I know that most people on this board use ATM cards for all their cash needs abroad. I prefer to use cash.

I'm currently in New York City, planning to fly out tonight. I found a place called A&S Currency Exchange that sells Euros and British Pounds for roughly three percent over the spot rate. Yesterday, for example, he was buying Euros for 1.26 and selling them for 1.34. I ended up buying 1300 Euros and 500 British Pounds. I'll still use my credit card for a lot of purchases, and a lot of things are already paid for.

There was no commission or other charge. So if you just want to buy 100 Euros you can. The price you pay will be roughly three percent over the spot rate. This is a much better deal than using an ATM card with a three percent fee, since an ATM fee is often tacked on as well.

Just thought I would pass this on.

FHurdle....without inspiring any of the animosity this topic almost always invokes, the question is why. Why walk around with this kind of money that can be stolen or lost? I'll leave out the additional 3% is a good rate but of course you do better with using an ATM provided you do a bit of planning and secure an atm card at say an internet bank which charges 0%? Why spend cash unless it is absolutely absolutely necessary say for an apartment? Doesn't it make more sense to use a credit card, again with 0% currency exchange fee, everywhere it is taken.

In all due respect to you, and I mean that, I just can't comprehend why anybody would prefer using cash to plastic under most circumstances. I am not going to go on a crusade about it but I'm sorry. I just can't comprehend travelling, at least in the 21st century, the way we once did.

But just maybe you can convince me of the advantage of doing it that way. I would be very glad to learn.

If there is no commission just how do you think this person made any money? Figure it out.

I've given my reasons for preferring cash in the past. No need to rehash them, save to say my wife was a fraud victim and also the victim of a European ATM eating card incident.

Dukey1, the man made money by having a eight cent spread between his buy price and his sell price. So he has a built in three percent commission. Many money changers have a buy-sell spread and then charge a commission on top of that.

An eight-cent spread is as cheap as I've seen it anywhere.

xyz123, I do charge a lot of things to my credit card, and sad to say both of mine have a foreign exchange fee. For spending money throughout the day, it's just easier to use cash.

In any event, the question of where to get the best rate in the U.S. is often asked. For now, this is the answer for those in the New York area or passing through.

They would make money at 3 pct over bank rate, as they probably don't have very high overhead costs. I know currency exchange places in Europe that also exchange for only 3 pct over interbank, and I know math. They can make money on doing that if they have low overhead.

Fhurdle, where is A/S Exchange in Manhattan?

I also think that it can be beneficial to have backup Euros because sometimes ATMs in Airports are out of cash or do not accept an ATM card.

I can remember that the Bank of Venezia ATM at Marco Polo had buttons all in Italian and I could not understand what buttons to push even though I hit the English instruction button.

I also remember being in Rome and having to try 3 different ATMs that would accept my pin number.

Once I tried using ATM on Via Veneto and it was all out of cash.

Thin

IOW the guy made money by giving you a poorer exchange rate than you would have received at an ATM.

Dukey1, most ATM cards have a three percent foreign transaction fee plus an ATM fee. MOST, not all. That is the case with my wife's ATM card (I don't have one and don't want one). So for me and many others the ATM rate is substantially higher than what I just paid.

As Pepper mentioned, finding a working ATM that accepts one's card is not instantaneous. Sometimes it can take a while. Certainly one should add say $100 an hour to whatever ATM fee is charged in calculating the exchange rate.

Pepper, A&S Foreign Exchange is located just east of Penn Station on 32nd Street. He is moving in a few weeks, but Google him, he has a web page.

Thanks, I did. He is near Penn Station which makes him convenient when taking the LIRR to JFK.

Thin

I know it is quite an old topic but I can confirm that A&S is competitive. there are other palce to exchange money in NYC too.
you can check a comparison of these here :

http://money-changer.net/en/Currency...nge/NEW%20YORK

thomas

The guy is in a plexiglass booth in the middle of schlock tourist stuff. I have gone there many times. No kidding.

Many Debit Card bank's are charging 3% plus a $5 fee per withdrawal transaction. If you find yourself in a city where most ATMs have a withdrawal cap of 250€ (been there, done that), and you want more money, your fees will quickly add up to the ridiculous. IMO, it pays to do the math and make the most cost-effective decision.

I.e, get a debit or ATM card on a credit union account. No transaction fee, conversion rate of only 1% over the interbank rate.

My Capital One ATM card charges no foreign conversion fee, no fee for using other banks' ATMs, and refunds fees charged by ATMs (up to $25 month, I believe). I also have a Credit Union card that charges 1% foreign conversion fee and allows five free withdrawals a month. I have no reason to use a money changer before a trip. (I occasionally use one during a trip when switching currencies, but only for very small amounts.)

Capital One has changed. Plenty of new information, new considerations to sift through. No one makes "free" easy anymore.

RE Credit Union Debit Cards

Not all credit unions play by the same rules. You have to read the fine print. Many credit unions require auto-deposit of a weekly pay-check for full "free" status to kick in. Useless if you're self-employed. Many credit unions will not let you join unless you're eligible.

There really is no single great choice that works for everyone. Lots of homework required and sometimes a circus full of hoops to jump through just to save a little money.