Most of the budget spots I stayed at wanted cash. A couple had card machines but only used them if I really pushed - and one added a fee. It wasn’t a ...

Used my Amex for a few hotel payments and one dinner at a high-end spot in Victoria - no problem there. But local shops, markets, and most cafés didn’...

I lost my card in an Absa ATM in Mahé - no error, it just sucked it in and nothing came out. I went into the branch next morning with my ID, and the s...

Tried using my card at a few shops and cafés, but public transport? 100% cash. I took buses from Victoria to Anse Royale and they all worked the same ...

Yeah, I thought I was going nuts when my Mastercard declined at a tiny café. Turns out smaller shops only have local machine setups and some banks blo...

Showed up late, grabbed SCR 300 at the airport exchange-felt like highway robbery. Then I tried an Absa ATM nearby and quietly declined their conversi...

Booked a taxi via my guesthouse once in Mahé and paid by card through their machine - no issues, but that was the exception. Almost every street taxi ...

I budgeted around SCR 2,000 (~US $150) per day in April 2025. That allowed medium-range guesthouses, tuk-tuks, fresh seafood dinners, and a day snorke...

When I traveled in March, I mainly used Barclays (now Absa) and Nouvobanq ATMs. Absa lets you take out SCR 4,000-5,000 per go, with two transactions o...