Many students spend their time off traveling overseas.   Others are planning to spend a semester or even a year abroad.  Unfortunately, making financial arrangements when traveling overseas can be very complicated.

The most popular credit cards in the United States, Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, are routinely offered overseas.   Visa is the most popularly accepted card, with Mastercard a close second, and Amex a not too distant third.   If you have a choice between Visa and Mastercard when applying, Visa is the more accepted of the tow.

Some colleges produce guides for students with some practical tips for traveling overseas.   For example, The University of Redlands is a Southern California University that offers a semester in Salzberg Austria program.   In their student handbook, they offer the following suggestions:

Credit cards are the easiest way to assure you get the most favorable exchange rate possible, because you enjoy the rate awarded to a major financial organization. You can use credit cards in Europe for everything from drawing cash to buying dinner.

While credit cards do provide an excellent exchange rate, most credit cards now charge a foreign exchange fee of 1-4% which negates the value of the favorable exchange rate.    There are some notable exceptions to foreign exchange fees.    Capitol One, Schwab Bank, Fidelity Bank, and the Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) do not charge foreign exchange fees.  

Another aspect of credit card use that you should be concerned about it is using a credit card for a cash withdrawal.    Cash withdrawals from credit cards are always subject to interest, often at a higher rate than purchases.  For access to cash, the most convenient method is to use your ATM card.   ATM machines are even more common in most countries than in the United States, and they offer favorable exchange rates with few fees.  Ensure that your bank does not charge excess fees for out of network withdrawls.

Before you depart, call all of your credit card companies and banks where you have  accounts and give them the dates of your travel and all of the countries you plan on visiting.   Include countries where you are changing planes, and even countries where you might only cross the border briefly.   Making these calls ahead of time will prevent your bank from suspecting fraudulent activity and freezing your accounts.

Being a student overseas is an exciting and memorable experience.   With a little planning and preparation you should have little difficulty handling your finances responsibly while having the time of your life.