janisj

>>I've never bought a preloaded card so I could be wrong. But what are you going to do with USD in France? I thought they loaded your card with Euros<<

No, they work just like any ATM card linked to a US bank account. Only much more expensive.

janisj

What is a 'Jeanie' card??

adrienne

Exchanging cash will give you a very bad rate. You'll have to use the exchange places and they will really charge you a fortune to sell you Euros.

I bring enough cash for the US airports in case I want to buy something to eat or drink.

You're over thinking this and worrying too much. I've been bringing 1 ATM card to Europe for over a decade and have not had a problem. Ask your bank for an extra ATM card.

What's a Jeanie card?

adrienne

Over 10 years ago someone at AMEX told a friend not to use traveler's checks but to use an ATM card. This was AMEX saying this. I'm sure traveler's checks are not mentioned in any guide book except to say don't use them.

blackmons

It could take a week to get another ATM card from our bank. We may have one sent to our address in Paris. We'll see.

The preloaded card is $4 a month and I can cancel it when I get back. I can just withdraw all the cash back out of it and put it back into my account.

I think my Visa charges 18% for cash advances.

It sounds like cash, travelers checks, or preloaded are all going to cost me. But I have no choice if something happens to my debit card. I hope I won't need to use any of them, but if I need it I'll be happy to have it. I'd rather pay the penalty than ruin my trip. I wish I had known sooner that we only have the one card, but what's done is done. A friend did give me some good advice. Only use the debit card at a bank machine so if it gets eaten, they may be able to retrieve it for me. I'm going to take a taxi from the airport using a credit card and then load up on euros at a bank near my hotel.
I'll let you know how it all works out.
Thanks so much for all the great advice.
Laurie

blackmons

Oh, sorry. A Jeanie card is a debit card that only works in the U.S. I think it's probably solely associated with 5th 3rd. How do I know it only works in the U.S.? Because we found out the hard way on our trip to Italy many years ago. It's a horrible feeling to not have any cash. Especially horrible when it happens on the weekend like it happened to us. We were counting our pennies. This is why I'm so fanatical about having backup plans. (Although in this case not a good one.)

janisj

Since you seem so nervous about your debit card - Mainly use you credit card(s) to make purchases. Every time you can. Never to get cash of course, but to buy things, pay for museum entrances, some meals, shopping, etc. And limit your cash usage to places that are cash-only.

Many people travel for weeks using almost no cash. (Not me personally - I use my ATM card and mostly use cash. But many Fodorites use very little cash)

adrienne

<< I think my Visa charges 18% for cash advances. >>

It's 18% a year. That's .35% per week. How long is your trip? If you pay it off immediately it will only cost you a few dollars to use your credit card. I think it's good as a back up.

janisj

Just saw your last post:

>> Because we found out the hard way on our trip to Italy many years ago<<

Was that because it doesn't work in Europe . . . OR . . . was it because you didn't tell them you'd be out of the country??

What symbols are on the front/back of the 'jeanie' card?

janisj

The problem w/ using a credit card to get cash isn't so much the interest (though they do generally start charging interest immediately). It is the fee they charge for cash advances.

But Adrienne is right. You have an ATM card. 95+% it will work just fine. So using your credit card as an <u>emergency</u> back up may be your best option (assuming the 'jeanie' card truly doesn't work overseas)

blackmons

The Jeanie card doesn't work outside the U.S. I had called my bank ahead of time to make sure I could use it in Europe and they assured me I could. Turned out it was a miscommunication. They didn't realize I was talking about the "Jeanie" card. But even though it caused us a huge amount of headaches (we ended up buying cash at exorbitant exchange rates) our bank did reimburse us for all the extra money we had to put out. I'll check with my Visa card again, but I'm pretty sure their fees were pretty substantial. I'll also check with my bank on Monday regarding the exchange rate on the 360 card. I do tend to overthink things, but just don't want to risk another situation like last time.

adrienne

<< It is the fee they charge for cash advances. >>

I have a credit union Visa and there are no fees for cash advances (other than the 1% foreign transaction fee). I didn't realize other banks charged fees to use a credit card in an ATM machine.

lyonscubs2

My 5th3rd Branch encouraged me to open up a 360 Access card as well after I told them I was traveling to Croatia. Guess what? I'm in Croatia and I can't use my card here! I have quite a bit of $ on it and can't access it! They say "There's nothing they can do about it!"