I want to take a trip to Europe, but don't have the money. . .?

Question

I had a friend who got a credit card especially for this kind of trip, how would I go about getting a credit card with a balance of at least $2,000? My credit is good, but whenever I get 'preapproved' for a credit card, it's always for a thousand dollar limit or less.

Answer 1

If you can't afford it don't go. If you do not pay your bills in full, you are paying way more for that trip then what the price is figuring in interest.

Answer 2

I can't be happy to see Europe using a credit card to pay for the trip. Remember you still have to pay it back after coming back from Europe and that is where the pain starts. Paying back credit card loan is not easy,unless you've got enough income to pay off your debt, otherwise your interest will just be piling up high if you intend to pay the minimal. One day you it will just realize that it's just impossible to pay back. Is this trip very important for you? Is it possible that you can postpone till you can really afford using your own money? If it's just for the fun of it, better abort the idea. Try to find some work and save your money for the trip. It might take sometime but one day you will fell happy touring Europe without having to worry about money or debts. Go some place that you can afford for now.

Answer 3

If your credit was actually good you wouldn't be getting approved for only 1k limits. That should tell you something!

Do yourself a huge favor and don't go at this time. Budget and save the money so you don't have to borrow to go on a vacation.

This is quite possibly the worst financial decision a young person can make. If you are any older, you really really really need to learn to save before spending.

I also think you underestimate the cost of traveling through Europe. After you pay for your flight, you are only going to get 0.70 cents (US) on the dollar for spending power in Europe. Then you have VAT taxes etc. Depending on where you are going, this trip could easily be several thousand dollars. Take it from someone who goes there every year on business>

Note: It is the "I want it now" mentality that puts millions of Americans deeper into debt every year. Don't become a statistic!

Answer 4

I assume you're young, which is a great time to go to Europe. But please consider going the cheap route instead of just putting the expense on a credit card. If you can't save up at least $2,000, then you can't afford to go - that's just $200/week for 10 weeks. Putting it on a credit card means that you'll be paying a lot more than $2,000 after you've paid all those interest charges.

That being said, I do highly recommend you save up and go for it. Do some research - check out STA Travel online. Even if you're not currently a student, all you need to do is to sign up at a local community college for one class, and then you'll have "student" status. You can fly roundtrip (on British Airways, if you book within the next 3 days) to London for $139 from New York, for $193 from Los Angeles. Also check out Youth Hostels - they're a lot cheaper than hotels (from $5/night!) and they're a lot more fun because you'll meet lots of other travelers from all over the world. If you're going for an extended period of time, check out getting a Student Eurail Pass - you'll be able to take trains everywhere. Buy a Let's Go and/or Lonely Planet travel book - it'll give you lots of tips on places to go that are fun and cheap.

I travelled through Europe when I was young - I did it cheap, I had a lot of fun, and I never regretted it. But I saved ahead of time and finished my trip without being in debt. If you can do the same, you'll never have any regrets. Good luck!

Answer 5

You can't afford this trip, bottom line. $2,000 would make a good buffer for extra expenses such as souveniers or emergencies. (Lost your passport, luggage breaks, missed your train and need new tickets...)

If you did manage to scrape up just enough to make it, and if you managed to make credit card payments while in Europe so you don't screw up your credit with missed payments, you'd have a horrible time. Nothing sucks worse than being in a great new city and not being able to buy a postcard or sandwich because of your budget.

Save the money, get the $1,000 card for emergencies, and have a nice trip, but later.

The site below gives a pretty good breakdown of the costs involved.

Answer 6

the answer is ordinary. maximum international places in Europe have the Euro as their forex. i anticipate that you come back from the States. that signifies that your dollar is wisely truthfully worth the very similar in each and each of the international places which have the Euro as their forex. So it would not count number number in which u . s . you change your dollar. There are international places in Europe which don't have the Euro. maximum extraordinarily, England. See for map on the wikipedia web page.

Answer 7

Save your money.
$167 per month will get you there in a year.
If you have friends in europe you can stay with you should be able to go with even less. Depending on how much you want to party.

Save it up, you'll be happier knowing you don't owe the trip to anyone but yourself!

Answer 8

Why yes, I've been wanting a Ferrari so bad I can taste it, I look at one online often and I know all the specs and everything...
Unfortunately it boils down to either I can afford it, or I can not.
sux lol but I'll manage somehow, sigh.

Answer 9

save your money then go,,
if you had really good credit, your limit would be way more...

maybe Mr. Wonderful will be visiting U.S from Europe and find you, take you back with him??

Answer 10

It is always better to wait for a better time !!!!