Heading out on a trip? We’re sure you’ll have a lot of fun! However, there are a few things you’ll need to think about, particularly when it comes to spending money online. The world has become a lot more globally connected when it comes to payments. You can now send payments online to pretty much any country in the world, within minutes. You can even use your own card online in foreign countries. However, you still need to be safe. Let’s share a few tips.

• Tell your bank you’re traveling (if international)

To protect their customers, most banks will put a ‘block’ on a debit/credit card if they believe it is being used fraudulently. This means that if you use your card online in a foreign country, there is a good chance that it’ll be blocked. This ends up causing a huge amount of hassle trying to sort the problem out – hassle you don’t want on your vacation or your work trip.

So, before you travel, make sure that you inform your bank. Let them know you’re traveling internationally and don’t want your card to be blocked due to fraud. Don’t want to call them? No problem! Most banks nowadays have baked these requests into their online banking systems. So, you only need to click a few buttons and you’re ready to go.

Bear in mind that your card may still end up being blocked if the bank suspects fraud. It’s just far less likely if you make sure that you tell your bank in advance.

• Don’t use public Wi-Fi to pay online

This is something that you’ll want to take note of, no matter where you are traveling to. In fact, it should be something you always pay attention to, whether you’re traveling or not.

You see, the vast majority of public Wi-Fi networks are not secure. This means that people will often snoop on the Wi-Fi connection in the hope that they’ll be able to grab some personal information from others, including payment details. It happens way more often than you might think.

If you need to make a payment online for whatever reason, make sure that you are not using a public Wi-Fi network to do it. So, no heading to your local Starbucks to book a trip, theme park tickets or something similar. 

• Only use online payment methods you can trust

When you’re traveling overseas, you might need to buy or pay for a few things online. This may include trip tickets, taxis or even groceries. So, there are a few things you’ll need to bear in mind here.

Firstly, always try to buy in person, if you can. It’s considerably safer. Buying something in person means that you’re physically receiving the goods or services right away. There is far less chance of being scammed.

If you must order online, then make sure that you do your research into whether a platform is legitimate or not. Thankfully, you’ll find plenty of reviews online that should help with this. You will also want to ensure that the website you’ve selected is secure, before you use it. Check the address bar in your web browser for ‘https://’. If you don’t see the ‘s’, it’s not a secure platform.

Most importantly, only use payment methods that you can trust, particularly payment methods that you know will cover you should you run into any issues. For example, it is a lot better to use a credit card or PayPal to make a payment, because if something goes wrong and you can prove you’re the victim of fraud, money will be returned to your bank account. If you use a bank transfer or pay using cryptocurrency, your chances of a refund are limited.

• Understand currency conversions

Buying something online in a foreign currency? Bear in mind that nearly every single bank will have some sort of extra fee added on top for the currency conversions. This is another reason why it might be worth paying in person, if you have the opportunity to do so.

Most banks will not charge the real exchange rate (RER). This is partly so they can make a bit of profit. It also helps to protect them if there are some wild currency fluctuations.

If you really want to buy something online when you’re overseas, then it might be worth looking into getting an international travel card or something similar that you can top up whenever you want. This is something that will often be a whole lot cheaper to use. It also makes budgeting a bit easier, and you don’t need to worry about somebody gaining access to all your money.

• Set yourself a budget 

Before you travel, make sure all your bills are paid. This way, you won’t be spending anything that you can’t afford to spend. You will also want to set out a specific amount that you know you can afford to spend on your vacation.

Remember, set a hotel budget (if staying in a hotel), food budget, entertainment budget etc. Make sure that you have a little bit extra available just in case you go over your budget.

You might also want to budget for any leisure activities you might be doing on your downtime. For example, if a casino you’re interested in offers a 100% deposit bonus and you want to take advantage of it when you’re traveling, make sure that you have the funds available – although do try to enjoy your trip rather than spending the whole time attempting to win at an online casino!

• Final thoughts 

Spending money online while traveling shouldn’t be too different from spending it online when you’re at home. Your main concern, if you’ll be traveling overseas, is to inform your bank, to ensure that your cards don’t get blocked. Other than that, budget properly, use reputable websites to buy things, and never, ever connect to a public Wi-Fi network to make payments. If you do these things, you’ll be safer.