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Best ways to manage finances in Italy - ATM cards, cash, travelers checques, etc

Best ways to manage finances in Italy - ATM cards, cash, travelers checques, etc

Old Feb 19th, 2005, 03:25 PM
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Best ways to manage finances in Italy - ATM cards, cash, travelers checques, etc

I hope that this is the appropriate forum for a financial type question. If not, I would be happy to re-post elsewhere if someone has a better location. Anyhow, time is drawing near for our Italy trip, and I have begun to consider my options for having cash, using ATM cards, credit cards, etc. while in country. My initial strategy is to carry maybe 100 Euros from the USA to Venice (our first stop). Additionally, I plan to park a certain amount of cash in two separate ATM accounts which are unrelated to any other bank accounts (i.e. savings). As needed, I will withdraw cash for the B&B's where we will be staying, and will use the ATM cards for card purchases. I have been told to stay away from the AAA card, which sounds very much to me like the AMEX Travel Funds Card. I have also been told that credit union ATM transactions offer more favorable per use and shared bank fees. Travelers checques and US currency don't sound like great options.

All these options weren't even on the table back in 1991 when I traveled to the UK. Back then, we just bought Pounds Sterling, and used travelers checques.

What is everyone's financial strategy in Italy? BTW, I have been told that Italian ATM's have 250 Euro max daily withdrawal limits - so we have factored that in.

We have about 6 weeks before we leave, so I have to make a move before too long. All responses are most appreciated.

gravysandwich
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 04:27 PM
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Well, it took me a moment to absorb what you were asking, since I was distracted by your screen name -- one of my favorite childhood foods!

It sounds like you've already done your homework and I can't fault anything you say, although I'm a little foggy on what you mean by using the ATM cards for card purchases.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 04:37 PM
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I am in complete agreement with Patrick, from the gravy sandwiches to the confusion over card purchases, but yes, in general it seems as though you have done your homework and figured out the best strategy for paying for things in Italy.

Just make sure if you ARE going to be withdrawing from a separate savings account you've established, that your bank is aware of that. I've had the occasional problem with my bank understanding that it's a SAVINGS account I want the money coming out of. It's too self-limited to bother describing here, but I do know a lot of banks seem to have a problem tying a debit card to a savings account. At least that's been my experience.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 04:42 PM
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When you speak of ATM cards for purchases, do you mean your Visa Debit card which draws money straight from your bank account? That is an excellent way to make purchases, as well as using your credit cards.

Your plan sounds good to me, although I don't buy euros in the US anymore. The exchange you will get in the US stinks, and there are ATMs everywhere in Europe, including the airport. But if it makes you more comfortable to have some euros in your pocket when you arrive, then that's OK. I always bring a few $100 US bills as back-up in case I have trouble with ATMs in Europe. However, I have never had any ATM trouble so the US cash always comes back home w/me. Congrats on doing such thorough research.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 05:19 PM
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Can anyone else confirm that you can only take out $250/day from Italian ATMs. One of my debit cards allows me $300/day in the US and the other one $800/day withdrawals. I didn't realize that didn't apply in Italy.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 06:14 PM
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It's not the Italian ATMs that limit your withdrawals, in my experience, it's your own bank. You can call your bank ahead of time and increase the limit.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 06:23 PM
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Actually it's a combination of both. The two of us each have a $1000 limit from our bank on our withdrawals, but we did run into a number of Italian ATM's that limited each withdrawal to 250 euro. In one case when we were getting money for a week's apartment rent, we simply put the same card back in and got another 250 immediately, so it seemed to be strictly a "per withdrawal" limit and not a per day one. On the other hand at a bank in Venice, we couldn't get a second withdrawal and had to go to another bank's ATM.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 07:14 PM
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This fall will be my first trip to Italy and I am still confused over the exchange rate. What is the difference in exchanging $ to EU before you go and doing it in Italy.

Thanks
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 07:21 PM
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This fall will be my first trip to Italy and I am still confused over the exchange rate. I mean, I know that today it was about $.76 to 1EU but what is the difference in exchanging $ to EU before you go and doing it in Italy? I had planned to convert approx. $500 here before I go but now I am not sure.

Thanks

P.S. I also love gravy sandwiches as long as I put a little butter on the bread first.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 07:34 PM
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Ah Benita, if I close my eyes I can almost hear your arteries clogging now!

The difference in exchanging here or getting money from an ATM there? It depends but probably about a 2 or 3 percent difference minimum. For $500 that could mean as much as $15 or even $20. If spending that much gives you a feeling of confidence, I say go for it, even though it really isn't necessary.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 08:16 PM
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It isn't a matter of spending that much money giving me confidence - I just wanted to know what the difference was. Do you know why there is such a difference? Ahhhh yes, sometimes I can even hear my arteries groan.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 08:26 PM
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gravysandwich and PBH,
Italian Atm's (bankomats) have different limits on each machine, the amount that the machine will spit out at one time. The lowest I have seen is 240 euro and the highest 500 euro. Most machine will give you six choices for withdrawal, five different euro amounts and other (fill in yout own amount).
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 08:31 PM
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Hello gravysandwich (a favorite sandwich of mine too).

A couple of things I wanted to pass on to you for your consideration.

First of all I too like to bring a bit of Euro (about $100.00 euro) to Italy with me, although many do not. A security blanket I guess.

Secondly, have at least one checking account for your travels with an ATM card IMHO is a good idea. I personally like the idea of having two.

Next, in Italy (and I believe this is true today) you can only use your ATM card to get money from a checking account not a savings account.

And yes, do let your banks or credit unions know you will be in Italy as well as advising your credit card companies.

And something that I mentioned before on another thread -

I have an ATM/debit card through my brokerage house. I just received, this month, a notice from them that the ATM portion of the card can be used in Italy but the debit portion (paying for purchases, restaurants, hotels etc.) CANNOT be used in Italy because of the high rate of fraud. Their letter stated that they will advise their clients when this situation changes. All their clients received new ATM cards whether they had been in Italy or not. So suspect there has been some serious problems.

Also, evidently some have had a problem using their ATM card unless it has the VISA logo on it.

Regarding the maximum limit one can withdraw from ATM's in Italy - I cannot remember and do not know if it is the Italian banks limits or ones own financial instituion limits.

I would suggest that you only use ATM's located at banks in Italy and when the bank is open so if you have any problems you can then walk into the bank and get assistants.

Do have a beautiful trip. It sounds like you are doing some good planning.
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 08:38 PM
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RE:Euro limit of 250 from italian ATM's. I have experienced this limitation and it has limited my withdrawals to 250 or sometimes 300 euros per day. This is in spite of a larger dollar amount allowed from US ATM's. I believe the euro limit is a reaction to terrorism and the ease of transferring and withdrawing funds by the bad guys. Italy's call and I don't argue.
My response is to have a plan and know how much I'll need in cash and plan accordingly. I also have back-up ATM cards (from other accounts) to use in the event I need additional funds.
Have a great trip--Paul
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 10:03 PM
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Hi macanimals, your post confirmed what I thought was correct regarding ATM withdrawals from Italy.

A question, did you find that your ATM card had to have the VISA logo to work, or did it work with MC logo?

The last time I was in Italy the ATM card with the MC logo worked fine but I keep hearing that now one needs an ATM card with the VISA logo.

Thanks!
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Old Feb 19th, 2005, 10:29 PM
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>>I have been told to stay away from the AAA card, which sounds very much to me like the AMEX Travel Funds Card. <<

Can you elaborate on this please? What are the disadvantages?

Thanks.
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Old Feb 20th, 2005, 05:09 AM
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In March 2004, we took 100 euros (from AAA or amex) for tips or initial taxi or train fare, used our regular bank card for ATM withdrawals (but rarely got more than $200 because of our budget) and MasterCard for hotels and everything was fine. Be sure your code is at least a 4-digit number-I believe Italian banks don't recognize fewer?? We took travellers checks in Euros for a couple of years but never used them because atm's worked so well. How about sugar sandwiches? White bread, butter and sugar...
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Old Feb 20th, 2005, 05:53 AM
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gravysandwich - I just love that name and the sandwich as well. How could we forget the butter and sugar sandwich and at what age did we outgrow that treat? Yum.

As for your question we have used both MC and Visa ATM cards to withdraw Euro but never even tried to use them for purchases. For purchases we generally use a standard credit card and pay it off as soon as we get home. We always bring some Euro home with us and set them aside for the next trip so we do not have to purchase Euro when we arrive. However, we usually stop at the ATM at the airport and withdraw more simply because of the convenience. We have never had trouble finding an ATM or withdrawing money at the airport.

Enjoy your trip. Jackie
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Old Feb 20th, 2005, 06:13 AM
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Agree with jdraper. We take 50 Euro with us as just-in-case money. At the airport, one person hits the ATM while the other gets the luggage. As a lot of places are cash only, we always have money with us, and use a VISA wherever possible. We have never been stuck without access to a bank machine.
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Old Feb 20th, 2005, 06:50 AM
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" At the airport, one person hits the ATM while the other gets the luggage."

This sounds like a good plan, but in every European airport I've flown into, you must collect your luggage and THEN go through customs to the arrivals hall where the ATMs are. I guess one person could go through customs without luggage and leave the other to follow with the luggage, but most people would be uncomfortable about splitting up that way before going through customs and into the "mob".

By the way, I've never seen huge lines of people at airport ATM's as some would suggest there are. In fact, I'm having a hard time remembering ever being more than the second person in line.
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