I have a visa debit card form my bank that use when I travel. I do not have a credit card.
I recently had a little trouble using it in Japan (it didn’t work at a lot of places I went), and I’ve had trouble using it in Korea before. However, it works everywhere in Europe and in Taiwan.
Does anyone know if I’ll be able to use it in Thailand? Or should I prepare some travelers checks?
I’ve got a Bank of America Visa Debit Card and it worked almost all over the planet (55 countries). This was in 2001 and 2002. Thailand has a modern banking system and I had no problem using it there. Nevertheless, I always carry a backup credit card and some travelers checks just in case.
There should not be a problem. I know you can use it at an ATM to withdraw money in the local currency (baht), but I don’t know if only a certain type of ATM will let you do this (I’ve never used debit cards myself); never heard of it being a problem, though. Many shops, hotels and restaurants accept them.
Why you’ve had trouble in Japan, I don’t know, but here is the number I have listed for the Visa hotline: 001 800 11535 0660. It says this is in Bangkok, but it does not look like a local number. I suppose it could be some special number they have set up in coopration with the telephone people.
BTW: Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer travelers’ checks. Twice in my life – once in Honolulu, once in Bangkok, and both times a LONG time ago – the ATM ate my card! In Honolulu, it was my fault; I simply waited too long to retrieve it. But in Bangkok, the machine shut down as soon as it took my card. It took two weeks to get it back! So I never rely on ATMs when travelling. I suggest having a few travelers’ checks as a backup.
Just a head’s up. Before you travel call the card company and tell them where you will be traveling and on what dates. The fraud alert systems are getting real picky. Just because you had no trouble previously doesn’t mean that you won’t have trouble tomorrow.
Ditto this. We recently went to Doha, and used our debit card to get some things at Heathrow airport in London. By the time we got to Doha, our debit card had been suspended due to “unusual activity”, and I wasn’t able to get it reactivated until we got back to the US. The card issuer told us next time just to give them a heads-up as to where we were going before we left and they wouldn’t suspend our card. But the upshot is yes, debit cards should work anywhere there is a modern banking system, as long as you notify your bank prior to departure.