IslandThyme Posted July 16, 2018 #1 Share Posted July 16, 2018 Because of frequent hacking of my existing credit card, I'm planning to get a new one to use exclusively on my upcoming Grand Asia cruise. Does anyone have recommendations about whether Master Card is accepted as readily as VISA in Asia, and also in Australia? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iancal Posted July 16, 2018 #2 Share Posted July 16, 2018 Never, ever had a problem with Visa in Australia, NZ, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam or Cambodia. We have both however our particular Visa program did not add the usual 2.5-3 percent surcharge on foreign transactions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fouremco Posted July 16, 2018 #3 Share Posted July 16, 2018 You might find this article to be of interest: https://www.fool.com/credit-cards/2017/10/20/best-credit-card-for-traveling-in-asia.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IslandThyme Posted July 16, 2018 Author #4 Share Posted July 16, 2018 Thanks for the link. I am, of course, only looking at cards with no foreign transaction fees. That Capital One card is a Master Card, and that's actually what prompted me to wonder whether it would be as widely accepted as a VISA is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iancal Posted July 16, 2018 #5 Share Posted July 16, 2018 We have spent four winters in SE Asia. I cannot recall ever using a credit card for meal. And very seldom for lodging. In many instance the vendor will not accept any credit cards OR will add a surcharge of 5-10 percent. On line booking would be the exception to this, especially pre paid lodging, air, and ferry charges. Or the large business style hotel chains. We used it regularly for cash advances. Our bank charges an excessive exchange rate for foreign ATM withdrawals. To counter this we keep a credit balance on our travel Visa card. When we do a cash advance on the card we get the money at the prevailing rate as per xe.com. The charge is 1 percent. Our bank, however, would charge us $5. plus as much as 3 percent over the prevailing exchange rate as per xe.com. It makes a small difference if you are just stopping for a day or two but we usually spend 2-3 months each winter on land trips so money saved by avoiding outlandish bank fees really adds up. And our banks in Canada are brutal when it comes to bank fees-hidden and otherwise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obilix Posted July 16, 2018 #6 Share Posted July 16, 2018 MasterCard is as widely accepted as Visa in Australia, and also in my experience, in most of Asia. American Express is not well regarded by traders due to what they consider are its excessive fee structure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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