Las Vegas Travel Forum

hi , i am travelling from the uk in september and have a nationwide debit card .will it be best to take travellers cheques or use my card while out in vegas . i have been told that you can change up sterling at the mgm with no extra charges ,does anybody know if this is true . any help on this matter will be appriciated and thanks to any replies , thanking you .

Vegas is possibly the only place in the US where you can change Sterling at reasonable rates, but why not get dollar TCs in the first place? Having said that I have not used TCs for anything for years now that credit cards and ATMs are so plentiful.

Regards

John

I tend not to use travellers cheques any more though if you take $US ones you can use them like currency and get change, at least you always could!

If I were you would take a variety of $US bank notes, including $1 for tips as you arrive.(All hidden in a body belt of course.) After that I would use the Nationwide card - famously the best deal from the UK. I would always take another card as backup just in case, even the best cards fail. And take photo copies of cards & passport - keep well hidden.

Enjoy.

Hello


I wouldn’t bother with cheques personally; all casinos would cash them without any problems though. American Ex cheques are widely accepted everywhere and there are hidden charges “it’s not free”, but since you have a Nationwide Debit/Cash Card you’ll pay no fees when using ATM’S operated by a national bank eg Bank of America located on the strip N/S. Avoid using an ATM inside any casino as they will trigger a charge 1.5% ($1.50) - 3.0% ($3.00). Another tips; assuming your card is Cirrus, and most are you can pay for things like Maestro/Switch, automated payment, again Nationwide don’t charge and you get the banks actual exchange rate estimated at:
1.00 USD = 0.498827 GBP
United States Dollars United Kingdom Pounds
1 USD = 0.498827 GBP 1 GBP = 2.00470 USD


Best wishes

I have a Nationwide Flexaccounr Debit card and use it at ATM's wherever I travel - including USA ( thought never in Las Vegas)
It is the only the only means of exchanging money I ever use and consistently gets the best rate.
Not all American banks issue cash without charging a fee - I think we found the Washington Bank the best in this respect - but things may have changed in the current banking crisis.

Recent developments within the banking industry, has seen an increasing amount of travellers having their credit/debit cards stopped whilst on holiday.

The banks computer system sees money being spent abroad as odd or a possible fraud. The banks are after all, looking after you and your money.

Please ensure you inform your bank before you leave, that you are going away and to which part of the world you will be using your cards. Some travellers were left without access to their money for up to 5 days.

thanks to everyone for your tips . it seems as though the atm is the way to go especially with the exchange rate so high in the us at the moment and no commission with the nationwide card . ive always taken travellers cheques before but it seems that is a bit old fashioned now . thanks again !