Peace of mind for $7 is just fine for many travellers and the "just in case" won't be an issue at all unless you need the !00E and can't, for whatever reasons,get it!!! 2 ATM cards are also a good idea. Sarastro-- one in case comes to mind as my DD bank dropped the ball and her ATM was declined in France on her first trip. Required a call to bank and it got fixed ok but that is an example of a "just in case". I really do not consider myself unknowing, never paid exobitant fees and have travelled extensively over my many years. Learned better safe than sorry so I still recommend getting a few Euros before you go!

Also, if you plan on going back sometime, make sure you have E100 in your pocket on the way home. I always do- keep it with my passport so I don't have to hunt for it next trip. I feel better having a few bucks on me when I arrive.

Have a great trip!

Sarastro - we all bow to your superior intellect. Geez chica. Dial it back a few notches.

Amen, November_moon..Is Sarastro a "chica"?? I hope not, fems are usually more politely restrained are they not???

I don't know amer - just a feeling I got ;)

Sarastro, like you I always felt confident about ATMs in airports and was pretty much as outspoken as you (I'll avoid the term rude).

But last summer arriving in Venice I already had about 70 euros left over in cash from a previous trip. All we had to do was take the Alilaguna into town -- we thought. But because of a regatta, those regular boats were not running, and the ONLY alternative was a water taxi at a fixed price CASH ONLY of a little over 100 euros. So back to the terminal I went -- only to try one ATM which did not work at all and two that refused to take my brand new Capital One debit card (to my Capital One checking account). We've never figured out why. I was in near panic until I finally got someone to tell me about what was apparently the fourth and final ATM in the entire terminal -- sort of hidden away upstairs. All together it was nearly an hour and a half after landing before I finally had the cash!

So now, I don't mouth off quite so much when someone is concerned that there might be a problem. Yes s__t DOES happen! By the way, I couldn't exchange US dollars. I never travel to Europe with any. Maybe that's another thing I should reconsider.

By your own account NeoPatrick, you found an operable ATM. If, for some reason, you had not, now is the time to pay the fees and exchange dollars for euros. There is no need to do this before you depart, and incur unnecessary costs, as this exchange itself is the emergency back up plan and is not done as a matter of course.

I never, nor would I suggest to anyone else, travel without cash in dollars. Nor do I keep all of my credit cards in the same location, one is in my wallet, another in my baggage (along with several hundred dollars in cash). If my wallet is stolen, I still have what is in my luggage. If my wallet and luggage are both stolen, I keep a copy of my passport, bank account numbers, and pertinent recovery information (bank contacts etc) in a secure FTP location which can easily be accessed with any internet connection. Having this information at my fingertips will greatly speed the recovery process in the event of a catastrophic loss.

To what I vehemently object is the suggestion that travelers must pay marked up exchange rates, needless service charges, and exorbitant fees for no other reason than to have euros in their pockets before they arrive at some foreign destination. It´s simply not true and it´s a complete waste of money.

Sarastro, I guess you didn't read the part where I explained that exchanging dollars was not an option. I'd rather not carry US dollars at all when I'm traveling in Europe, even though you like to do that -- amazing, but we ARE different.

And frankly, it would have been worth $10 or so dollars to have had more euros in advance than to have spent over an hour trying, seeking, and making phone calls to try to get cash. I had already been told twice that I had tried ALL the ATM's in the airport. I think the first hour of my vacation in Venice would easily be worth $10 or more!

What works for you always worked for me too. No one here has suggested that "travelers MUST" do anything, and while you think it's a complete waste of money, for some it isn't at all. You sound like someone who insists taking a taxi from an airport to a hotel is a complete waste of money because you'd prefer a cheaper bus -- while for some people the extra money IS not a waste at all, but a much more relaxing means of transportation. Same thing with having money in one's pocket. It doesn't work for you. But for the life of me I don't get why you need to get so worked up when someone WANTS to do something slightly different from the way you do it -- even though, of course, anything you do IS apparently the perfect and only way to do it.

Have to completely agree with NeoPatrick. I just came back from Europe, and I arrived first in Paris with one Mastercard and one Visa (both were of the chip and PIN variety). I had forgotten to activate the Visa for overseas transactions, so I thought I could count on my MC first. Wrong. The ATMs and billets machines would not accept my MC, because they would only accept 'Euro Mastercard'. With no way to call my bank and activate the Visa, I was very thankful for the Euros I had stashed away in my money belt, which I used to then buy a RER ticket into the city.

Sarastro, what some of the others are objecting to (including myself) is your tone. You're free to do what you want, but you don't have to put down other people's preferences, especially when there ARE instances some of us have personally gone through where having Euros in hand saved the day.

Getting ripped off for $7-$10 at your home airport is part of the fun of starting a trip. Why worry the whole flight about whether your ATM card is going to work?

Well neoPatrick, you certainly experienced a "just in case".. There are many out there I'm sure..so, Havmatic, if you want peace of mind get a few Euros at home, go on your trip and don't even think about those "Just in case" events. Have a good time and be fully aware I am envious..

We notified our banks before leaving and we were able to withdraw all the Euro we needed from ATM's in Paris and in Ireland, without any problem. We left the US with only 60 Euro, and are saving some of our leftover Euros for the next trip.