SANParks.org Forums

Hi all,
I have read that there is a ATM at Skukuza
Another one at Letaba?
And in some shops u can withdraw cash

What is true and how reliable are they
I use a foreight card Cirrus
I dont want to do everything with the creditcard
(Fuel is still cash for eg.)

Bert

Draw enough cash, spend some but keep some as emergancy (maybe like R1500 just in case). Bang the rest on your plastic. Visa and Mastercards accepted.

regards
bwana

We had no problem with the ATM's in the park in October. Remember, most of them work on telephone lines, so if the line is down, so will be the ATM.

We only ever use a credit card in the Park and have never found the need to carry much cash. We use a garage card for petrol. Can't you sort out a garage card for yourself Bert or is it not possible as a foreign tourist?

You cannot pay for petrol on a credit card. A garage card is what some people use which credits your bank account and is only used for petrol, oil etc.

It is linked to your credit card but functions as a card on it's own.
It can only be used for fuel, oil etc. and in some cases even services to your vehicle.
You can pay with debit card (as good as cash) at several places in the Park.

Never had any problems with an ATM in Kruger.
But as we normally spend a few days in the park before getting to any of the camps with ATMs we withdraw enough cash before hand.
As Bwana said, use larger bills.
You will however not get anything bigger than R100 bill from an ATM.

Standard Bank cards that can be used abroad

You can use any of our payment cards while travelling abroad.

Our MasterCard credit and cheque cards are accepted at MasterCard merchants worldwide. They can also be used to draw cash from Cirrus and Visa ATMs worldwide, in the currency of the country you are visiting. Sometimes there is a delay in the processing of purchases made with these cards so the exchange rate that applies to the transaction may be affected by exchange rate fluctuations.

All AutoBank cards can be used as a Maestro debit card at any Maestro merchant overseas. Note that although Maestro is extensively represented in Europe, there aren't many Maestro merchants in the United States. These cards can also be used to draw cash from Cirrus ATMs, which you will find worldwide.

Taken from the Standard Bank website - I am sure this must apply across the big banks and different countries? Best to check with your own bank first.

I have a visa card and pay everything I can with it, in fact, everything exept petrol.
You can't get cash from all ATMs in Kruger with your foreigner card.
The one at Lower Sabie, for example only accepts SA credit cards. We never had problems with the ones in Skukuza and Letaba.
As others said, split your cash in 3 or 4 different places, this is what we did in december and all went fine.

Only ever use the ATMs in an emergency due to the charges, I work out roughly how much is needed for petrol, tolls, tips and occasional odds & ends and get the rand in the UK, many outlets now exchange currency with out charging. Use credit cards for everything else. And like Bert have some spare rand at home ready for the next trip

The Garage Card in South Africa is a local product only to be used in South Africa.
This is solely to be used as a payment instrument at Garage Fore Courts (fuel and oil top ups).
This plastic card does not display a franchise logo (i.e. VISA, MasterCard,etc) on the card itself as it cannot be used to do other purchase, Cash Withdrawals, etc at shops that display the VISA, MasterCard logos or at any ATM.
However it must display the words Garage Card prominently on the face of the plastic to enable the fuel pump attendant to easily identify the card as legal tender for payment of fuel and oil purchased..
Purchases done with Garage Cards are processed as if they are cash withdrawals by the Bank that issues them and the transaction invokes interest on the day that the transaction hits your account.
This can further be extended to the transaction date that the transaction was done at the Garage dealer. This very much depends on how flexible the card processing system of the applicable card processing bank is.
The Garage Card can either be linked to your Credit Card account or your Cheque or Savings account for client statementing purposes.
This functionality can differ from processing Bank to Processing Bank.
It is a very convenient payment mechanism and you do not have to carry large amounts of cash with you.
South African Banks are only recently making use of a functionality known as a "Gift Voucher" by issuing a VISA or MasterCard credit card with a funded limit on it that can be used by the beneficiary to buy a present for himself at any dealer or merchant of his choice up to the available mount on the Gift Card.
Would it not be nice to extend this "funded" card to be used by travellers or foreigners visiting our country in stead of using travellers cheques as the only way to get around during your vacation?
Something to look forward to!

Tip - always carry enough cash to cover the cost of petrol!

Last week we filled up at Olifants and wished to pay with our Petrol Card, but as there was no signal at the time at Olifants the attendant was unable to process our payment with the card and we had to pay with cash. Fortunately I had enough with me as the ATM was also not working at the time.

Garage or Petrol cards were introduced in South Africa in the late sixties early seventies together with the first credit cards because of a dispute between the Motor Industry of SA and the Banks not to sell fuel "on the book" as a debt to be settled within 55 days as is the current process with a normal Credit Card.
Transactions done with Garage or Petrol cards are handled differently than normal Credit Card transactions. The Garage or Petrol Card Holder's account is debited immediately with Interest on the day the transaction hits the account.
There was also the problem with illiteracy of the Petrol Pump attendants accepting any type of plastic Card for Petrol if the Plastic is not distinctly marked a Garage or Petrol card.
However the good news is that the Banks are starting to move in the direction to do away with Garage or Petrol cards and to use Credit Cards only for the purchase of petrol.
This will still take a fair bit of time to be implemented.
If you want to fill up your vehicle and you are not a South African Citizen with a Garage or Petrol card you will unfortunately have to pay in hard SA Rand for your Petrol transaction.

Punda Maria has a mini ATM but you must check with the cashier how much you can withdraw before you use it.
He/She checks how much he has in the till and then exchanges it for your slip
Most of the other camps have a mini ATM but always check with the cashier first.
Skukuza and Letaba have ATM's but we have found that Letaba's is not very reliable

Another option, which I have used in times of trouble, is to pay in your local currency, e.g. Euro or Dollar. Buy something not too expensive, and pay with a large bill. The change is your buffer for at least a day or so (or half a tank of petrol).

As far as I know, the shops in all the main (Kruger) camps allow this; the currency conversion is even printed out on your receipt!