the globe. We also like that we could access our items without drawing attention to the fact we were wearing a money belt. We tested the “regular” size wallet and loved how it stayed slim, inconspicuous, and comfortable even when loaded with documents, money, and other items from headphones to keys to a cell phone. In fact, when we almost completely filled all five pockets, it still felt light and never dug into our waist even while sitting. The biggest drawback for us is that it only comes in beige and black.

The Details: Nylon | 5 x 5 x 0.7 inches | 5 pockets | RFID-blocking capabilities

Best Large Capacity

Lanney rfid travel blocking money belt.

It has three RFID-blocking layers for extra protection.

The included RFID cards aren’t very eco-friendly.

This money belt has a standard money belt design with five storage areas, including a main compartment with two interior mesh slip pockets, a small zippered front pocket, and the back has a breathable, open mesh-paneled sleeve that works great for stashing paper money. We liked how comfortable the belt was, and that it easily fit all items (with room to spare) and still wasn’t detectable under clothes. The strap fits waists measuring 26-50 inches but could likely stretch to fit larger sizes. During our water bottle sweat test, it provided total protection for the items inside. Also, the wallet belt has three built-in RFID-blocking layers and comes with 10 single RFID-blocking card holders (something we’ve never seen before). But, while it’s available in beige, cream, and black, we’d like to see it available in more colors to switch things up.

The Details: Ripstop nylon | 10 x 5.5 inches | 5 pockets | RFID-blocking capabilities

Best for Active Travelers

Flipbelt classic running belt.

It comes in 13 colors and is jiggle-resistant.

It’s not adjustable so you'll have to commit to one of seven sizes when shopping.

This machine washable money belt is made from a light and breathable plush fabric that feels good against the skin and has a stretchy, bounceback capability. We also found it easy to move freely while wearing it without any trouble, making it an easy go-to for active travelers although, in our longterm test, we found ourselves annoyed when getting the belt on as it flips easily. There are four pockets, and we were impressed by how much we fit inside the main storage compartment (stretchy material for the win!). All-in-all, we were pleasantly surprised at how well this performed in our sweat test, the durability and quality of materials, and how well it was concealed under our clothes. This money belt comes in 13 different colors but we do wish one of the pockets had a zipper for that added security. Unfortunately, there’s no way to adjust this band-style belt as there are no clips or buckles so be sure it fits your waist size before purchasing (and it comes in seven sizes from XXS to XXL).

The Details: Micropoly and lycra | 8.6 x 3.2 x 0.4 inches | 4 pockets

Best Organization

Aikelida rfid blocking travel wallet.

Capacity 4.5 /5
Performance 4 /5

It has an adjustable elastic waist belt that gives a snug fit.

The buckle feels flimsy.

This slim money belt has two main zippered pockets, two stash pockets inside the larger main pocket, and a concealed stretchy mesh pocket at the back. The number of pockets and overall design makes it a cinch to locate items without digging (especially for smaller things like coins or wired earphones). Both zippers glide smoothly and have long, nylon pulls that made it a cinch to find and grip. The exterior fabric is tear- and water-resistant and the sweat-wicking padding on the back made it comfortable to wear as we moved around. The adjustable belt is made from an elastic material that helps to get the perfect fit, though we were left wondering how the rebound stretch would hold up after many wears. The RFID-blocking capabilities are a plus. Like many travel money belts, this one is only available in solid black, making it more difficult to conceal under light clothing.

The Details: Nylon | 11.2 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches | 5 pockets | RFID-blocking capabilities

Easiest to Conceal

Stashbandz unisex travel money belt.

Ease of Use 4 /5
Comfort 4.5 /5
Quality 4.5 /5

The band design feels comfortable and secure.

It runs small and cannot be adjusted.

This StashBandz money belt impressed us with its waterproof compression band design, and we liked that it was available in 11 colors. The 360-degree spandex band has no clips or belts and instead fits around your hips and waist (you put it on by pulling it up or down your body). The four pockets are divided through stitched-in seams. For extra security, one has a zippered closure at the top. Accessing the two front pockets is easy enough, but getting to the back requires some flexibility. During our spray bottle “sweat test,” the belt kept items dry and completely dried in about 15 minutes. While we found the spandex to be comfortable against our skin, the belt did ride up when we sat down and even with some arm movements. Since it tends to run small, we recommend sizing up if you’re between sizes, which may also help prevent the belt from rolling up.

The Details: Spandex | 8 x 6 inches | 4 pockets

Most Compact

Molarun travel money belt.

The back pocket has padding that wears comfortably against your waist.

The waist strap only extends to 46 inches and may not fit larger waists.

This smaller, lightweight money belt is a great bargain for travelers looking to carry the basics. The classic money belt look features an open, mesh slip pocket in the back, a small front-zippered pocket, and a main compartment with two open mesh pockets. The back mesh pocket is padded, making for an exceptionally comfortable wear, and we liked how easy it was to access everything we stashed inside. The 26-to-46-inch adjustable strap belt clips around your waist in the back, though the strap is attached to the front pouch toward the top, making the pouch want to flip backward. Despite being compact, it could fit all of our testing items (though it was a tight squeeze). Because it was packed so fully, it was visible through our T-shirt and sweatshirt, so may not be the right pick for someone looking to go incognito.

The Details: Ripstop nylon | 9 x 6 x 0.39 inches | 3 pockets | RFID-blocking capabilities

Other Travel Money Belts We Liked

These travel money belts didn’t make our best-of list but still deserve a shout. Take a peek, they might just be what you’re looking for.

Venture 4TH Travel Money Belt : This is a larger-capacity money belt with plenty of pockets and storage options that made it easy to access our items fairly inconspicuously. The downside is that it made the front pouch obviously bulky and the waist belt dug into our sides and back making for an occasionally uncomfortable fit.

Boxli Travel Hidden Money Belt : We were fans of the overall design of this bag, especially how well it performed in our water testing (everything stayed dry and it dried completely within 15 minutes), but we think the minimalist design worked against the belt and they struggled to feel like they had enough space for everything they needed.

Samsonite RFID Security Waist Belt : This belt had a comfortable fit, held all our items, and was easy to adjust. It also performed well in water testing, but we couldn’t quite get over feeling uneasy about the security of the belt’s thin and somewhat flimsy elastic strap.

We tested 18 travel money belts in our New York City testing lab as well as during travels over a three-month period. Each person was given a set of dummy essential items that most travelers would need or want to fit inside the money belt. This included a passport, credit cards, cash, a cell phone, a set of three keys, and earbuds. We assessed how easy it was to put on, adjust, and wear the belts, as well as how durable the components and materials of each belt appeared. We also noted how visible the belt was under one layer of clothing and then under a sweatshirt, plus how conspicuous it felt to access the items inside. Comfort was tested while standing, sitting, and moving around. Additionally, a water/sweat test was performed on any belts that claimed to be water-repellant, water-resistant, or waterproof where we used a bottle to spray the belt until it was soaked and then checked the effect on the items inside and timed how long it took for the belt to completely dry.

P.S. — Stay tuned for an even better gauge of how well these travel money belts perform over time, as we will continue to use our top-pick money belts and collect insights for six months following the initial tests.

Tips for Buying a Travel Money Belt

Know what size you need.

Make sure you’re buying a travel belt with enough capacity for what you expect to carry in it while also being aware that the more you can fit inside, the bulkier it is likely to become (and therefore possibly harder to conceal under your clothes). When possible opt for the most minimal design for your needs. It’s also important to check the smallest and largest possible circumference of the belt, particularly for anyone with a smaller or larger waist.

Evaluate different materials

Travel belts are made of different materials that benefit different purposes. If you’re trekking in the rainforest, finding a belt with a solid waterproof or water-resistant shell is essential, but if you’re heading out for a city trip, rip-proof or cut-proof material may take priority to avoid the belt being snatched. Similarly, if you’re planning to do more adventurous activities that require a lot of movement and possibly sweating, a money belt made from breathable, flexible material is probably your best bet.

Look for added security features

If you’re choosing to wear a money belt as a bag-free option for security purposes, consider buying something with extra security features. Having a RFID-blocking lining in at least one pocket can provide more peace of mind when storing credit cards and IDs. We’re fans of the hidden pocket, though they can sometimes be tough to access in an item such as a money belt. Ripstop material, locking zipper fasteners, and theft insurance and recovery are also great security extras.

Travel belts are one of the safest places to keep your money and important cards and IDs, particularly in destinations known to have problems with pickpocketing. That said, the wrong type of travel belt — aka one that is too obvious under your clothes or makes you look conspicuous when trying to access your items — may call attention to you as a tourist. This is why it is important to buy the best travel belt for your body and needs. It is arguably one of the most important travel accessories you'll want to purchase.

It may be called a travel money belt, but you can usually treat these portable security pouches like a minimalist hip pack, loading in valuables and necessities from keys and cards to earbuds and your phone. If you want to carry your passport or phone, make sure your travel belt is big enough (and you may need to take the cover off either item in some cases).

No, you must remove the travel belt when you go through security. It will be treated like a hip pack, which cannot be worn into the body scanners. If the belt is small, you may get away with holding it as you walk through. We recommend packing the belt like a wallet in your luggage while going through security and then going to the bathroom to put on the belt after security so you don’t draw attention to the fact you’re wearing this.

Why Trust Travel + Leisure

Katherine Alex Beaven combined research, T+L tester input, and her personal experiences while traveling with money belts for this list.

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I Cut My Hotel Price in Half Using Costco Travel and Still Earned Solid Travel Rewards

Brett Holzhauer

Content Contributor

8 Published Articles

Countries Visited: 22 U.S. States Visited: 29

Katie Seemann

Senior Content Contributor and News Editor

341 Published Articles 45 Edited Articles

Countries Visited: 28 U.S. States Visited: 29

I Cut My Hotel Price in Half Using Costco Travel and Still Earned Solid Travel Rewards

Costco Travel Remains a Staple in My Toolbelt

Booking through costco travel, booking through marriott, final thoughts.

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When you’re a seasoned points and miles fan, it can become a ritual to simply book all your flights and hotel directly through the airline or hotel brand. This is typically more beneficial than not, as you earn loyalty status and also get direct customer service if something goes wrong.

But occasionally, I’ve found it to be beneficial to book through Costco Travel. Although I typically use this service for rental cars only, I’ve found some solid value in the last few months by using Costco’s all-in-one travel portal.

Here’s what you need to know about how I saved money through Costco Travel for my upcoming Mexico trip.

It’s shocking to me when I tell people about Costco Travel since many people don’t even know it’s a benefit. While it’s not always the best route to go, it’s a great resource to keep in mind when you’re looking for the best deal for your next trip.

On the platform, you can book hotels, rental cars, cruises, and theme park-related getaways, and you don’t need a membership to look through the website to see the available deals. However, you do need a membership (or a friend with a membership) to book through Costco Travel .

If you find a Costco Travel deal worth booking and aren’t a member, simply ask a friend or family member with a Costco membership for their login. I’ve booked rental cars, cruises, and hotels for friends and family through Costco Travel plenty of times with no issue at all. The entire booking can be in someone else’s name, and if you have an Executive Membership, you will earn 2% back to your yearly membership reward.

Regardless of how or where you travel, Costco Travel is worth playing around with, as there can be some great deals.

How I Saved Money Through Costco Travel

Although I recently wrote about how travel prices really haven’t jumped all that much when adjusted for inflation , seeing larger numbers never sits well psychologically. To add insult to injury, I’ve been pretty “points broke,” so I found myself using cash rather than credit card rewards for my recent travels.

When an opportunity came up to book a nice 5-day getaway in Cancun (a short 1.5-hour flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida), I jumped right at it. But wow, some of these hotels are charging absurd prices. So I did some digging and found an incredible deal through Costco Travel. Here’s how the numbers shake out for a 5-night stay at the JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa and how much it would be if I booked directly through Marriott.

For a 5-night stay for 2 people at the JW Marriott Cancun, I paid $1,905.71, or $381 per night. It was still a bit pricey, but there’s more to take into account.

When booking travel through Costco Travel, you will likely see several promotions or discounts that further incentivize you to book through their portal. And this deal was no different.

For this deal, I’m getting the following perks:

A $112 Costco gift card
Private transportation to and from the airport
$50 daily resort credit during the stay
$50 spa credit

For the sake of this example, I won’t be counting the resort and spa credits, as booking through Marriott offers the same benefit. But I figure that a $112 Costco Gift Card is essentially a cash rebate. And since I have a Costco Executive Membership, I will earn 2% back on the purchase price, or $38 back. So my out-the-door cost for this stay is $1,755 .

For the $1,905 purchase, I used my Ink Business Preferred ® Credit Card , which earns 3x per $1 spent on travel (and select business categories up to the first $150,000 spent each year), netting me 5,715 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points. At a 2 cents per point valuation , that’s an additional $114 in value for my next trip.

The way I see it, I paid $1,755 for this trip and earned some valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards along the way.

Here’s the sticker shock if I were to have booked through Marriott directly for the same room. For the same 5-night stay when booking direct, I would have paid double — $4,036.

This is for the Transportation Package in Cancun , and while it may say $3,315 for the stay, it slyly adds in the government taxes and fees at checkout, bringing the total to just over $4,000.

This package comes with roughly the same benefits that Costco Travel was offering, with resort and spa credits and transportation to and from the airport. However, it doesn’t come with the Costco gift card.

But, if I were to book directly with Marriott, I would earn 10 Marriott Bonvoy points per $1 — earning me 40,360 Marriott points. And if I used my Ink Business Preferred card for this purchase as well, I would earn 12,108 Chase Ultimate Rewards points. With our points valuation , this would be $282 and $242 in earned value, respectively.

So, with all factors considered, including the rewards I would earn booking the trip, I would have paid $3,512 — double what I paid going through Costco.

The only benefit I would get booking through Marriott and not Costco Travel is earning toward Marriott elite status . But as I rarely stay at Marriott properties and don’t have status, it wasn’t part of my consideration.

Like any purchase you make today, it’s worth shopping around to see if there are better deals out there. Although it may pain you to make a third-party booking where you can’t take advantage of your loyalty status benefits, your wallet will thank you later. With all that money saved, you can definitely afford an extra hot dog on your next trip to Costco.

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About Brett Holzhauer

Brett is a personal finance and travel junkie. Based out of Fort Lauderdale, he’s had over 100 credit cards and earned millions of credit card rewards. He learned the tricks of the trade from his mom, and has taken many steps forward. He wasn’t exposed to much travel as a kid, but now has a goal of reaching 100 countries in his life. In 2019, he sold all of his possessions to become a digital nomad, and he says it was one of the best decisions he ever made. He plans to do it again at some point in his life.

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Traveling Light: How to Pack a Carry-on

An illustration depicts the back of a person with curly dark hair and headphones wearing a backpack that is transparent. The items inside -- sneakers, clothing, separate small bags containing things like glasses, toothpaste, medications -- are all neatly arranged. The person is standing in a windowed corridor, and, in one corner of the illustration, a plane can be seen rising in the sky.

By Stephanie Rosenbloom

For some travelers, the mere thought of packing a carry-on bag can sour even the most potent vacation anticipation . But packing light can also be a creative endeavor that helps build excitement for your upcoming getaway. And with fees for checked bags on the rise, it makes economic sense to master the art of packing a carry-on. Here are some tips on how to save space — and your sanity.

Get in the minimalist mind-set

If you tend to over-pack, begin by thinking about why you’re traveling in the first place. Doing so may help you focus on the many sights, sounds, scents and tastes you’re about to experience instead of the many outfits you’re unable to cram into your bag.

“It’s all about the mind-set,” said Pauline Frommer, co-president of the Frommer’s Guidebooks and Frommers.com , who has not checked a bag in more than 20 years. “When you’re traveling,” she explained, “it’s more about you seeing the world than the world seeing you.”

Pack colors that coordinate so you can bring fewer items yet still have options, like re-wearing the same pants with various shirts. Darker colors mean a stain won’t render something unwearable. And invest in some technical clothing. Such pieces keep you warm without being bulky, are easy to move in, have pockets for necessities like glasses and cellphones, and resist water as well as odors so they can be worn more than once. Many outdoor apparel brands ( Patagonia and Arc’teryx , to name a couple) make clothes that are great for hiking yet sleek enough to dress up when the sun goes down. Just pack some eye-catching accessories.

“I tend to maybe throw in a necklace,” Ms. Frommer said, which she wears on top of her day clothing “to make it look more dressy.”

Choose your bag

There is no perfect carry-on for everyone. To determine the bag that’s best for you, ask yourself how you’ll be using it. Will you be carrying it long distances, through subway turnstiles and city streets? Or will you typically be rolling off a plane and into a car? Bags with wheels tend to be less taxing on your body, though if you’ll be taking public transportation or flights of stairs, a backpack or lightweight duffel can keep you hands-free and may make for smoother transitions. Also consider the things you’ll be bringing. Structured, harder luggage is often best for keeping dress clothes wrinkle-free and organizing unwieldy items like high heels. That said, a soft duffel bag without wheels has a better chance of being able to squish into an overhead bin.

Nerissa Settie, who, as the butler executive at Raffles Doha in Qatar trains the butler team and oversees day-to-day operations, wrote in an email that “each option offers a different benefit,” with duffel bags providing more depth, and wheeled bags providing more compartments and less strain on your shoulders. If you opt for the latter, buy a bag with four wheels, Ms. Settie advised, which is easier to maneuver along an aircraft aisle.

Whatever bag you choose, know the rules. Carry-on bag dimensions vary by airline, so be sure to check your specific airline’s size and weight requirements, including those of any connecting carriers.

Also pay attention to your route and fare class, which can affect the number of bags you’re allowed to carry on, as well as their weight. And remember: While your bag may comply with the carry-on policy, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be allowed to bring it on. For instance, if you’re in a low boarding group, you’re more likely to have to gate-check your bag. With that in mind, keep essential items like medicines in a small bag that can easily fit under the seat in front of you. If you’re unsure about whether you’re allowed to pack a particular item, check out the government websites for the places you plan to travel through, such as the Transportation Security Administration’s What Can I Bring? page and the European Commission’s Information for Air Travellers page.

Know when to fold ‘em

When it comes to packing your clothes, the question is: Should you fold them flat or roll them? Ms. Settie recommends rolling because it uses less space and results in fewer creases. That’s easy enough with T-shirts, but what about a suit jacket? The butlers at Raffles Doha use a technique that involves turning one shoulder of the jacket inside-out and then tucking the opposite shoulder inside it, aligning the sleeves and then folding the jacket in half while inside-out, which minimizes wrinkling and helps protect the outer layer of the jacket (Ms. Settie shared instructions here ). Or simply wear your blazer onto the plane, something Ms. Settie suggests because jackets and jeans take up a lot of space and weigh more. Besides, she said, doing so gives you “the added benefit of traveling in style.”

As you place items in your bag, think about balance. Put heavier items, like shoes, at the bottom (near the wheels, if your bag has them). Ms. Frommer said she typically packs two pairs and stashes things such as socks and jewelry in them.

Clothing should go toward the top of your bag to reduce creases created from weight, with jackets going in last, Ms. Settie said. You can also add a layer of protection from wrinkles by putting skirts and blouses in plastic dry cleaning bags before folding them flat and then placing them at the top of your bag.

Borrow and buy

A bit of research ahead of time can free up a lot of room. Call your hotel or vacation rental to find out if items like hair dryers and sunscreen are provided so you don’t have to pack your own, and ask if they have washing machines or offer cleaning at reasonable prices.

And don’t worry about packing for every possible eventuality. Buying practical things while you’re away can be great fun. It’s an opportunity to talk with locals, try regional products (like the affordable beauty elixirs found in Parisian pharmacies) and, of course, bring a few treasures home, thanks to all that room that’s left in your bag.

Open Up Your World

Considering a trip, or just some armchair traveling here are some ideas..

52 Places: Why do we travel? For food, culture, adventure, natural beauty? Our 2024 list has all those elements, and more .

Mumbai: Spend 36 hours in this fast-changing Indian city by exploring ancient caves, catching a concert in a former textile mill and feasting on mangoes.

Kyoto: The Japanese city’s dry gardens offer spots for quiet contemplation in an increasingly overtouristed destination.

Iceland: The country markets itself as a destination to see the northern lights. But they can be elusive, as one writer recently found .

Texas: Canoeing the Rio Grande near Big Bend National Park can be magical. But as the river dries, it’s getting harder to find where a boat will actually float .

Here's what the Credit Card Competition Act could do to your airline miles and travel rewards

The Credit Card Competition Act would lower credit card swipe fees.
Major airlines have said that the bill could reduce or completely end travel reward programs.
About 40% of American credit card users have a card that is co-branded with a major airline.

When Jess Bohorquez stayed in a luxury hotel with a view of the Sydney Opera House, she didn't pay a cent.

The influencer and creator of "Points By J," a platform that teaches people tricks for low-cost travel, said she uses credit card points to upgrade her vacations and teaches her audience of over 180,000 Instagram followers to do the same.

Since she started accumulating travel points a few years ago, Bohorquez told Business Insider she's gotten discounted flight upgrades, free hotel stays , and trip insurance through her Chase credit card. She even has access to premium lounges at most airports.

"It gets you hooked once you have that first successful points deduction for free travel," said Bohorquez, adding that it's easy to get perks if you know the rules of your credit card. "It's such an exciting feeling."

However, those perks could be in danger of disappearing. The US credit card market is at a crossroads : Politicians and companies are struggling to compromise on how much card swipe fees should cost, who should get the money, and how all of it will impact consumers.

More than eight in 10 Americans use a credit card to make payments, get cash back, and build credit, according to The Federal Reserve . About 40% of those people have a card that is co-branded with a major airline.

Some lawmakers hope to bring more competition to the market, in hopes of limiting the power of major credit card companies and lowering fees. But airlines and travelers worry it could mean the end of rewards programs .

Major airlines' bottom line depends on credit card companies

The Credit Card Competition Act , which was introduced to Congress in June 2023 would require major banks to use at least one credit card payment network that isn't Mastercard or Visa — companies that control more than 80% of US credit card transactions — to introduce more competition into the credit card market.

Visa and Mastercard currently charge businesses about a 3% transaction fee when a customer uses their credit card. The more people that use a credit card, the more revenue banks and card companies make.

That's where airlines come in.

Airlines make money off selling tickets and offering in-flight purchases. But co-branded credit cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred, Delta SkyMiles, and the United Explorer Card are profit centers for banks and airlines.

Credit card rewards incentivize travelers

Businesses typically make up for these credit card swipe fees by raising prices for customers . In theory, increasing competition and lowering swipe fees would translate into more affordable consumer prices.

This could mean cheaper — or at least more stable — prices for buyers, per NerdWallet .

Bohorquez, however, said increased credit card competition is unlikely to lower prices in practice. Instead, she said business airlines and credit companies will be less incentivized to offer loyalty perks like frequent-flyer miles and fraud protections.

Major airlines have already said the Credit Card Competition Act could end these reward programs. Southwest Airlines said in a statement to BI that it "strongly opposes" the bill.

"This legislation is bad policy and would undermine, if not completely end, credit card rewards programs that millions of Americans rely on for their vacations or personal travel needs," Southwest wrote.

United Airlines referred BI to Airlines for America, a lobbying group that represents the US airline industry. Delta and American Airlines did not respond to BI by the time of publication.

Airlines for America said in a press release from July that airlines believe credit card competition would harm their "ability to reward our most enthusiastic customers' loyalty and putting the viability of these programs at risk."

Still, it's unclear whether the Competition Act will become law. The bill was referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs in July, but hasn't yet been passed by the House or Senate.

Until more movement on the bill occurs, Bohorquez plans to make the most of her rewards.

"I'm not terribly worried about our points going anywhere anytime soon," she said. "I hope that people continue to earn and enjoy their credit card points and take a lot of free trips."

Do you use your credit card for travel rewards? Have you saved money on a vacation by using points? Reach out to this reporter at [email protected] .

Watch: While Delta's business is 'extremely robust,' the airline's marketing chief stays focused on the data

Main content

Former Atlanta chief financial officer pleads guilty to stealing money from city for trips and guns

The former chief financial officer for Atlanta has pleaded guilty to stealing money from the city for personal travel and guns and trying to cheat the federal government on his income taxes

ATLANTA -- The former chief financial officer for Atlanta pleaded guilty on Monday to stealing money from the city for personal travel and guns and trying to cheat the federal government on his income taxes .

Jim Beard, 60, pleaded guilty to one count of federal program theft and one count of tax obstruction in federal court in Atlanta.

U.S. District Judge Steve Jones is scheduled to sentence Beard on July 12. Beard could face as many as 13 years in prison but is likely to be sentenced to substantially less under federal guidelines.

Beard served as the city’s chief financial officer under Mayor Kasim Reed, managing Atlanta’s financial resources from 2011 to 2018. Beard is the 10th person to be convicted in an anti-corruption probe into Reed's administration. Most of the others were convicted on charges of giving or taking bribes for city contracts. Reed himself has never been charged.

During his time in office, Beard used city money to pay for personal trips and to illegally buy two machine guns for himself, he admitted in his plea agreement.

Federal prosecutors said Beard stole tens of thousands of dollars from the city, although the plea outlined about $5,500 in thefts.

That includes spending over $1,200 for his stepdaughter to spend three nights in a Chicago hotel room during an August 2015 music festival. Beard said he was there to discuss interest rates on city debt.

Beard also admitted to buying two custom-made machine guns from Georgia manufacturer Daniel Defense in 2015, paying $2,641.90 with a city check. Beard had claimed the guns were for the Atlanta Police Department — it's generally illegal for civilians to possess machine guns in the United States — but he kept them until he left them in 2017 at the police department office overseeing the mayor's protection.

He also spent $648 on airfare to New Orleans to attend the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in April 2016, later deducting the same expense from his income taxes by telling the IRS it was for his personal consulting business. Beard also double-dipped by charging the city nearly $1,000 in travel expenses to a New York meeting with a bond regulatory agency and then getting the same agency to reimburse him $1,276.52.

Beard also claimed $33,000 in losses from his consulting business on his 2013 income tax return, with the IRS ultimately allowing him to deduct $12,000 in business travel expenses he never spent.

Under the plea, Beard is giving up his claim to the guns and is agreeing to pay back various entities including the city of Atlanta.

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How Much Cash Can You Travel With? (TSA & International Rules) [2023]

How much cash can you travel with?

Legal risks of traveling with cash

Tips for traveling domestically with cash

Keep the amount as small as possible

Notify a TSA agent

Avoid checked baggage

Bring documentation

Avoid transporting suspicious items

Consider your criminal history

The International cash limit of $10,000 and the need to declare

Monetary instrument

Items that don’t count as currency

Factors to consider when traveling with cash

Getting through security

The theft risk

Travel insurance

Foreign conversion fees

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So, How Much Money Should I Bring?

Use a Travel Budget Calculator

Consider Paying with Cards

Bring Multiple Bank Cards

Use ATMs Abroad Safely

Know When and Where to Exchange Money

Use Other Payment Alternatives

What to Do in Case of Theft

Safety Tips for Traveling with Money

Use Discreet Storage Options

Carry Different Denominations

Split the Money

Invest in Anti-theft Bags

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Hiding Money When Traveling: Savvy Tips to Give You Peace of Mind

Hide Money When Traveling

Table Of Contents

Use a Conceal Wear Hidden Money Pouch

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Venture 4th Money Belt

Peak Gear Travel Money Belt

Stashbandz Running Belt

Venture 4th Travel Neck Pouch

Travelon Undergarment Pouch

Eagle Creek Travel Undercover Hidden Pocket

LANNEY Travel Money Belt

Clever Ways To Hide Money In Clothing While Traveling

SCOTTeVEST RFID Travel Vest

Waypoint Goods Travel Scarf

Sprigs Banjees Pocket Wrist Wallet

Pocksie Temporary Sticky Pockets

Hide Essentials in Shoes

Hide Money While Traveling In a Purse

Crossbody Purse

Anti-Theft Bag

Anti-Theft Backpack

Hide Money Travel Product Comparison Chart

We hope you liked this post on the best way to travel with money. Please share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

The Best Way to Travel with Money (and Tips on Using Money Abroad)

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Best Way to Travel with Money: Use Your Card

Preparing Your Money to Travel

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18 tips to help you manage your money while traveling

Before you leave

2. Look into your cards’ foreign transaction fees

3. Save copies of important information

4. Confirm or purchase travel insurance

5. Get some local currency