[adimicra]

Originally Posted by sairamboko

Hi All - need a suggestion - I have an international trip coming up. Should I buy USD currency notes or use the credit or debit card and withdraw the local currency - Jordian Dinar from ATMs there. I have HDFC Regalia Credit card and a normal Debit card. If not cards, then is bookmyforex.com a reliable option?

Avoid withdrawing money as much as possible when abroad because of the additional charges. Credit cards are better option. For me, it worked out cheaper to carry USD currency from India which you can get at any bank, but there is a limit to how much we can carry safely.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by sairamboko

Hi All - need a suggestion - I have an international trip coming up. Should I buy USD currency notes or use the credit or debit card and withdraw the local currency - Jordian Dinar from ATMs there. I have HDFC Regalia Credit card and a normal Debit card. If not cards, then is bookmyforex.com a reliable option?

Card withdrawals will incur two sets of charges
- Dinar to USD
- USD to Rupees

You will get much better rates in Jordan if you carry USD, preferably $100/ denomination, as they get the best rates.

[sairamboko]

Originally Posted by adimicra

Avoid withdrawing money as much as possible when abroad because of the additional charges. Credit cards are better option. For me, it worked out cheaper to carry USD currency from India which you can get at any bank, but there is a limit to how much we can carry safely.

Thanks a lot Adimicra for your suggestions!!Will carry USD cash then.

Originally Posted by Aroy

Card withdrawals will incur two sets of charges
- Dinar to USD
- USD to Rupees

You will get much better rates in Jordan if you carry USD, preferably $100/ denomination, as they get the best rates.

Thanks a lot Aroy!! Will get USD then. Is bookmyforex.com a reliable option?

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by sairamboko

.......

Thanks a lot Aroy!! Will get USD then. Is bookmyforex.com a reliable option?

I have never used them, always depend on local currency traders.

Many agencies charge exorbitant spread of Rs.2/ or more per dollar, so be careful. When ever you buy currency, check the rate on XE.COM the going rate should be Rs.0.50 to Rs.1.00 per dollar more. In case they charge more than Rs.1.00 search for better trader.

[ramki067]

Hey bhpians,
Looking for a credit card which provides cash back which can be redeemable. Presently having salaried account with HDFC. Any FREE/without-any-charge available with HDFC or any which are value-added-and-feature-rich ? Mainly want to use the credit card for shopping purposes be it daily groceries or for mall shopping (online and offline). Monthly spend from Rs.5k to 10K at the least.
Please suggest me with options as i have never used credit cards in my life!

Thanks very much in advance.

Ramki

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by ramki067

Hey bhpians,
Looking for a credit card which provides cash back which can be redeemable. Presently having salaried account with HDFC. Any FREE/without-any-charge available with HDFC or any which are value-added-and-feature-rich ? Mainly want to use the credit card for shopping purposes be it daily groceries or for mall shopping (online and offline). Monthly spend from Rs.5k to 10K at the least.
Please suggest me with options as i have never used credit cards in my life!

Thanks very much in advance.

Ramki

You could go for HDFC Bank Money Back Card / Citibank Rewards Card. These are lifetime free cards.

You earn points for all expenditure, these points can later be adjusted against your outstanding amount (in a 4:1 ratio).

Rohan

[drive2eternity]

Originally Posted by ramki067

Hey bhpians,
Please suggest me with options as i have never used credit cards in my life!

Thanks very much in advance.

Ramki

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

You could go for HDFC Bank Money Back Card / Citibank Rewards Card. These are lifetime free cards.

You earn points for all expenditure, these points can later be adjusted against your outstanding amount (in a 4:1 ratio).

Rohan

As mentioned by Rohan, both the cards suit you. However, I'd give preference to Citibank as they have much better and relevant options for redeeming the earned points compared to the archaic ones at HDFC. Example- points accumulated on HDFC cannot be redeemed for Amazon vouchers (my most preferred redemption) !

[ramki067]

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

You could go for HDFC Bank Money Back Card / Citibank Rewards Card. These are lifetime free cards.

You earn points for all expenditure, these points can later be adjusted against your outstanding amount (in a 4:1 ratio).

Rohan

Originally Posted by drive2eternity

As mentioned by Rohan, both the cards suit you. However, I'd give preference to Citibank as they have much better and relevant options for redeeming the earned points compared to the archaic ones at HDFC. Example- points accumulated on HDFC cannot be redeemed for Amazon vouchers (my most preferred redemption) !

Thanks very much guys.
Have applied for Citi Rewards Credit card.

Ramki

[saisree]

I own two credit cards one from Citi and the other from ICICI. Both of them are atleast eleven years old. Citi card is the India Oil Titanium Card. For every 150 Rs/- of fuel I get 4 points which is equal to 4 Rs/- fuel and for other purchases I guess I get two points for every 150/-. The best thing in this card is that, you can redeem the points only by purchasing fuel. I had redeemed these points for some ~500 ltrs of Diesel till now and will continue to get some free fuel.

As far as the ICICI Platinum HP partner Card, it just has the surcharge waiver on fuel purchase in HP outlets. The only benefit I get is the timing of the bill generation. Bill is generated on 25th of every month. So, if I use the card on 26th August, the bill will be generated on 25th September and I have to pay it by 12 October. It gives me lot of time for the payback, if the purchase is big and is at the fag end of the month. This card is strictly for Salaried people running on budgets.

[sukhoi]

Hello,

I do not hold any credit cards at the moment however having read (and seen) videos about reward points am contemplating getting one.

I do not travel frequently (though have an international work trip coming up) and hence am not too keen on paid cards at the moment. If however the seasoned users feel that a paid card has value then am happy to consider that as well.

For now, I have shortlisted two card options. AmEx Membership Rewards card which is LTF (conditionally upon spending 1.5 lakh in previous year, first year is fee is waived off). They seem to have a good set of options to redeem points for statement credit, online shopping vouchers, bookmyshow and of course airline partners should the need arise. The other one is HDFC Regalia (am getting Regalia First as LTF through net banking, non salary savings account) but am checking if they could give Regalia itself as LTF.

My queries:
1) What all can Regalia reward points be redeemed towards?
2) Any other card which could be considered
3) The articles mentioned about huge sign up bonuses like 60K points / miles etc. but I did not see any such credit cards in India. Am curious whether such options exist in India as well.

Thanks,
S

[tejas08]

Originally Posted by sukhoi

Hello,

I do not hold any credit cards at the moment however having read (and seen) videos about reward points am contemplating getting one.

I do not travel frequently (though have an international work trip coming up) and hence am not too keen on paid cards at the moment. If however the seasoned users feel that a paid card has value then am happy to consider that as well.

For now, I have shortlisted two card options. AmEx Membership Rewards card which is LTF (conditionally upon spending 1.5 lakh in previous year, first year is fee is waived off). They seem to have a good set of options to redeem points for statement credit, online shopping vouchers, bookmyshow and of course airline partners should the need arise. The other one is HDFC Regalia (am getting Regalia First as LTF through net banking, non salary savings account) but am checking if they could give Regalia itself as LTF.

My queries:
1) What all can Regalia reward points be redeemed towards?
2) Any other card which could be considered
3) The articles mentioned about huge sign up bonuses like 60K points / miles etc. but I did not see any such credit cards in India. Am curious whether such options exist in India as well.

Thanks,
S

The combination of the two cards (Amex MRCC & HDFC Regalia) you have mentioned is very good to start with. There are many other extreme rewarding cards, however, these are generally with a fee and also need a good history of Credit Card usage before you can get your hands on it.

For Example: After about 8 years of extensive Credit Card Usage, I have landed on the Top Retail Credit Cards of 4 Banks and a couple of other mid-range CCs.

Put your foot down at HDFC and tell them you need a Regalia only. Not a Regalia First. Regalia is also being given as LTF for anybody who holds any kind of account in HDFC.

Regalia Reward Points can be used for many reward redemption. The highest value against Reward Points is received through Flight and / or Hotel Bookings via the Regalia portal. HDFC Smartbuy portal offers 10X reward points over various platforms. Check that out. 10X offer essentially gets you a reward rate of 13.3% on a Regalia.

For Amex MRCC, I suggest you get somebody owning an Amex already to send you a referral link. This will help both referrer and the referee to earn bonus reward points. If you don't find anyone to provide you a referral link, let me know. I can send you one. I have Amex MRCC as LTF. I had the Regalia too which later I got upgraded to Diner's Club Black.

Credit Card Rewards minting are as much of a passion to me as Automobiles.

With the right set of Credit Cards, you can earn rewards like crazy.

[sukhoi]

Originally Posted by tejas08

The combination of the two cards (Amex MRCC & HDFC Regalia) you have mentioned is very good to start with.

Thanks for reverting back Tejas08. I was also keen on Regalia over Regalia First (RF). I called up the representative who had made an offer for LTF cards being available and checked if I could get Regalia instead of RF. She said that it should be possible however once she connected me to the card representative to help me through the online application, we could not get a Regalia (showed RF only). The gentlemen tried his best to sell RF saying that it has same benefits as Regalia (4 reward points per 150) and after I use it for a few months, bank would automatically upgrade me to Regalia as well. I politely but firmly informed him that I am not keen on RF and would want a Regalia only. Checked with local branch and they confirmed that I should be able to get Regalia. Visited them yesterday and gave my salary slips along with filled form. got a confirmation call today afternoon and some TWV SMS which I sent to mentioned number. I am hopeful to get the card by early next week unless there are some delays due to CIBIL check since this is my first card (second technically since I have got the Amazon Pay ICICI Bank card as well approved over the week, was done instantly).

Originally Posted by tejas08

For Amex MRCC, I suggest you get somebody owning an Amex already to send you a referral link. This will help both referrer and the referee to earn bonus reward points. If you don't find anyone to provide you a referral link, let me know. I can send you one. I have Amex MRCC as LTF. I had the Regalia too which later I got upgraded to Diner's Club Black.

I did that only, went via a referral link of a colleague. The eligibility conditions mentioned that I need to hold another card from another bank as well, so based on that coupled with high markup fees (3.5%), decided to get this one later on.

Originally Posted by tejas08

Credit Card Rewards minting are as much of a passion to me as Automobiles.
With the right set of Credit Cards, you can earn rewards like crazy.

I would love to hear more about this. Sounds like an exciting prospect, making the most of credit cards, however can be risky too if one is not disciplined and careful. Please share more if you can.

On a related note, while I was in the branch at HDFC I asked them about the various tiers of banking they offer and eligibility criteria. They mentioned that highest is Imperial banking and with that they offer Insignia credit card (which I understand is the best that the bank has to offer), for free as one of the perks. I am eligible for Imperial banking should I switch from current bank to HDFC Bank. My question is, what do you guys think is the best bank which offers best credit card products, maybe initiating a relationship with that bank would be beneficial over HDFC Bank Imperial. I understand that this is more of a question for the bank account thread but am asking more from a credit card offering perspective. Mods, trust it is ok to keep this question here. If not, please delete this paragraph.

Thanks,
S

[bluevolt]

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

You could go for HDFC Bank Money Back Card / Citibank Rewards Card. These are lifetime free cards.

Rohan

I checked on the respective websites and found both of these cards have annual fees of Rs. 500 + taxes.

Not sure if there is any other scheme under which they are coming as lifetime free?

[ani_meher]

Amex MRCC has great rewards. Just by transacting rs.1000 4 times a month is enough to accumulate points. Their 18k/24k rewards of amazon vouchers or cashback in account is simply amazing.

In HDFC cards, you can use the accumulated points to generate e-vouchers on the go. So if you want to buy something from Croma, you can generate the required amount of vouchers at the store. But I feel the payout of HDFC card is very low. I have earned more in Amex card in a far shorter period than more than a decade with HDFC.

Originally Posted by saisree

The only benefit I get is the timing of the bill generation. Bill is generated on 25th of every month. So, if I use the card on 26th August, the bill will be generated on 25th September and I have to pay it by 12 October.

Other cards have cutoff date as 9/10 every month. So in those cards, if you buy something on 11th September, then you need to pay it back only 30th October. This 50 day credit cycle is present in all credit cards, just that this particular card has it on 25th.

[beejay]

A friend had obtained a loan against a Citi Bank credit card. He wants to pre-close it. Citi Bank had mentioned that there is
1. A preclosure charge
2. And the full amount needs to be paid.

Sorry for the noob query. Do you think CITI would reduce the amount to be paid?