Sorting out your travel money doesn’t have to be complicated, especially if you bank with Starling. So far, I’ve used my Starling card in 12 countries and it has never let me down.
Before Starling, I worried about fees for using a bank card abroad and my phone bill after calling my high street bank to unblock my card, even though I had already told them where I would be going. With the Starling app, that stress is behind me.
Free to roam
Starling won’t charge you to use your debit card abroad and you don’t have to contact us before travelling. With the Starling app you get real-time notifications that tell you whenever money moves in or out of your account, putting you in control and helping you stay on track with your finances as you travel. If you do receive a notification you aren’t sure about when you’re overseas (or at home), you can contact Customer Service through the app straight away.
Safe in the knowledge that I won’t be charged extra, I prefer to pay by card when I travel abroad, so I can to keep track of transactions. But depending on where you are, you’re likely to need cash at some point and it’s always worth having a few emergency notes. For example, if you’re backpacking through South America or South East Asia, you’ll almost always pay in cash. Countries such as Japan and Italy are still very much cash-driven economies while in Canada and Sweden, by contrast, card is king. It’s worth doing a bit of research on the country you’re travelling to before you set off to make sure you’re prepared.