Mastercard or Visa / travelling in Latin America?

Question

Hi guys,

Happy Holidays and Happy New year. I currently have a Washington Mutual/ Mastercard debit card. Has anyone used a mastercard in mexico and central america? Have you had any problems? I've heard of people switching banks so that they can get a Visa because it is mostly accepted in central America.

Is this really neccessary? it's too much of a hassle seeing that I'll be leaving the 22nd of Jan.

Any suggestions?

Answer 1

i have used both in central and south america,and both work fine,one tip though when going off the beaten path,ie a small town or village get cash b4 you go as not everywhere has atm machines and most smaller places do not accept cards of any type.have fun and happy new year.

Answer 2

It should work at any merchant that take the MasterCard credit card. I would also call Wamu and tell them that you will be traveling to Mexico and central America.  This way Wamu's fraud department will know to expect unusual transactions.

It should work at Atms that take Cirrus or Mastercard.

If your card also has a Maestro symbol it will work at some merchants by entering a pin.

Answer 3

Visa does seem to be a better card. But you will be all right. If you have "plus, cirrus, star" connection with your card you will be ok. They will work in the ATM's. I have a atm card with neither visa or mastercard and it works .

   If you want to be safe you can buy prepaid visa cards that work in Atms before you leave. This is better than travelers checks

http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/prepa...

Answer 4

I have used both in Mexico, South America and Europe and have never had any problems. The only things you want to keep in mind is some companies charge you a fee when they convert the local currency into US dollars.  You will get the best conversion rate from you credit cards.  You can also use them at the ATM's for cash as long as you have your pin number.

Answer 5

I don't think it matters at all.  I live in Mex and use both my Mastercard and Visa all the time.  It is nice to have the debit portion as well since you can pull cash out of an ATM and use that as needed as well.  Beware that Washington Mutual has a $8 international ATM surcharge.  It gets me every time.  Happy travels!!!

Answer 6

well when i went to venezeula last summer i had a debt mastercard and the atms didnt recognize it nor did any shops so if ur going there cause they are a little behind, it's best to take a normal credit card, master card or visa is fine, doesnt matter.  and a small peice of advice, latin america is full of crime, it's insane. be careful wherever you go, take amazingly good care of you important documents and try not to look "lost" ok. good luck, it's well worth visiting. soo beautiful.