Money for Trip...Cheque Card, Travelers Checks???
 

Help, please! We are traveling to Paris for 8 days and Venice for 5 in the Spring and would like some advice on fellow Fodorites experiences with the AMEX Cheque Card, travelers checks or regular credit cards. On the few foreign trips we have taken we always used a credit card, but now have read about the 3% fees which could add up on a 2 week trip!

Our bank does have an agreement with BNP Paribas that we could withdraw funds fee free, but I would prefer not to walk around with cash.

Any suggestions or experiences???

Thanks,
k

I am about to head to Paris, Turkey and Greece in May and this is what I have been told regarding money and the best rates. I will carry some traveler checks and a AMEX Cheque card, as well.

In addition, bring your ATM card. The best rate of exchange is through your ATM, getting cash as you need it.

Also, I remember this from my last trip, because of credit card fraud, make sure to call your bank and credit card companies (for the credit cards you may or plan to use) and let them know you will be traveling abroad. Otherwise, when you try to use your card too many times, they might deny it. But, if you have it on record you are traveling, they will have it in your record.

Have fun!

No to Travelers Cheques, and no to the Amex check card.

Your best exchange rate will be via ATM cards and credit cards. The AMEX card costs to open, costs to add money, costs to withdraw money, and even costs to close out when you get back home.

And travelers cheques are basically useless. You can't use them to pay for things - you must first go to a bank to cash them and pay very high fees to do so.

The 3% visa and mc charge is still much less than you will pay for other methods. And you can't beat an ATM card for getting cash.

ditto what janis said.

We rely almost entirely on our Visa-branded debit card - no interest to pay when we get back, all the advantages of a credit card and an ATM card.

(We do take a "real" credit along for backup).

Hi:

MONEY IN TURKEY: I believe the days of travellers check is over. I spent 4 months in Turkey last summer, 2 months in May- June and two months in September - October. I was all over Turkey, in Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadocia, Sivas, in many towns and cities along the Mediterrenean coast,
Kushadasi, Ephesus, Pergamum, Bursa, Cannakkale, Gallipoli, Edirne and more places. No where I had any difficulty using my ATM card. Even in the smallest towns, ATM was available. Most of your purchases can be done with credit cards. For some reason, many merchants do not prefer the AMEX card. When I asked, one said that because, they take more commision. Master card and Visa cards are more acceptable. Cash always make their life happy. From ATMs you will get your local currency needs. As in everywhere, there is a limit. If the bank does not give you the highest amount you listed, then go down to down. Some times, once you try one bank, you ask the highest amount, if you are rejected, try another bank with lower amount. Make sure to call your bank and tell them that you will be travelling and using your Credit card for your purchases and you will be also using the ATM in those countries. You can buy phone card, not the local ones but the kind you can call overseas, make phone calls easily, i.e. for 10.00 YTL (New Turkish Lira) and you can talk for 52 minutes with your bank, with anyone in the USA. But, if you make a local phone call with the same card, it just goes faster. So, I suggest take some cash with you, and use your ATM card.

Always watch your purse where ever you are. My father in-law was pick-pocketed in Paris Metro station as he was getting in a car. My wife's lipstick purse, looked like a wallet, was gone in Prague, I stopped a young man snatching a camera from a British tourist lady in Barcelona. It can happen anywhere....

Have a safe and a happy trip.

Debit card for cash when you need it, and Visa or MC for purchases.

The time when Traveler's checks were a good idea has passed. Though a few people like to carry a couple in case their wallet is stolen.

Keith

Just a minute though. Am I missing something? No one mentions the advantage of purchasing traveller's cheques in one's home country in order to take advantage of a strong domestic currency. For example, when I went to Amsterdam last June, it cost $1.62 (Canadian) to buy 1 Euro. Now it costs 1.40 Canadian. So now that we are going to France this August, I am stocking up on T. Cheques and will be cashing them at Paribas in France, fee-free.

Some conversion fee and/or commission is usually charged when cashing traveler's checks.

Look for banks that only charge the normal 1% conversion fee for credit card transactions.

Look for banks that don't charge you for taking <b>your</b> money out of <b>your</b> checking account (ATM card).

If you buy Euro now for 1.40 Canadian and when you go to Europe in August and you can buy Euro for 1.30 Canadian -- you lost!! To purchase Euro now for a future trip is pure speculation -- if you're willing to take that chance, go for it. ((b))

glad you know where to cash traveller's checks, and free, besides. Worth the trouble to find those things out BEFORE your trip.

a friend had a guest here in valencia for the weekend, and NO BANKS will take them, and our largest department store finally took them against a minimum purchase.

I agree it is speculation, but one must at least consider this aspect.

&gt;when I went to Amsterdam last June, it cost $1.62 (Canadian) to buy 1 Euro. Now it costs 1.40 Canadian. So now that we are going to France this August, I am stocking up on T. Cheques ...&lt;

And if the Euro falls to 1.30 CD? Today it is 1.37.

Do you get your TC's at the bank rate?

((I))

I must say that Janis has the best advice. A combination of cc and ATM.

I cant agree with the suggestion that a debit card has the best features of the ATM plus CC. It means that you must have in your checking account before you leave the entire amount of cash that you think you will spend on your trip.I have better places to keep my money. The ATM (and debit) are best used for cash expenditures to be kept to a minimum. The cc makes more sense on the trip than a debit since one doesnt have to give up the cash till about a month later in the cc statement.

I agree, ATM card (checking account) for spending cash, and Credit Card for hotels, restaurants, rental car, and major purchases. Look for ones with low fees. ((b))

Travelers checks: Almost useless except in rare occasions. They might provide psychological warmth in your passport case or money belt. I used some once to calm an overheated French waiter but none were used.

Europe is more cash oriented than the US. ATM machines are common. In some cases your American bank will have a correspondent in Europe and ATM withdrawals are treated as &quot;on net&quot; and you pay nothing extra. Example: Bank of America and Barkleys Bank have a working agreement. I paid no extra charge at all to use my BOA card at Barclays.

Not all credit card issuers charge the extra 2%. (1% is the Visa or MC fee that is as far as I know unavoidable.)
The last I heard (and I am a little out of date), Capital One did not charge the extra amount.

Some credit unions issue cards and do not charge the extra fee. I think it pays to ask, and change cards if need be.

I know I have a BOA card, and when I found out that an extra 2% was involved when I used it, I put the card aside and carry other cards.

You will not beat the 3% by trying to buy euro notes or British pounds over here. You end up paying about 5% above the wholesale bank rate of exchange.
I know, places like AAA say there is &quot;no fee.&quot; Well, any way you total up your bill, your bottom line is higher by a substantial percentage than the wholesale bank rate of exchange.
Call it what you will, but doing business with banks or other money changers is more costly than the 3% credit card add on.

I checked the exchange booth rates at the Atlanta airport last year before leaving. I figured I was paying almost 10% for exchanging.

I agree that ATM and credit cards are the way to go. However, if the fees bother you (BofA charges $5 of every withdrawal from a non Global Alliance bank), try to establish a travel account in a bank or credit union that does not levy such fees. That's what I did with my local credit union--no fees for ATM withdrawals, and 1% on credit card transactions.

Lest the above is not clear:ATMs are everywhere (including small towns in Poland, Hungary, Czech/Slovak Rep, not to mention France, Germany, UK). I dare say one cannot walk more than 100 feet in a central part of any town without passing an ATM with the Plus or Cirrus symbol (connoting interchange with my bank, at no fee, at the wholesale bank exchange rate). Only once in 6 years has an ATM not given me money (Frankfurt airport); that time I continued walking 30' more and used another one. I don't even bother getting any cash for a trip anymore.

We rely almost exclusively on ATM cards when traveling abroad. Credit card companies charge foreign transaction fees when they convert your foreign charge into American dollars, upwards of 3%. Who needs that?
Carol L

Carolll, not all (Visa and Mastercharge) credit cards charge more than the mandatory 1%. Credit unions and certain banks do not. Using a credit card means you don't need to carry so much cash.

Janis said it all up top.

The problem I see for PatSox is they don't want to &quot;walk around with cash&quot;... which is what an ATM gets you!

I use the cash/ATM + credit card combination, but I am a cash-spending person both at home and while traveling and am extremely comfortable doing so.

k- Why don't you want to carry cash?

I`m with janis too. No one wanted t.c. in Croatia. I walked straight into a ATM and I was all set. I used my citibank card in the past, but with their new fees, I passed on that and opened a credit union account. So check with your bank, at least you have time.

- Why don't you want to carry cash?










k- Why don't you want to carry cash?
The best answer I can give to that is....you gottabe kidding!!

As to this extra charges on ccs and trying to avoid them, I was in London last November and there was hardly any difference between the exchange rate on the CC and the ATM.For what it is worth, the difference in the peripheral
spending in terms of a week or so is insignificant if one thinks in terms of inconveniences one can create doing it.

Thank you all for your insight!

I don't like to carry cash as I usually charge everything. I guess it's a combination of security and everyday habit. We will probably end up doing some of both.

I did just read an article in a travel magazine this week that Capital One does not charge a fee so I'm going to see if we can apply and get a card prior to our trip.

Thanks again!

I used to believe in ATM cards for drawing cash as I travel. After a month scooting around Europe in January I no longer believe. Both of my banks were charging $5 per transaction. Before you go, get specifics from your bank. And when you use an ATM device, get a weeks worth of euros (assuming you are in euroland) to lessen the pain.

Also, arm yourself with a hefty supply of $5 and $20 bills for small needs, especially if you are in the non-euro countries. If you don't need them over there you can always use them when you get home.

Credit cards are still a good option despite the foreign purchase fee which was 2% with my Mastercard debit card.

Travelers checks are dinosaurs.

Cash is the universal language. Always have a couple hundred dollars or euros in your pocket. You never know when your cards will work and when they won't. That magnetic strip failed me many times.

hopscotch,

check to see if your local credit union charges fees. Mine does not for either ATM withdrawals or for their credit card, when using either one of them abroad.

I think those of you who think that you are getting traveler's checks for nothing need to look at the bank wholesale rate of exchange.

I have bought foreign currency traveler's checks in a few unusual circumstances from AAA and from a major US bank. I paid about 5% above the wholesale rate of exchange when I made the purchase.

I strongly considered sending a check card through the mail and letting the person draw out what I owed them. Then I would change my PIN. Using that method would have cost me 1% rather than 5%.

Was I concerned that too much would be withdrawn had I sent the card in the mail? No, I was not. Had no reason to be less than confident.

Now do I carry US dollar checks? Yes. Have I used them. Rarely. Once I was in a bind and the local bank was Cirrus only and I was Plus. Hence my ATM card did not work then and there.

That is the only time in many trips out of the USA that I have used one of my checks. Once, however, it felt very good to have a few on me. The date was 9/12/2001. I was in Austria and mostly what we were hearing was that air traffic had come to a stop. What would stop next?

Incidentally, there is one aspect of 9/11 that I think was never well known.
The Austrian government allowed free calls to the US on 9/11 for about 12 hours. I remember we were staying in an apartment in the &Ouml;tztal and our landlady came by to tell us about the announcement by the Austrian Telecommunications Ministry.

Like everyone else I agree w/janisj with one exception. I knew when I got to Paris I was taking a taxi to my hotel. I didn't think the cabbie would take a credit card and I didn't want to roam around wasting time and energy trying to find an ATM at CDG. I did exchange enough money for the taxi ride and a snack. I thought this was a small price to pay to have peace of mind.

katkat777, on my first trip to Europe, I departed without local currency and it was a mistake. Now I always arrive at the airport in a new country with some local money in my pocket.

At first, I would get some through a bank, but then realized that for small amounts, it was worth the cost of changing a few dollars at my departure airport from the US.

Now I bring back some foreign money at the end of my trip(s) and already have a few pounds, euros, pesos &amp; Canadian dollars for my next trips.

They also come in handy for some ebay purchases.

Keith

If you can not find a nearby credit union or a bank that does not charge ATMs fees, try USAA. You can get a no-fee ATM/debit card. USAA will refund up to $10/month in other banks' ATM fees. They levy no charge themselves.

Banks in Europe do not levy an ATM charge (the charge is from YOUR bank). So, in essence, USAA is a no-fee ATM card.
I have one and have the debit feature turned off. It is a pure ATM card for me.
I am like PatSox. I rarely use cash even at home. I had withdrawn 100 pounds once in England and came home with 70.

I use a separate credit card for most purchases. USAA only passes on the 1% MC/Visa fee. As of right now, Captial One does not even pass on this fee, so O% for foreign card use.

I still occasioanlly carry US$ TC as a back up. But the last time I had to use TCs (2002), I could only exchange them at the bank. And they were already converted into that country's currency!

Oh, forgot to add. Watch out for Dynamic Currency Conversion with your credit card usage. Look on this forum for details of this scheme.

It appears to be spreading to Italy, not France yet. Check your credit card slip carefully before signing to make sure this was not done (charge should ONLY be listed in euros). If you see US$ listed, DO NOT SIGN! You have the right to have the charge redone in euros.

I have recently switched back from ATMs, debit and credit cards to travellers' cheques. I get mine from AAA and don't pay any commission when I buy them. Even if I have to pay 2% when I cash them, this works out cheaper than my ATM and debit card fees. Also, I like to get quite a lot of cash at one go, not $100 or $200.
Carolena

Niblette, you seem to forget that not everyone is eligible for a USAA account. It is a great bank, but you have to be active duty military, guard, or reserve to become a member.

Heimdall,

ANYONE can get use the USAA banking services, including checking, savings accts aa well as ATM and credit cards.
Only the insurance products are limited to military personnel (past, present, family).

Sorry for the typos.
Meant to say anyone can use the USAA banking services. You can even apply over the phone. Google usaa for their website and numbers.

From what I gather, Capital One is the only credit card that doesn't charge the fees for foreign purchases (not even the 1% that is imposed by visa/mastercard)

I have a credit union, and they do not charge fees. I also have citibank, and they allow 5 transactions in a month before charging fees.

My only problem is, what are the limits on what can be withdrawn in a day? I am paying cash for all my hotels, so that's a lot of cash! they all give a lower rate if you pay cash though, so it's worth it.

Nibblette,

I tried to register for an account with USAA on their website as a non military or family member, and this is what I got:

&quot;Thank you for your interest. USAA is a member-owned insurance and financial services company.

Who can apply?
Active duty officer and enlisted personnel
National Guard and Reserve officer and enlisted personnel
Officer candidates in commissioning programs
Former spouses and adult children of USAA members&quot;

It didn't distinguish between financial and insurance services. As a USAA member for over 40 years, I have never heard of anyone obtaining their services without meeting the eligibility requirements. Nevertheless, I will call USAA during their office hours and pass on what they tell me.

I was under the same impression several months ago so I called USAA. Yes, anyone can use their banking services. ((b))

And my call also confirmed that you are correct, Nibblette, so my apologies. Thanks for bringing it up - I have learned something new today.

USAA is indeed a great bank, and provided there are no out of state issues (USAA is registered in Texas), would be a good choice for anyone.

My USAA debit card is the most useful piece of plastic in my wallet. I reside overseas, and use it for most of my foreign exchange transactions. I also use it for purchases, rarely ever writing checks anymore. The online banking service is excellent, enabling me to always know my current balance, and make transfers between checking, savings, and credit card accounts.

I also use it for insurance, but for that you do have to be a member.