 TITLE: Do You Need A Credit Card To Travel? CONTENT: Benefits of Traveling With a Credit Card\n----------------------------------------\nJust like carrying a card at home has its benefits, there are several reasons you may be happier carrying one while traveling.\n*   **Safety**: Carrying and using a credit card is a lot easier and safer than using cash, whether you are venturing abroad or traveling domestically. If your cash is lost or stolen, you can't do much beyond reporting it to the authorities. On the other hand, if your credit card is lost or stolen, you can quickly put a hold on your account and get a new card without having to worry about being held responsible for fraudulent charges. As a side note, this is also why it is often smarter to use a credit card than a debit card since credit card issuers can freeze certain charges. If someone uses your debit card to make a purchase, those funds come right from your bank account and you might have a much harder time getting your money back.\n*   **Ease of use**: While you might not have much trouble using cash while traveling domestically, you could have a harder time trying to use cash while making purchases abroad. Generally, you will have to exchange your cash for the local currency—potentially at an unfavorable rate and with fees attached. By contrast, many major credit cards are accepted very widely around the globe, so you don't have to worry about ducking into banks every now and then to exchange paper money.\n*   **Better exchange rate**: Speaking of exchanges, part of what makes credit cards beneficial to use when traveling internationally is that many offer better rates of exchange on purchases made in other currencies than you would get if you simply changed your cash at a bank or bureau. This is not always the case, but it's generally true if you are using a card in one of the major networks, such as Visa or Mastercard. Not only that, but some credit cards waive foreign transaction fees. These pesky surcharges usually run between 1% to 3% of your purchase total, which can add up to quite a bit of money depending on how much you are spending. Many of the best rewards credit cards, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card don't charge these fees, making them excellent choices for international trips in particular.\n*   **Purchase and trip protections**: Among their lesser-known benefits, some credit cards extend both purchase protections and certain types of travel insurance when you use them to book your trip. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card covers eligible new purchases made with your card for 120 days against damage or theft up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account. So if you buy a great souvenir that is then damaged or stolen and is eligible for a claim, you may be able to get your money back. The card also offers a variety of travel protections, including insurance for when your baggage is delayed by over six hours of up to $100 per day for five days to buy replacement essential items like toiletries or clothing; and trip interruption and cancellation coverage of up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses if your trip is cancelled or cut short due to covered situations. If you just used cash to pay for a trip, you wouldn't be able to take advantage of these potentially money-saving perks. END