Use of credit cards in Brazilian Saunas

[sydneyboy]

Has anyone had a bad experience in using their credit cards in Brazilian saunas.

[trilingual]

While I recall a few travelers posting about problems with credit cards in Brazil, I don't recall any posts specifically related to the saunas. I've personally used my cards at the saunas for years and never had a problem. You could try using the search function to find old posts about this issue. Of course, you still need cash at the saunas -- the bill only covers your admission, refreshments and cabine rentals. You have to pay the guys directly. And if you're at all worried about using your cards at the saunas, you can always pay your entire bill in cash.

[CT Dick]

I've used my credit card at saunas many times with no problems.

 

In fact, I actually got a laugh out of my experience. When you charge at Estação (station) the listing on the credit card statement is for car parts. :7

 

Dick

[sf traveler]

I did have a problem with unauthorized charges last July with both my credit card and my ATM, which I had used for payment at several places, including saunas. Of course, I have no way of knowing whether it was a sauna that passed my numbers on to the criminals, but I suspect it was since I can't imagine how both numbers could have been nabbed through any other means. Of course, this just tells you where I'm spending all my money!! I also had the opposite problem once at Lagoa where my card wouldn't go through and I had to take the metro home because I didn't have enough cash left for a cab. SF Traveler

[Funseeker 22]

I had a problem once at 117. My card wasn`t approved even though I had advised the bank that I would be in Rio so to expect charges for the dates I referenced.I had used the card before at other saunas without any problem. 117 finally called the main bank # and got

approval. Good job too since I had spent all my cash except cab fare.

[jivau3930]

IMHO, the only way to go is by credit card and atm card. I have never had a problem with either and I've been going to Brazil for four years. Credit card/atm are excellent ways to keep track of expenditures. Just be sure you phone the credit card company before you leave and let them know the card will be used in Brazil or charges may not be approved.

[floridarob]

SF Traveller....hmmmm....not enough money and had to take the metro....I think I have been in that situation a few times...no?

[williewanker2]

Frankly, I am a little surprised that visitors to the saunas want to pay with credit cards. At home, I use my credit card all the time, but I am reluctant to do so in Rio. You still have to pay the boys in cash. Checking out with a credit card is time consuming since the saunas don't have fast lines to verify the card. The risk of someone misusing your credit card number is higher in Brazil. You run the risk of having a hold placed on the card because of a fradulent charge. You then can't use the card when you really need it, for example, checking out of your hotel two hours before your plane is scheduled to leave. I only use my card for big purchases such as a hotel and instead use my ATM card to get cash from the ATM machines. Unless you are a really big spender at the saunas, a $100 in Brazilian Reals is more than enough to get you through the night. In case of a mugging, I would rather have the $100 stolen than my credit card which I will need to pay the hotel.

[trilingual]

Chacun à son gôut! I'd rather use my card, and as I've said before, I've never had a fraud problem using my card anywhere in Brazil in the last 23 years.

 

On occasion my card HAS been blocked by the over-vigilant credit card companies. In the FAQ section you'll find information about what to do. Both Visa and MasterCard have toll-free 800 numbers in Brazil that connect you directly to their international customer service center in the U.S. That center, in turn, can transfer your call to your card's issuing bank where you can ordinarily get your card unblocked in a few minutes once you identify yourself and explain that you're in Brazil using the card.

 

BTW, on occasion cards get rejected in Brazil even though they haven't been blocked by your issuing bank. Phone lines for international approvals must get overloaded periodically, and rather than saying "try again later," the merchant gets a reject notice. After calling the 800 number when this has happened I've been informed by my bank that it never received a credit inquiry or approval request from Brazil on my account. So you can't automatically assume that your card really has been blocked by your bank if it's turned down in Brazil. The 800 numbers make it easy to check and straighten out any problems.

[williewanker2]

I am sure that with enough time and effort, one can always get a credit card unblocked. I just don't want to have to deal with this when I am trying to check out of the hotel two hours before my plane is supposed to leave.

[Steven_Draker]

RE: Use of credit cards in Brazil

 

If you use your credit card (especially in small stores or gas stations in Rio and Brasilia) it would be wise to replace it when you get back home. Several frauds were reported.

 

Steven Draker ~

http://www.hotsexystud.com/uk

[BillyZ]

MBNA tops Other Cards & HSBC tops Citibank

 

I'm glad that some frequent credit card users in Brazil have been so lucky for so long! I have heard enough horror stories however that I prefer to play it safe and pay in cash -- especially since it is so easy to get ATM cash, and so quick to pay with cash at the sauna.

 

Incidentally unless you have an MBNA-issued credit card which does *not* add a premium for its use overseas, most Visa and MasterCard companies add an extra two or three percent for overseas transactions. For those of us who are not wealthy but do like to travel a lot, this surcharge adds up fast. (If you cannot be bothered with saving a few percent, good for you.)

 

In paying for a hotel bill, I charged 200 reals each to my MBNA, FirstUSA, and Chase issued credit cards. I paid the rest in cash that I'd withdrawn that same day from a Citibank and from an HSBC ATM. Sure enough, only the MBNA (Visa) card charged me the same as the HSBC ATM withdrawal -- almost exactly same as that day's bank rate according to http://www.oanda.com/

 

Citibank may be great if you have an account there, but they are now taking an additional six reals (almost three dollars) for every single ATM withdrawal you make (in additional to your local bank's fee). HSBC has no such surcharge.

[ohgwm226]

Fraud at ATM of Banco Do Brasil

 

I attempted to get cash from an ATM machine at Banco Do Brasil branch on Ave. Copacabana not far from Siquera Campus using my bank debit card. I got an error message : System Malfunction. I gave up without getting any cash. To my utter surprise, when I checked my account on-line 3 days later,the maximum allowed daily withdrawl from my account was charged to my account every day. No other charges were posted. I called my bank in USA to block the debit card. I was told that criminals use certain devices to copy the info of your card from the ATM machine immediately after you use your card.

However the fact that the machine gave me an error message, but recorded the transaction as completed, and that no one tried to use copy of my card to charge anything else, and that all fraudlant daily withdrawls were presumably done from Banco do Brasil ATM machine make me thing that this was an inside job from a bank worker who rigged the machine.

So, be warned. Do not use Debit cards in Banc Do Brasil ATM machines..

 

OHGWM226