Travelers checks in Scotland

[Liam]

I too would forget the traveler's cheques. A bank card for cash at ATM's and a credit card (Visa in our case) were all we needed. Before you go advise both your bank and credit card company of your travel plans.

Have a great trip!

[Alan H]

Regarding the phone....

after reading articles on how to change out SIM cards and which provider was best and yadda-yadda.... I think we're going to pop into a convenience store, or a Car Phone Warehouse if i can find one, and get the cheapest thing I can find that uses the Vodaphone network.

Why Vodaphone?

Because Vodaphone uses a different frequency than O2 and...the other network... and the lower frequency (G2), while slower for data..which don't care about... extends a bit further into the hills and valleys.

I expect to pay something like about twenty pounds. I'll bring it home and give it to one of my friends that is coming over to Scotland for the Masters World Championships in September.

[sydnie7]

Good solution. My car club had a UK phone that got passed around to various travelers for a few years until technology galloped past it!

[TheOfficialBren]

In the uk we have credit unions but as far as I'm aware they're used mostly for savings and lending and not so much cards?

And today £99 GBP came to $185 USD, the rates change daily but give or take this is roughly what it sits at, how much is a coffee in the states? Sorry just my own curiosity haha!

Here a credit union is member-owned and operated generally and usually have lower lending rates than banks.

A tall (small) cup of coffee (black) at Starbucks is about $1.70. How does that compare to Scotland?

We also have five sizes: short (extra small), tall (small), grande (medium), venti (large), and trenta (extra large).

My order is usually a tall brewed coffee with cream and some raw sugar (although I prefer better coffee, generally).

[ForresterModern]

Hey Alan, a couple more suggestions from one who has travelled several times to the EU and the UK. First figure out which of your cards charge you the least in the way of exchange rate fees for foreign purchases so you don't get raked with the fees when you get back. Same thing for cash advances---try to stick with your usual ATM/Debit card for cash withdrawals from your account rather than cash advances from your credit card company to avoid the double whammy of fees for both the advance and the exchange. Take at least two credit cards and one debit/ATM card and keep one credit card separate from the rest in a secure spot as a "back up" should you "lose" your wallet along the way. I always lay my credit cards on my scanner and scan in copies of both the front and the back and either print them or download the images to secure apps on your phone or ipad or similar. This will if done properly put your account number from the front alongside your card's security code and emergency US and international phone numbers to call if you lose a card or have a problem with it. Losing a card is bad enough, but not knowing what number to call to report it is even more frustrating, doubly so if you are trying to do it in a foreign country, let alone potentially in a foreign language. Do let all your card companies know in advance the exact days you are travelling and roughly where (country wise at least) and give yourself and extra day or two at the end of the trip in case your flights get screwed up (remember that Iceland volcano is still cooking out smoke and threatening to belch out another huge cloud of volcanic ash anytime). As far as phones you can buy cheap ones here in the states from a company that also works over there---I use T-mobile phones pay as you go and just buy a new country specific SIM card when you get there, along with a batch of minutes. Make sure the phones you get work on all 4 frequencies (quad phones) and they should be able to be used just about anywhere there is signal. Make sure the US carrier has unlocked them before you go or they will be useless paperweights when you get there, so you may have to use up a certain number of minutes on this side of the pond to get there. As soon as you get them up and running over there put the numbers of each others phones in as a speed dial and as a text message number. Texting can actually be cheaper than calling for short messages. You will need to have some way to charge them. I use a regular international convertor and a short multi-plug extension cord and try not to overload it. If you have a laptop you may be able to get a simple plug adapter (cheaper than a convertor) because your laptop's brick acts as a multivoltage convertor, so all you need to charge the phones are the proper USB cord for the phones and you can plug them into the laptop's USB port. Or if renting a car take your car charger and remember to put the phone on it anytime you are in the car to keep it maxed up.

If renting a car make sure to use a credit card that covers excess collision and liability as I have had bad luck with cars getting damaged both in Scotland and Ireland due to less than ideal roads and other drivers. A damaged rental car may slow down your airport time on your departure as they will have you waiting while they get someone to do an estimate of damages and charge your card for that amount before letting you off the hook with the car rental.

One last pearl---some Scottish banks have their own printed money in the same denominations of GBP (Clydesdale Bank is one if my memory serves me). Although it is USUALLY not a problem I would advise using any of those bills up while in Scotland. Some places in the lower parts of the UK, in particular some places in the airports at Heathrow or Manchester (if you happen to fly through there) will not accept the Scottish bank proprietary notes, Lord only knows why not but they dont. Not a problem in the land of the Saltire, they spend like any other. Last time in Scotland as I flew through Heathrow each way, and planning on spending off the last of my cash in the airport found several vendors who would not honor the "outland" notes, I had to work a bit to find places to "dump" the last of my cash before leaving country.

By the way, there is a wonderful duty free wine and scotch whisky shop in one of the Heathrow terminals if you are looking to snag a couple unique bottles to bring back. Just remember you will have to stow them in your checked baggage when you pick up your baggage at the international to US flight changes, as you will have to go through security again after picking up your bags for the transfer, and you will not be able to bring the big bottles in your carry on in the homeland.

Enjoy the trip, it is a beautiful country. Fall in love with the place, enough that you start thinking about ways to maybe move there, if not now, in your retirement.

[StevieR]

. . . A tall (small) cup of coffee (black) at Starbucks is about $1.70. How does that compare to Scotland?

We also have five sizes: short (extra small), tall (small), grande (medium), venti (large), and trenta (extra large).

My order is usually a tall brewed coffee with cream and some raw sugar (although I prefer better coffee, generally).

Cheaper in the States, mate. Your $1.70 would likely be £1.70 over here. Three sizes in Starbucks - tall, grande, venti. Two other high street chains, Costa and Cafe Nero are more numerous than Starbucks (and the coffee is much better) Costa can be found in larger Scottish towns, elsewhere you can get a decent cup of coffee in most independent cafes.

Now, this might be heresy, but I've travelled to the States quite a few times over the last few years and I really do struggle to get a decent cup of coffee - and if I "drink in", why can't I have a proper cup/mug?!

[Dundonian.on.Islay]

Here a credit union is member-owned and operated generally and usually have lower lending rates than banks.

A tall (small) cup of coffee (black) at Starbucks is about $1.70. How does that compare to Scotland?

We also have five sizes: short (extra small), tall (small), grande (medium), venti (large), and trenta (extra large).

My order is usually a tall brewed coffee with cream and some raw sugar (although I prefer better coffee, generally).

Yeah I think It's the same idea here, though a lot of the time you need to have savings to borrow against.

And yeah I think the coffee is cheaper in the states compared to us although it depends if you just want coffee or you go the cappuccino/ latte route though I do prefer a costa coffee :P