Karen

Arriving in London this Thursday on Delta. I think it's in the south terminal. Does anyone know where the ATM's are in the airport?<BR><BR>Thanks in advance!

Peter

They are everywhere.

Sam

Karen- Will you get as good of an exchange rate at an airport ATM as you would in the city? I wonder if the exchange rates vary, like they do if you change money at the airport as opposed to your hotel??

Karen

I'm arriving without any pounds so I'm not too concerned about the difference in exchange rates between ATM's. I am sure their exhange rate is better than trying to change US dollars to pounds

cjla

There are some right near where you catch the Gatwick Express, but there are others all around.

Sam

Karen- You never know. I work for a bank, but I don't work in the branches, so I couldn't speak about exchange rates here in the US. I am going to check and see what my bank offers as a comparison.

Shanna

Karen, most US airports with international flights will have ATMs that give you pounds or euros. I recently bought pounds at Dulles ATM - last year bought francs and deutchmark (oh, that spelling doesn't look right) at - I believe - Charlotte - or it may have been Philly. I'm a bit nervous about arriving without any local currency just in case the ATMS don't cooperate.

Karen

Sam get the &quot;goes the extra mile&quot; award today. Thanks Shanna for the info about U.S. airports having foreign currency ATM's. I'm leaving from Atlanta and there is bound to be an ATM there.<BR><BR>I am a little queasy about going without any destination currency, but the branch-bank-of-nowhere here doesn't offer foreign currency at all. Neither does the local AAA office. So I'm bring US$ and an ATM card along with credit cards and hoping for the best.

XXX

Karen:<BR><BR>There isn't the slightest reason to be worried. ATM use in London surpassing anything you've ever seen in the US. There are ATM's at Gatwick. The British ATM's do not charge any fees...check with your bank for what they charge for ATM withdrawals which can go from $0 to $5 or anything in between. If they charge fees, limnit your withdrawals by withdrawing larger amounts.<BR><BR>The Gatwick Express accepts credit cards for payment right on the train.<BR><BR>Personally, I have never heard of any ATM that dispenses foreign currencies in the US and the exchange rates at them wil probably absurdly low. I have seen machines that change banknotes from US currency to foreign currency but these are not ATM's in the true sense of the word.<BR><BR>There are worry warts around who don't feel secure unless they arrive in a foreign country with local currency so they run out and go to banks in the US and exchange. That's okay provided you and they realize you are throwing away about 10% but they claim that throwing away $10 on a trip for peace of mind is worth it to them. To each his or her own but I've travelled extensively throughout the world and have never had the slightest problem using the ATM's.<BR><BR>As far as whether the rate you get from the ATM's at the airport is worse than the rate in town, the answer to that question is a resounding no. The currency conversion is done by the network which couldn't care less as to where the withdrawal takes place and again the local bank is not allowed to charge a fee for withdrawals so that is no problem whatsoever.

Patrick

This thread has taken a very interesting turn. I have never heard of ATMs in the US dispensing pounds or euro either. Am I wrong? Can more people support that idea or are we talking about cash changing machines?

Christina

I fly in and out of Dulles and have never seen an ATM that dispenses foreign currency. I suspect the post was referring to exchange bureaus with people in them, there are those at Dulles and they have very bad rates (worse than even in the city).<BR><BR>ATMs don't determine the rates by location, your bank network does when it's converted, as long as it's a typical CIRRUS/PLUS network. For-profit brand X ATMs probably have different rates. <BR><BR>I wouldn't worry about a major airport if you are arriving in the day time, but I'd rather take travelers' checks for emergencies than get pounds ahead of time because if you don't use them, there is no cost to getting them (if you get them free in US dollars). I did have to use them in London last August at the airport because no ATMs were working in the area where you catch the train or bus etc into town, but that was Heathrow.

Charles

There are ATMs in the Int'l terminal at SFO which dispense GBPs, euros, yen (all from the same machine). Minumum amount to exchange is @ $100.

XXX

Charles...and this may be semantics but those are probably not ATM's in the true sense of the word...you stick in your ATM card and the bank owning the machines charges you whatever rate it wants and I am quite sure the rate is far lower than the ATM network in Britain would charge. ATM networks operate on local currencies in the country involved.<BR><BR>It is no different then a scam where merchants, in touristy places, try to con Americans into having them write up charges in US dollars instead of local currency claiming they are getting a great rate and saving them credit card conversion rates. I assure you that you are being ripped off when this happens.<BR><BR>US banks are only authorized to dispense US dollars in their network machines. If a bank, as a courtesy, wishes to stock its ATMs with foreign currency no doubt you enter an amount in the foreign currency and that bank converts it to US currency at a most disadvantageous rate....

Karen

I keep a lookout for the ATM at the Atlanta airport and make sure it has the cirrus/star/plus/whatever symbol is on my ATM card. More concerned now about the ice storm prediction for tomorrow. I hope I don't spend my entire vacation in the Atlanta airport.

Karen

Sorry about the grammar. Maybe one day I'll learn how to write.

Sam

Hi all-<BR>I discussed this with my counterparts in the branch system at the bank I work with. FYI, I work for a regional bank in the Midwest. Fees on ATM transactions anywhere outside of the 'lower 48' are generally $2.50. Everyone should check with their bank to get their exact fees. Call the 1-800 on your ATM card. It is true that foreign banks will not charge you a service on their end of the transaction, so $3 should be the out of pocket expense. This is a great thread, Karen- thanks for posting it.

kitty

I've been to London 3 times in the last 6 years and have had no problem finding the ATM machines. They are on the way to catching the trains but in case you can't find them just find someone to ask. People are very helpful in the airports.<BR><BR>We always take traveler's checks just in case too. You never know when there might be some problems so at least between charge cards, ATM cards, and travelers checks I know I won't have any problem.<BR><BR>Also, don't use American Express unless you have to. They do charge an extra amount on exchange from pounds to dollars. My VISA through First Union did not. Of course, I didn't figure this out until I got home and checked my bills. My suggestion is to check with your credit card provider to determine if they charge anything for exchange.<BR><BR>

xxx

The back of your ATM card should have a website.There you will find where your card is accepted. The last two times I went to Italy I never left with any lira.Never once had a problem with any ATM's there, and believe me I used them plenty.

Patrick

Regarding that &quot;standard&quot; $2.50 bank charge for using your ATM in Europe --<BR>my accounts are at Bank of America, which has charged me a maximum of $1.50. I have done over a hundred ATM withdrawals in Europe in the past three or four years. Bank of America also furnished me with a list of banks in various countries, where if I use my ATM card there, I will not be charged anything by either bank.

Steve

First Citizens ATM at the beginning of the D/E concourse in Charlotte Douglas dispenses international currency. Related to the international locations US Airways services. UK, Germany, France, and Spain