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Currency exchange

yoshi14

By yoshi14,
in Princess Cruises

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frugaltravel

frugaltravel

Posted
Posted (edited)
15 minutes ago, yoshi14 said:

Thank you.  I'll get it from my bank before I leave

That also almost always is a poor exchange rate. The best way is an ATM machine as was said above - not just 7-11 but any ATM - or a local bank once you arrive. You pay dearly for the convenience of getting foreign currency at a bank in the USA

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pompeii

pompeii

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The Diamond's ATM gives cash in USD, not yen, so then you would have to exchange those dollars at the currency exchange machine on board, with a poor exchange rate plus a surcharge.  You'll be much better off using an ATM in port, especially if you have an account, like Schwab for example, that doesn't charge any fees for using out of network ATMs.  I use mine every time I travel and it hasn't let me down yet.  Lots of people prefer to get currency at home before they go, but you pay for that service.

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frugaltravel

frugaltravel

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4 hours ago, patrickmoran said:

Best to get your yen at the airport when you land. If you need to top up, then use ATMs in the various cities that you visit. The best is to use an ATM attached to a bank.

At an airport when you land, but at an ATM associated with a bank, not a currency exchange desk that has lower rates and higher fees.

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leck57 Holiday Sharing Rare

leck57

Posted
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1 hour ago, frugaltravel said:

At an airport when you land, but at an ATM associated with a bank, not a currency exchange desk that has lower rates and higher fees.

 

Exactly. Currency exchange desks at airports are a rip off. The last thing I want to do at an airport after a long flight is look for an ATM and that's why I always take a bit of local currency with me from home. In this Country at least there are a number of currency exchanges that have decent rates and no fees. Lets face it even a 2% difference on $500 is only 10 bucks. Hardly worth the bother, but at airports the difference is likely to be much larger.

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frugaltravel

frugaltravel

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15 minutes ago, leck57 said:

 

Exactly. Currency exchange desks at airports are a rip off. The last thing I want to do at an airport after a long flight is look for an ATM and that's why I always take a bit of local currency with me from home. In this Country at least there are a number of currency exchanges that have decent rates and no fees. Lets face it even a 2% difference on $500 is only 10 bucks. Hardly worth the bother, but at airports the difference is likely to be much larger.

I don't find that it is hard at all to find an ATM machine at an airport. They're all over the arrivals area. I guess your concept of what a hassle is is much different than mine 🙂

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Ombud

Ombud

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11 hours ago, frugaltravel said:

That also almost always is a poor exchange rate. The best way is an ATM machine as was said above - not just 7-11 but any ATM - or a local bank once you arrive. You pay dearly for the convenience of getting foreign currency at a bank in the USA

I found 7-11s exchange rate to be fair in Japan and Korea. Normally I look for an ATM associated with an international bank as my bank will reimburse the $3 fee. But I didn't want to waste time in my 1st port (Aomori) and only do the ATMs once. But an international bank would have been preferable 

 

Enjoy your time on Diamond. I loved the make your own sushi & udon bar in Horizon Court 

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caribill

caribill

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7 hours ago, frugaltravel said:

I don't find that it is hard at all to find an ATM machine at an airport. They're all over the arrivals area. I guess your concept of what a hassle is is much different than mine 🙂

But there are two types of ATMs at airports.

 

One type is owned by a bank and that is what you are referring to. The other is owned by a currency exchange company and the rates are very bad.

 

Some airports have switched to only having the type owned by the current exchange companies.

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Greg4502

Greg4502

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Posted

If I need currency, for a country that I will be traveling to. I get it from my bank. A couple of years ago, some of the currency I needed, they could not get. I was able to get from a currency exchange office. The fee was not bad.

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frugaltravel

frugaltravel

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6 hours ago, caribill said:

But there are two types of ATMs at airports.

 

One type is owned by a bank and that is what you are referring to. The other is owned by a currency exchange company and the rates are very bad.

 

Some airports have switched to only having the type owned by the current exchange companies.

I travel internationally quite a bit and have yet to find an airport without an ATM from a bank. Just curious where you have found airports with ATMs only from currency exchange companies.

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BarbinMich

BarbinMich

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We have sailed to/from Europe many times and some years ago I used to go to a local currency exchange before we left.  Once I got active on CC, I gave foreign ATMs in Euro nations a chance and that's what I do now.  Once, out of desperation, I had to use the ship's ATM and it's true what they say--don't use it!  Not only a bad exchange rate, but also a service charge, I believe.

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caribill

caribill

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2 hours ago, Greg4502 said:

If I need currency, for a country that I will be traveling to. I get it from my bank. A couple of years ago, some of the currency I needed, they could not get. I was able to get from a currency exchange office. The fee was not bad.

 

A debit card from some banks allows foreign ATM withdrawals with no foreign transaction fee. Most cards charge a fee that can be up to 3% of the transaction.

 

But there is also a second factor in what you pay when you do a currency exchange and that is the exchange rate. Most currency exchange offices as well as banks use a purchase rate that is about 6% higher than the official rate, so a "fee that is not bad" must be added to the 6% additional cost of the poor exchange rate. So using a debit card from a bank that does not have a foreign exchange fee and that uses the current Interbank rate for the currency can save you up to 9% of the transaction.

 

Some foreign ATMs do have a transaction fee and some debit cards will also refund that fee.

 

Nobody ever comes out ahead by using a currency exchange booth at an airport.

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caribill

caribill

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3 minutes ago, BarbinMich said:

We have sailed to/from Europe many times and some years ago I used to go to a local currency exchange before we left.  Once I got active on CC, I gave foreign ATMs in Euro nations a chance and that's what I do now.  Once, out of desperation, I had to use the ship's ATM and it's true what they say--don't use it!  Not only a bad exchange rate, but also a service charge, I believe.

 

Even worse on the ship is when you exchange that foreign currency back to US $. The rate is just as bad as when you used the machine to purchase the currency plus, of course, the $5 or higher fee. If you exchange $100 for a foreign currency and exchange it right back to US $, you will lose about 20% of the value.

 

I was on a recent cruise on another cruise line where they would exchange US$ for Japanese Yen at the customer service desk. There was no fee, but the exchange rate was 8% above the current Interbank rate.

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