From Brussels to Bruges: Lincoln's trip to Belgium
Belgium was on Lincoln's must-visit list for a while. On his trip to Europe, he made sure a stop in the cities of Bruges and Ghent were included on the itinerary. He visited the battlefields of Flanders in the city of Ypres first. And it wasn't hard, Belgium is sandwiched between France and the Netherlands and only a couple of hours on a train from either Paris or Amsterdam.
What cards did you take with you?
- Citibank Plus Transaction Account (Visa Debit Card)
- Coles Rewards Mastercard
Why did you take these cards?
He took his Citibank Card because it doesn't charge any international transaction fees. He uses this card in Australia, it was a bonus that it also happened to be his product of choice for a European vacation. The Citibank Plus Visa Debit Card let Lincoln make free ATM withdrawals and purchases (including contactless payments). The Coles Rewards Mastercard gave Lincoln the worldwide acceptance of a Mastercard product as well as the ability to earn flybuys rewards points all without paying the additional currency conversion fee when he made purchases in euros.
Where can you use your cards?
Lincoln did some day to day shopping at Carrefour hypermarkets (big supermarkets) and Carrefour Express (smaller stores). Carrefour have contactless terminals at the checkout so Lincoln says he had no issues using his Citibank card to pay for food, toiletries, alcohol and more, he says there was no minimum transaction limit either. He also says he used his Citibank Plus Card at every ATM he tried. The only time he was required to pay cash was when he picked up a snack from a man selling hot dogs on the street.
Did you make ATM withdrawals?
While Lincoln says was able to use his debit card freely to make purchases at shops, he still wanted to have cash in his pocket at all times. He says every ATM he saw supported Cirrus (Mastercard) and PLUS (Visa). Lincoln didn't pay anything to make ATM withdrawals in Belgium. Belgium bank ATMs do not charge a local ATM operator fee. He says he thinks it was actually a little cheaper than using his card back home.
Do you have recommendations for the best travel money for Belgium?
He says it's that easy to pay with card in Belgium (and Western Europe too), his main concern with avoiding the currency conversion fee when he used his card to pay 'over the counter'. He recommends all travellers to Europe do the same. He knew from a previous trip that there was no charge to use ATMs, so he says it's important to find a product that waived the international ATM fee as well. The Citibank Plus ticked all these boxes.
What are your travel money tips?
- Get the metro pass. He says you can save quite a bit of money if you buy the metro pass rather than individual tickets. Get a MOBIB Basic Card, which can be bought pretty easily. 10 trips on the MOBIB cards costs about €10 whereas buying 10 individual tickets will cost you about double this.
- Tipping isn't expected. Lincoln says tips are included in the bill when you pay, and only leave a tip if you believe the service went above and beyond.
- Don't drink too much beer. Lincoln says this is common sense but it's worth saying anyway: too much beer will blow your budget quicker than you can say, 'Une autre pinte, s'il vous plaît' (another pint, please). Belgium has more breweries per capita than anywhere else on Earth.
Finally, some good news! Domestic travel is picking up, so some insurers have started offering cover again 🦘 
