Travelers cheques

[lenquixote66]

51 minutes ago, clo said:

I don't want to walk around with a lot of cash. Sometimes I'll have a $20 bill in my wallet for what seems like weeks. And as I said we put absolutely everything we can on a credit card. Love racking up those travel points.

I almost never go shopping anywhere.We have never used travel points.When we accumulate a lot we cash them in.

[clo]

10 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I almost never go shopping anywhere.We have never used travel points.When we accumulate a lot we cash them in.

Oh we don't do much in-real-life shopping. But groceries etc. We pay any bill we can (that doesn't charge a fee) with the card. I suppose we could cash for cash but the benefit for travel is SO much greater.

[lenquixote66]

Just now, clo said:

Oh we don't do much in-real-life shopping. But groceries etc. We pay any bill we can (that doesn't charge a fee) with the card. I suppose we could cash for cash but the benefit for travel is SO much greater.

Mrs.66 is a shopaholic .However,since the pandemic she has only gone to grocery stores.

[iancal]

We use far, far more cash when we travel in  Europe, Mexico, in Costa Rica, and in Asia.      Food and accommodation.  We access cash via ATM.   Credit card only when there is no discount for cash or credit cards are not accepted.  

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, iancal said:

Neither of us has ever paid interest on our credit cards.  More often the balance is paid prior to the statement.   

We also pay no interest. I go online and schedule the payment in full for the due date.

[shipgeeks]

Thank you to all who responded to my original travelers cheques question.

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, shipgeeks said:

Thank you to all who responded to my original travelers cheques question.

 

Quite a thread, it has developed into, don't you think?  

[Toofarfromthesea]

3 minutes ago, clo said:

No collectible value?

 

No, they checked.  Apparently billions of the stuff was taken out of Russia by people fleeing the revolution - and these weren't in particularly good condition.  IAC, over the years we've lost track of them.

[Hlitner]

DW reminded me of our own Travelers Check history.  We used to be able to get AMEX travelers checks for no fee at our Credit Union.  For many years we would carry several thousand dollars of AMEX TCs as a backup for our trips (we were and are still very independent travelers).  At one point (probably about 20 years ago) we got a couple of extra ATM/Debit card accounts as our backups...but still carried those old TCs.  Eventually I forgot about the TCs which sat buried in a pile of stuff on the top of my bedroom table.  I was probably about 5 years ago that I discovered several hundred dollars of unused TCs in that pile.  Not knowing what to do with the things I eventually took them to the main office of my Credit Union and asked a teller to deposit them into my account.  The Teller (who was quite young) was not even sure what they were and I told her I had purchased them at that same credit union.  She had to get the manager who told me to endorse them and they would deposit them back into my account.  We all (me, the Teller and the manager) had a good laugh about those old AMEX TCs as we explained some of the TC history to the young teller.  

 

About that same time (must have been about 10 years ago) DW and I had lunch at a very nice cafe in Paris, France when we witnessed the folks (they were Americans) at the next table try to pay their check with travelers checks.  The waiter had no clue and argued with the couple that they needed cash (Euros) or a credit card.  The couple did not understand (language problem) and we had to explain to them that the waiter had no clue about those travelers checks.  Fortunately the couple did have enough Euros to cover their bill.  

 

Some (not all) cruise lines will may still cash Travelers Checks at the main Guest Relations desk.  Then again, by the time cruises restart that may not be the case.  My advice if you still have TCs is cash them in at your own home financial institution and look towards other options such as an extra ATM card.  By the way, if you do get another ATM/Debit card I suggest it comes from a different bank/credit union and is tied to a secondary account (even if you must open another account).  

 

Hank

[ilikeanswers]

This chart only goes to 2009 but it interesting to see the sharp decline of travellers checks:

CHART OF THE DAY: The Death Of Travelers Checks

[rkacruiser]

19 hours ago, Hlitner said:

By the way, if you do get another ATM/Debit card I suggest it comes from a different bank/credit union and is tied to a secondary account (even if you must open another account).  

 

I do think if I travel internationally again, your suggestion is one that I will remember and do.  

 

[rkacruiser]

Since the majority were purchased at a Chase bank with their logo on the checks and 3 were purchased at an AAA office with their logo on the checks, I would expect that they would honor the checks.  

 

The Bank of America checks are the oldest and were bought at an AAA office.  

 

Given my banking relationship with Chase, I have not--nor do I expect--any difficulty in getting them cashed.  The teller's experience/knowledge and whether the Manager needs to be involved could be a factor.  It was last January in Fort Lauderdale.  It was not in January, 2021 when I cashed some at my local Branch of Chase.  

[sparks1093]

I haven't read through all of the replies but I suspect that Traveler's Checks are at least on the endangered species list nowadays. I last got them sometime in the late 70's. 

[ontheweb]

2 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

I haven't read through all of the replies but I suspect that Traveler's Checks are at least on the endangered species list nowadays. I last got them sometime in the late 70's. 

IIRC, we had them on our first and possibly second cruise and were able to cash them on the ship at the purser's office. Our first cruise was in 2002.

[iancal]

Other than Karl Malden we have never understood the attraction of TC's.

[ldubs]

13 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

I haven't read through all of the replies but I suspect that Traveler's Checks are at least on the endangered species list nowadays. I last got them sometime in the late 70's. 

 

I think they are essentially extinct.  Travelers Checks were valuable for travel back before ATMs when  cash was still used. Now that cash has been replaced with cards, i can't think of a benefit to using a Travelers Check these days.   

[Ombud]

FWIW After my mom died snd we had to unwind a 1.5m estate in a poorly constructed trust, I put designated beneficiaries on all accounts and put my house in a regular trust but will redo to a Totten Trust once the county office opens up. In that a small estate affidavit covers up to 150k in California that's all I need to do. I doubt I have more than 25k in 'stuff' including my car!!

 

But WOW this went really REALLY far from how to get $$s out of Travelers Checques now that Thomas Cook & American Express aren't readily available.  A Google search came up with:

That's how it is on this side of the pond & country, your situation may vary

 

[Host Kat]

On 1/30/2021 at 9:25 AM, shipgeeks said:

Thank you to all who responded to my original travelers cheques question.

 

The OP thanked all waaaay back on 1/30/21. Time to end this thread.