| Bob Brown |
Mar 24th, 2002 04:19 PM |
This topic usually gets kicked around about once a week on the European side.<BR>Advice varies as you might expect.<BR>But here is my approach to the problem of handling money for my trips to Europe.<BR><BR>1. Before leaving, I get the minimum amount of the currency of the first country I visit so that I will not need to exchange any US money nor will I need to find an ATM machine right away.<BR>Usually the minimum is around $100, but that varies. Any major bank can handle the exchange for you. However! You will pay about 5% more for the currency than you will in Europe.<BR><BR>2. Once in Europe, I use my ATM card for cash withdrawals. You get the best exchange rate that way. Usually, the rate is much better rate than exchanging American currency or traveler's checks.<BR><BR>3. Also, once there, I use my credit card(s) as much as possible. That way, I get the best exchange rate possible for a small amount of exchange. BUT, check with the issuer of the card to find out what the conversion fees.<BR>Visa and Master Charge add 1% for the conversion. Make sure that your bank does NOT tack on 2% more in charges to all conversions. I recenty dropped one credit card that had adopted that practice. <BR><BR>4. I take along a few hundred US dollars in traveler's checks as an emergency, last resort, reserve.<BR><BR>In the last 4 trips, I have cashed two checks. Obviously, most of them come home with me, and I simply used them here. My bank adds no extra charge when I acquire them, nor do I pay extra to cash them.<BR><BR>Why would I need to cash even 1 check?<BR>Once, at the Zurich airport train station, the ATM was down and I did not have time to look for another one.<BR>I wanted to make a purchase at a food store before getting on the train and the store did not take credit cards.<BR>The bank teller window was open, so I cashed a check.<BR>The second time I was in a small Swiss village and needed Swiss francs. The bank took only Master Card debit cards in the ATM machine. My debit card is Visa and it would not work.<BR><BR>In that respect, I might add, I carry both a standard ATM card and a debit (check) card. And I take along two credit cards, just in case one of them fails. That happened once too. I was in a little restaurant in Paris and the waiter came back indicating that my credit card did not work.<BR>Why, I never new. The second one did and he was satisfied.<BR><BR>Other travelers have different strategies, but the ideas I described above have worked for me.
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