travellers' checks

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

So I'm pretty sure I already know the answer to this, but I'd rather not assume anything and I'm having a hard time discerning from elsewhere....

Do the vendors who don't accept credit cards accept travellers' checks?
I'm weary of carrying around a lot of cash. (I don't have the best of luck with wallets, historically speaking.) And I don't want to be assed out if a wad of money goes missing early on.

I am aware that, technically speaking, anyone who accepts cash *should* accept the travellers' checks, but I am also aware that some corners of the world tend to be something special.

thanks.

Comments

[altxchange.livejournal.com]

Speaking as a vendor, one, as you said, *should* take a traveler's check as it is considered cash. Of course, a small word on courtesy, please don't ask to redeem a $100 check for a $1.00 sale. If a vendor is not willing to except it, there are 100s of others that will so definitely shop around. If you can't buy it there, many vendors have online stores or you may be able to arrange a private sale after the con if the item is still available or if they have several.

[altxchange.livejournal.com]

Oops, forgot to add to please have your ID with you if you are planning on trying to use either credit cards or money orders :)

[noelleleithe.livejournal.com]

I'd avoid using traveler's checks with small vendors. Use them for restaurants/the hotel gift shop/etc., and then use the cash you get in change to pay the small vendors. :)

There are also multiple ATMs in the area, so you may be able to pull out cash as you need it. Depending on your bank, you might even be able to do that for free.

[alexdelarge78.livejournal.com]

I try to advise using the atms sparingly. I know it's all subjective, but that fee can add up :)

[alaskan-blue.livejournal.com]

No kidding! I withdrew a mere $50 for an emergency purchase and between that ATM fee and the one my bank charged in addition I paid an extra ten dollars. Thank goodness I only had to do so once.

[mirana.livejournal.com]

ATMs also run out of cash--especially on long holiday weekends. If you don't do it early on, you might have to go far afield to find any.

[noelleleithe.livejournal.com]

The ATMs do start to run out near the end of the weekend, but it's unusual for all of the ones in the immediate area to run out. Even if the hotels and food court ones go dry, there are multiple other options along the streets around the hotels. You do have to plan carefully, like doing most of your buying earlier in the weekend. :)

[memysza.livejournal.com]

Yes. My actual bank has a branch right across from the host hotels, though I've never actually used it.

[rozhena-ashford.livejournal.com]

Mine has an ATM right in the food court.

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

this had been my understanding.
i dont really want to have to worry about a wad of cash, especially since im not sure if there is a safe in the hotel room.

[mirana.livejournal.com]

Hmm, most hotels in the metro area (especially the con ones) will at least have a hotel safe. If you're paying $100+ a night, then in-room are usually standard (working with dealers means you learn where the safes are... ;). Give them a call and find out if you decide to go the cash route.

Otherwise, I tend to give housekeeping a break, and myself piece of mind, and have them NOT clean my room all week. No way it's gonna get that dirty in four days anyway. ;)

[ladytalker13.livejournal.com]

We always just tell housekeeping to just do towels and trash... after all, most folks only wash bedding at home once a week anyway...

[mirana.livejournal.com]

Yah, though the reason I brought it up was for keeping strangers (who get paid crap--so the temptation is there) away from your belongings. ;)

Who needs new towels and trash bags every day anyway? Maybe trash if you have a lot of people in one room, but how hard is it to hang up your towel? ;)

[ladytalker13.livejournal.com]

I get the towel thing since that's what we do at home, but with 4 people in the room, it's hard to find spots to hang towels to dry and know whose is whose... especially since they are all white... LOL

[mirana.livejournal.com]

Heh, I just need to remember where I put mine and keep it there...but closets with pant hangers are good for drying and keeping track if the towel rack is too small/chaotic.

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

...yeah...

[alexdelarge78.livejournal.com]

I don't have an answer for you but I wanted to give you kudos for actually considering this. It's a bit more of a pain but it gives you so much more insurance where finances are concerned.

[morganskye.livejournal.com]

Ditto. D*C is a pickpocket's heaven. I try not to carry cash on me unless I'm heading straight for the dealer's room.

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

thanks :)

[ladytalker13.livejournal.com]

This will be our 11th year, and we've never felt we had to take any more precautions than we would ordinarily do with our valuables... after the 1st year when the ATM's ran dry and we had a freak-out over needing cash, we don't rely on them. I usually wear a waist pouch with my valuables in it... and I carry a tote bag always, and have never had anything come up missing, either out and about, or from our rooms...

[mirana.livejournal.com]

The larger businesses may take them. One of the dealers I worked for did, and another didn't. It's their call. Bring them if you like, but do keep a small amount of cash handy.

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

thanks for the experiential feedback.

[charismaryllis.livejournal.com]

Another possibility is to bring a wad of travelers checks and only cash out a hundred bucks or so a day (or even less) at the hotel cashier. (Might want to skip the banks--last time I tried it, the bank wanted my thumbprint. On a *travelers check.* *you* try explaining the difference between a bearer instrument and a deposit instrument to a bank teller and see how far you get... ;). I stuck with my hotel cashier after that. :)

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

ahhh, hadnt thought of the hotel cashier, thanks!

Do you know if/how much hotels usually charge to do that?

(and ewwwww @the bank. just wow!)

[charismaryllis.livejournal.com]

i've always done it at the hotel i'm staying at, where they already have my credit card info on file, and it's been no problem, and free. :)

(as for the brand of travelers checks, i think when i got some from AAA last time they were visa travelers checks. all travelers checks should be the same; it's just the credit/charge cards that are different. as noted above/below, american express charges an exorbitant interchange fee, hence a lot of businesses saying "pfui!" to amex and refusing the cards.)

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

ah, that makes a lot of sense. It's simply been quite awhile since I've done the traveller's check thing and I don't even remember if I've ever cashed them at the hotel.

I'm not sure whose credit card the hotel will end up being under, but it sounds like I should hopefully be ok, anyway.

Travelers Checks

[muerandah.livejournal.com]

they will cash them for you all weekend long

[missingvolume.livejournal.com]

I take traveler's checks at the show no problem. Also I have had customers get the visa gift cards and use them during the show. I would avoid the AmEx ones since not every vendor will take Amex.

[secretsatan13.livejournal.com]

just to be clear: your saying avoid the amex cards? but the amex cheques would be ok?

or just avoid amex altogether?

amex

[ladyaraden.livejournal.com]

Try to avoid Amex cards. All of the fees are killer, and not everywhere takes them. Amex travelers checks are awesome and highly recommended.

[mirana.livejournal.com]

Haha, I've never seen a traveler's check that WASN'T AMEX! ;)

[missingvolume.livejournal.com]

Just saying that not every vendor will take Amex so don't depend on it as your only charge card or tie all your funds into Amex gift cards. Amex has higher fees for merchants than Visa/Mastercard does so the smaller merchants may not take it. I vend and I only take Visa/Mastercard. The larger merchants will take Amex but not every merchant does. This doesn't apply to the Amex travelers checks.

[alaskan-blue.livejournal.com]

The AMEX gift cards are problematic for vendors not just because of higher fees but also, depending on the equipment they're using to run the cards, they sometimes won't go through. I had a card that had over $100 on it at a convention (not D*C) and it kept coming back declined even after I called the compan and they confirmed it had a positive balance. The vendor and the company even told me that some machines just don't work with those cards. Even the restaurant where I work can't run those cards because of our system.

[mirana.livejournal.com]

Oh man, I cringe at running the gift cards. It's like 50-50 on whether they'll work or not.

[missingvolume.livejournal.com]

Yea I've always have had a few that didn't go through and sure enough it would be a gift card.