Where is the best place to exchange for Euros in Venice? I have read that ATM's are a good place to exchange for Euros but do not know what kind of bank card we will need in order to use the ATM"s. (We only have a Wachovia bank card.) We will board a cruise ship in a couple of days. Is the cruise ship a good place to exhange money?
Thanks for your help.

Contact Wachovia and ask them. You need a four-digit PIN and touching base with the bank should provide you with the information you need, as well as alerting them to the fact that you will be using the card abroad. I suspect that a cruise ship is probably NOT a good place to exchange money, in general. Also, in general, exchanging dollars for Euros before you leave is not a very good deal.

It will be interesting to hear other posts on this topic, from more experienced travelers. Our local radio "consumer Guru" has always said that the best return is to just use your ATM card. I am wondering if that is still true, as lots of banks used to give you THE best rate, but have now found that they can make a few bucks from the transaction. Frankly, I think you can drive yourself nuts trying to shop for THE best deal on which bank gives you the best rate.

In our many trips to Europe in the past few years, we literally NEVER exchange any money. ATM machines are EVERYWHERE over there. (Just make sure that you have enough in your checking acct.

One safeguard that we use is to have at least 2 ATM cards from different banks, just in case one doesn't work, for some odd reason. I think ATM machines will also process a cash advance on your credit card.

If you use the cruise ship to exchange your money, you will get Screwed -- with a capital "S."

I took a cruise before the Euro, and between France, Spain, and Italy, I took a royal beating.

Get your Euros when you go ashore using the ATM's. Even if you use your credit card to take a cash advance, you will do much better than the cruise ship. ATM all the way!!!

Yes, ATM's are normally the best way. The international transaction fee is whatever is charged by your home bank (usually $0-3) and you get a good daily exchange rate. The most widely found systems are Cirrus or PLUS. Flip your card over and see what logos are on the back.

Another option is taking cash or travelers checks and standing in line at a bank. Not the best way, but an alternative way to get Euro.

I'm guessing that the cruise ship will not be a very good deal, but I don't know that for sure.

As said above, you need a 4-digit PIN. Also tell your bank that you will be traveling in Europe and using the card there. The same goes for credit cards. They prefer if you call so they can mark your account as traveling overseas.

Before we left for Italy in March, I went to the local American Express office in New York before our trip to Italy to get just $100 in Euros. They charged me $1.38 when the daily rate was $1.22. That's highway robbery.

So I opted to just get $50 to have some cash on hand. When you arrive in Venice, there are ATM's in the airport or you can wait to get into Venice and just look for a "Bancomat."

A group of us traveled in Europe last month, and had a variety of methods to exchange money. I polled several people, entered the info on the www.xe.com credit card charge page and got the results. Bottom line - call your bank and ask some questions.

For a debit card: What is the foreign transaction fee for cash withdrawals? For purchases? What is the daily cash withdrawal limit, and can it be increased? What is the fee for using the card out of network (Plus, Cirrus, Maestro, etc.)?

For a credit card: Ask the above questions, but add - What is the cash advance fee?

Our charges ranged to an exchange fee of almost nothing (as determined by www.xe.com) to a whopping 8% of transaction amount on a prepaid cash card a teenager carried.

Also, as stated before, make sure you have a four digit pin and notify your bank of your international travel. An alternate back up card is pretty necessary, too. There were several times when one of our cards wouldn't work for no apparent reason.

Remember, when you are getting cash from an ATM machine, you're getting the bank's exchange rate, and they buy in bulk. When you exchange money on your own, you're getting a less desirable deal, because you're not exchanging so much.

Hi ladell,

I agree. Use your ATM card upon arrival.

The ship is the worst place to buy euros.

Your Wachovia ATM card should work on either Cirrus, Plus or MC networks.

Look for the logo on the back.