I am a UK citizen who will be traveling to India in July. I will be traveling to more than one destination throughout my 21 day visit. My hotel payment is being made via my debit card as it will be prepaid, and I need to know when making other payments like at restaurants and larger reputed shops how I should make the payment? Which would be the best and safest way?
I personally do not like to make payments using debit or credit cards. I always pay using cash no matter how big or small the organization is.
I live in India and I totally avoid using a credit card or debit card unless I know it is a reputed place where I am paying, otherwise its the atm for cash, which is the best way to go. I would also like to suggest that never take out all your cash in public in India, keep as much as you may need in your purse simply to keep it away from the eye of thieves.
Using cash in all places would be the best option. Dont take money out from the ATM's in India because the exchange wont be good, you can exchange money from the airport when you arrive, but I am not sure what the exchange rate is like there.
You can use a stand-alone prepaid debit card. But do not use a card that is directly linked to primary account, as there may be security concerns. Cash would be the only option for most transactions. Do not use the Airport exchange service, they charge too much. Many Indian banks have tie-up with foreign banks and offer better rates. So contact your local bank first to check if they have any tie-up with any Indian bank.
Not a good idea atall. The old T2 at Delhi had PSU bank counters that gave very good exchange rates and very little commission but since the new T3 came into service the exchange rates have gone to the dogs and you end up getting 15-20% less then you actually should. Never exchange money at the airport.
Thank you all for the advise. If I shouldn't exchange money at the airport and if my bank has no tie up with Indian banks, where do you suggest I can get the money exchanged from?
It is best to carry cash with you and that too in different notes. When exchanging money you are likely to get Rs500 notes, but make sure when you go out for little shopping you have notes in Rs10, Rs20, Rs50 and Rs100 as some vendors don't like giving change for Rs500.
It is not just foreigners but also those living in India who only prefer to use cash, because of many fraud card cases. If you do need to use you card, do make sure you check your bill properly and while in India also check your transactions online from your banking site.
Cash is the only way to go, for your hotel booking which I assume that you have pre booked you should make the payment by card, which means you only need to carry the less cash around with you. Keep the cash in different places when travelling and not together, always keep the smaller change in one place, and by following this you will be fine while in India.
Cash always. I do not use my debit or credit card anywhere, infact I don't have a credit card because I don't use them. There has been lots of incidents where a vendor would run someone's card twice or just run it for a large sum and then getting justice in such cases is a very lengthy process so why take the risk in the first place.
Whenever we travel, we would bring just a few US dollars that would take care of the trip from the airport to the hotel. The so called pocket money that we need comes from the ATM. Our last travel was to Kuala Lumpur in April and we didn't have any difficulty in withdrawing Ringgit. We find that method more practical. At least we are freed of the hassle of computing for the exchange rate.
As has already been suggested here, you should use cash wherever possible. India is a great destination as the exchange rate into the rupee is favorable. No matter what currency you're using, you'll find yourself a wealthy person in India when they do the conversion. Cash is pretty easy to get a hold of through atm's and is safer because you're not as open to fraud. Do not keep large amounts of cash on your person at any time. Take what you need to use, and then go and get some more. This is what I do whenever I go on vacation. Have fun!!!!!!
I was also going to say I would have thought it's safer to use a card rather than carry that amount if cash with you. Going for such a long time aswell, I certainly wouldn't feel comfortable knowing I was carrying around that kind of an amount. I very rarely carry cash where I live, I'd certainly be wary about doing it in a foreign country. I agree that cash would definitely be more convenient, it was just the security aspect I was concerned about, but if your research points towards cash as the better option then cash it is then. Thanks for checking it out.
You can use a combination of both cash and card. In a reputed shop or hotel, there is no problem in using a debit / credit card. But keep some cash ready with you to use in small shops and restaurants and in some places they don't accept cards. As already advised earlier do not keep a lot of cash in one pocket, keep it in different parts. Take out only as much as you need. While handing over your card to the person in-charge, just ensure that it is being used in your presence. If he/she takes it away from you, just follow and make sure that it is swapped in front of you and take it back once the transaction is over.
