traveler's checks
 

So why is everyone so against using traveler's checks? Banks used to give the best exchange rates without a fee for TC's. My bank will, of course, charge me .5% to buy them, but that still beats the 3% fee for an atm. Anyone know the french or english banks' charges for travelers checks?

Please put "traveler's checks and ATMs" in the SEARCH the FORUMS slot. There was a lengthy and comprehensive discussion of these + ATM use and I don't feel repeating it all. Just take my word for it -- TCs give you an exchange rate about 10% worse than the exchange u get on an ATM (which is usually 1% over the day's prime rate).. And the ATM machine itself doesn't charge the 3%, nor is it the European bank, it is YOUR hometown bank. There are banks that charge NO % and NO per-transaction fee for up to 10 transactions per month ... TD Bank, for instance (I have an account with TC solely for my trips) and almost any credit union. . You just need to do a little research. On the previous thread I gave a link listing the charges of all the major US banks.

I am not up on the latest for England, but I know some places in Paris that have markups of only 2-3 pct. Most are higher markups, though. There isn't one standard throughout the entire country, Paris is a very large city so has a more competitive money market. I don't know where you have been, but in France, it was never true that banks gave the best rates on them (in fact, it isn't true in Mexico, either, which is just one place I've used them as they are pretty common). Banks don't want money changing business, they have better things to do with their time. Even pre-ATM when I went to Paris, few banks wanted that business and their rates were worse than bureaux de change, which makes sense. Bureaux de change have very low costs and that is their business, they should have better rates.

My bank doesn't charge me anything to get them, actually, but I have a premium acct. The problem is that in many European countries it is difficult to exchange them now and most places give much worse markups than 3 pct. I remember when I was in some Polish cities where no bank woudl exchange them and only one exchange bureau would and charged about 10 pct markup. I didn't need them, I was just curious and so looked as a matter of market research or something.

I just happen to know good places in Paris as I've been there a lot and one is near my usual place, but most people won't know the best places.

"My bank will, of course, charge me .5% to buy them, but that still beats the 3% fee for an atm."

Do you know what exchange rate you are getting on TCs when you buy them or on ATM withdrawal? You need to add that to the "fee" or "charge" to get the real cost. I think you will be surprised

And if you are paying 3% on withdrawals then you need to find a better bank / credit union

BECAUSE you have to GO somewhere and get them cashed, for one thing. Convenience counts.

1. No one needs to pay 3% on withdrawals.

2. You likely are being charged a fair amount that you're not aware of to buy them.

3. You could visit 1,000 establishments throughout Europe before finding a place (restaurant, store, whatever) that would let you pay with them.

4. You have to find a bank that will let you cash them (that'll be a chore, right there), and if you do find such a bank, it will likely charge you 10% to cash them. If they're in dollars, even more than 10%.

Summary: Bad Idea.

"<i>So why is everyone so against using traveler's checks? </i>"

Simply because they don't work any more. Years ago they made sense -- now they don't. You will NOT get travelers checks in any foreign currency for 0.5% mark up. You will pay a premium to buy them, will have a hard time finding anyplace that accepts them, and when you do, will pay a small to HUGE premium to cash them.

Forget about TCs

I few years ago I called AAA and asked the rates on Travelers' check in Euros (there is no additional charge for TCs from AAA) and the exchange rate was incredibly high. I can't remember the exact rate but it was at least 5% more than I could get from an ATM machine.

AAA also told me that they only sell starter packs of checks in foreign currency as there is little demand.

I'm not against using TCs but I believe in taking the easiest and most economical route so have been using ATM machines for the last decade.

First Trav Checks are not accepted at hotels, store or restaurants - so you need to go to a bank to cash them. Banks don;t like them - since there is no way to tell if they have been reported stolen or not - so many banks don;t want to cash them at all - and some till cash only for their own patrons. Typical charge (for people who will change them with ID after you wait online after you find a back that will change them) is about 8% over the Interbank exchange rate.

Credit cards and cash pulled from ATMS will cost from 1 to 3% over the Interbank rate - depending on the rules of your bank/credit card issuer.

This will probably save you about 5% of your vacation cash.

There is NO reason to take Trav checks. They are dinosaurs.

I used TCs (in euros, not USDs) in two situations this past fall in France.

The first was at the B&B where I stayed, where the owner would take TCs but not credit cards.

The second was for the Battlebus tours in Bayeux.

So I would say, be aware of what type of payment will be permitted or required at places you will visit on your trip. In some cases, it might be helpful to carry TCs (in euros).

In Ireland a couple of years ago, traveling companion had brought traveler's checks. We spent a pleasant hour wasting time in a cute town while she tried to cash them in a bank. I remember we purchased a little magnifying glass so we could read the maps easier. She gave up and took the tc home with her, never to be used again. They are an outdated method of ccurrency. Use the ATMs.

When I first went to the US (mid 1980s) I was amazed that I could use travellers cheques in shops etc. I've not used them in 20 years I think. ( I think in the 1970s I used them on a school trip to France) We just don't have the history of using them.

tom18: Both of those places (the B&B and BattleBus) would have taken cash so there still wasn't a reason to have TCs. Some B&Bs don't take credits cards -- but they ALL will take cash. Since those TCs cost you more than just using your ATM card to get € currency --you weren't ahead because you used TCs. . . .

All true, but...

TCs might be worth having with you, for YOUR peace of mind in cases of serious emergency. YOu won't use them, so there's no point in buying them in any currency other than your own. But a few hundred or thousand dollars in your suitcase, in a form that means they can't easily be stolen, MIGHT just be useful if the French power system collapses or Martians disable the German ATM system.

Take them home at the end of the holiday and put the cash back into your account. You might not have lost anything at all, except the forfeited interest.

But whatever you do, don't delude yourself anyone - not even banks - under normal circumstances, will want to have anything to do with these quaint prehistoric relics.

My GF needed to use her back up TCs in Quito just before Christmas.

It took the whole morning to find anywhere to cash them.

"This will probably save you about 5% of your vacation cash."

And that's assuming you got a good rate when the TCs were issued

When I went to England in 1999, I took travelers checks. I purchased the checks (American Express) in pounds. While I had no trouble cashing them at the AMEX office, when I tried to cash my last 50 pound check at a bank, they charged me 10 pounds!

Never again! ATMs are much better.

"So why is everyone so against using traveler's checks?"

Because it's so 1970-ish.

Why doesn't anyone send telegrams anymore?

Why is it so hard to find a good chandler nowadays?

That was then; accept progress.

Not only do you have to find a bank that will cash your travelers' checks, you have to make sure to go during banking hours. All this takes unnecessary time out of a trip when the alternative is so easy. And cheaper. The smallest towns in Europe will have ATMs.

I was given travelers checks as a gift for Christmas as someone knew I was traveling in March, what do you suggest I do with them now? Should I cash them in the US and deposit the cash into my acct? From what I read, their not really used in London and Rome..... Any help would be great!

"Should I cash them in the US and deposit the cash into my acct?"

Yes