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Travel is back with a vengeance in these post-COVID times \u2013 I\u2019m writing this from London.<\/p>\n
Our original plan for the trip started with a Qantas return flight from Brisbane to Los Angeles to visit the grandkids, but the travel agent pointed out it would be no dearer to continue to London from Los Angeles and then fly home with Emirates. Too good to resist!<\/p>\n
There were some challenges, though. The first was travel insurance \u2013 once you turn 80, the options shrink. But I duly did my research and opted for Medibank. The process involved a simple phone call and I surprisingly did not get the usual message about \u201creceiving an unusually high volume of calls\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Though a decent cup of coffee overseas can still be exorbitant, at least it\u2019s not a headache to pay for.<\/span>Credit: <\/span> <\/cite><\/p>\n I chose the basic policy because my main requirement was cover for unlimited medical expenses if a major health incident occurred. The cost was $933. It was interesting that once you get to 80 you cannot buy 12 months\u2019 cover, you have to pay a premium for each trip.<\/p>\n The next challenge is always travel finance. Experience has taught me to carry more than one card in case one gets stolen or stopped, which happened to us on our last trip to the US. I opted for a combination of the Latitude credit card and the ING Orange Everyday Visa debit card, plus an American Express card for backup. The debit card is useful if you need to go to an ATM for cash, but I haven\u2019t needed to use cash in the past five years \u2013 everything now is touch and swipe.<\/p>\n It\u2019s recommended you advise the credit card issuer if you\u2019re travelling overseas. This was easy with ING: its app has a button that lets you advise your dates of travel and your destination. But it was a chore with Latitude because its website says to use their app, but there\u2019s no place on their app to do it.<\/p>\n I contacted Latitude via social media and was told you must no longer say you\u2019re going overseas: Latitude will know the moment you start making overseas transactions and will get in touch if it seems suspicious.<\/p>\n I like both these cards because there is no annual fee and their exchange rates are the best in the business (at least, so they claim \u2013 it\u2019s a complex thing to verify). The debit card is good because you can\u2019t overspend, and the credit card is also useful because you\u2019ve got the extra money via your credit card limit if you get an unexpected expense.<\/p>\n When we arrived in Los Angeles, both cards immediately worked easily. Each has a great app that shows transactions in real time, so you can cry in horror when you see that the cup of coffee you just enjoyed cost $12 Australian including tax, tips and conversion.<\/p>\n When we arrived in London, I put the two cards to the ultimate test. The moment we checked in at the hotel, I took out the Latitude card and the ING card and asked the hotel to charge the same amount to each card. Both transactions were instantaneous \u2013 there was no PIN nor signature needed and within a minute I could see the Australian equivalent of both transactions on my phone. The difference was minuscule.<\/p>\n In fact, both cards passed all my tests with flying colours. The ING card has a slight advantage as a deposit to it from your bank account normally shows within five minutes; Latitude seems to take 24 hours.<\/p>\n The main reason I take the Amex card is the requirement from most hotels to leave a card with them when you check in, to cover possible expenses. The hotel then adds a notional sum for contingencies.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been caught before with this: it may be blocked for days, and if your card has a small limit it can leave you short. My American Express card\u2019s sole purpose is to act as a guarantee for check-in. This leaves me free to use the other cards without fear of them being blocked.<\/p>\n Travel is so much easier now thanks to e-passports. It took less than 15 minutes at Los Angeles Airport to get from touchdown to the baggage carousel, and it was just as quick at Heathrow. Those long queues at passport control appear to be a thing of the past. Let\u2019s hope so.<\/p>\n Noel Whittaker is the author of Retirement Made Simple<\/em> and other books on personal finance. Email: noel@noelwhittaker.com.au<\/strong><\/p>\n