I found that most visa and mastercard charge 1% of the transaction amount as a fee when overseas. In additon, many banks then add an additional 2% fee. I contacted Fleet and they said they do not charge the extra 2%. If I need cash I will use my debit card, which is with Chase. According to Chase I will not pay any fee when taking money out of my own accoutn

Chase bank has excellent exchange rates posted on there web site www.chase.com also will deliver free if you spend more then $500. american. Another good way is to join a credit union and use your atm card as the fee is usually free or as with mine only a dollar.

I just called 1-800-CHASE84 and bought three types of currency, which will be delivered to my home for no fee. Very good service here! I first figured things out at www.chase.com as suggested on this thread (after waiting a long time on hold for amex) dbl

ATMs and charging are the ways to go. Just exchange enough in the US to get you through one day and use an ATM when you get there (not at the airport). Just make sure your PIN is 4 digits long - some countries can only support that length.

The Chase service seems pretty good. The rates they offer are about 6% off of the wholesale rate (which is worse that you'll get using your ATM or credit card overseas, but likely better than what you'd get at your local bank branch). And the free delivery is great. <BR> <BR>However, I find it very hard to believe that they would give you this cash and charge your credit card as a purchase (as opposed to a cash advance). If they treat it as a purchase, you're getting an interest free loan, and they (Chase) will have to pay the transaction fees to your credit card issuer/company (2%-3%). So I'm convinced that they treat this as a cash advance. This would mean cash advance fees and instant interest accrual. <BR> <BR>Has anyone looked at their statement to see how it is treated?

I've received cash off my AmEx prior to leaving the USA and it is treated as a purchase NOT as a cash advance. It's a great service, just picked up the phone and had the cash in 3 days via U.S mail.

Before leaving for Paris last year, I purchased a small amount of francs at the American Express Travel Office (65 Broadway NYC). In Paris, ATM's were the easiest and best rates.

In response to Brian- I was concerned about what you wrote, even though no where on the Chase website( or the operator)did it say it would be a cash advance. I did check my statement and it came out to be listed as a regular transaction. I guess it cost about $30 (more) for about $850 usd to be converted into the 3 different currencies- but it was quick,easy, fast and delivered to my door. I know using the ATM debit card in Europe is the best rate,but we do not like wasting time at airport ATM's (which can be out of cash at times). I guess everyone does what they are most comfortable doing.

Thanks for the report Donna. That does seem to be a good service.

COMMISSION SCAM: <BR>If changing in Europe, beware of change offices with signs outside saying "no commission charged on foreign currency" <BR>You are buying local currency & will be charged 9.9%!! <BR>I've seen these places dotted about all over Europe. <BR> Best way is ATM provided you are charged for a purchase not an advance.Chack with your bank. <BR> In UK (if not using ATM) best rate is usually at the post office!

I was curious about the Chase Manhattan service also as it looked very convenient, much better than my spending my time going to a local exchange bureau (which where I live is Thomas Cooks and their rates are horrendous) with their terrible rates. But, it did not seem believable that it was a purchase, not a cash advance. In any case, I recently received new terms from my FIRST VISA card and upon readin the fine print noticed that this card says that purchase of foreign currency or travellers checks is considered a cash advance UNLESS you buy them from a bank. So, it probably depends upon your card (Chase Manhattan's own web site doesn't say except in reference to their own debit card, which I can understand, probably because they do not want to predict what other cards will do) and you need to ask. Perhaps it is not a cash advance because they are a bank; I know if you check travellers checks from AAA, you must pay with cash or a check as on a credit card it's considered a cash advance, ditto for currency bought at Thomas Cooks -- probably because neither AAA or Thomas Cooks is a bank. A few other comments, someone said ATM fees are worse at airports, this isn't true, the conversation rate from an ATM depends totally on your bank, not the location of the ATM, I suspect they were thinking of live exchange bureaux in Airports, that is often true of them, but not the machines (amazingly enough, exchange bureaux in Prague offer rates as good as you get by ATM or credit card, even the one in the airport). I've always wanted to arrive with foreign currency as I've had some problems in the past not being able to get it at the airport, but now that ATMs are more frequent, I'm beginning to think it's not necessary as long as your flight is scheduled to arrive during the daytime. I still wouldn't risk it at night as that was my problem once, if your ATM card doesn't work at the airport or the machine is down or out of money, there may not be a live exchange bureau open at night and you are in big trouble without any local cash; I had a flight delayed from London to Paris once so that I didn't arrive until 11 pm and I could not get any local cash.

It is always a good idea to have some local currency on hand when arriving at foreign airport. Its a must have for the necessities of life, bus, taxi, phone, etc. YES, the bad guys do watch the airport ATM machines. As in US, stay away at night from all atms. <BR>You might want to try small amount of local currency and balance in travelers checks denominated in the local currency. BankAmerica, among others, provides this service. They also exchange currency at or near the quotes <BR>provided by most currency services. Also, no additional fee for certain types of accounts. We live in small town Fla and had lire in hand the next day. Did have to pick it up at the bank. <BR>You may also consider currency services on the internet who will deliver to address of record at fairly reasonable rates. Good Luck. <BR>

We use ATM's when in foreign countries, but I get some foreign money ahead of our trip from Skyteller.com. They send you the cash in several days, and the handling costs included compared favorably with the rate my bank would charge.

I ordered Portugese Escudos through Chase bank online at www.chase.com. <BR> <BR>The service was great. It was at my local branch the next day (it would have been at my house if that was my choice). <BR> <BR>I paid with a Visa (not a Chase Visa). The downside was that the rate seemed to be about 8% off of the published rates. So I suppose that is where their profit comes in. <BR> <BR>I do not mind because it was no effort to do, and now I can get on the plane with the foreign currency in my hands. <BR>Steve

just got 300,000 lire for $156.60 from chase -- no fee, delivered in 24 hours to my branch, which is across from my office. rate was .00052. If I used the rate in the NY times I would have gotten 309,000 lire (or about $4.50 more lire). This is an accpetable "fee" for me, given the convenience.

American Express is the best. <BR> <BR>Avoid Thomas Cook at all costs. The service is ALWAYS terrible, no matter what country you're in. Even worse, I've had two sets of friends who were unable to get their travelers' checks replaced after they were stolen. Thomas Cook said that they hadn't take "proper precautions" to protect the checks (one had her purse stolen, the other, his car). Guess that kind of makes the whole point of travelers' checks moot, then? Both are still fighting with TC. In the meantime, both are out more than $2,000.

<BR>today, I purchased 50,000 greek drachma from my local American Express office. <BR> <BR>while convenient, it was not exactly a "no charge" service! <BR> <BR>for exmpl, <BR> <BR>* rate was about 333dr/ $1, this is about 9% worse than today's Interbank rate (363 dr per 1$) <BR> <BR>* additional $4 "commision fee". <BR> <BR>* had I purchased it with my AMEX or VISA credit card, it would have been treated as cash advance, and immediately start accruing 18-22% annual interest. <BR> <BR>* no breaks for AMEX card holder <BR> <BR>Still, I'd rather get off the plane with a reasonable amount of cash in my pocket, so for me the transaction costs were accpetbaly small in the grand scheme of the overall trip budget. <BR> <BR>Last time I withdrew foreign cash at an ATM (Canada), my rate was only 2% worse than the best possible Interbank rate, (not bad), plus US$2 for an "Int'l ATM fee" from my home bank. <BR>

Does anyone know if the Greek/Turkish banks, businesses charge for cashing an Amex trav. cheque? What kind of demoninations/notes in GRD and Lira would anyone recommend for ease of use in purchasing food, meals, gas, etc.