Question about Euro's?

[lisiamc]

don't use atms the fees are to high they charge at both ends. Get them from Bank of America you will pay about 1.60 for 1.00.

 

That's a bit simplistic, and not true for everyone. My bank doesn't charge me for using an ATM overseas.

 

As other posters have mentioned, Rick Steves has some good information here: http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/moneytip.htm. There are also some very good threads if you look back a few pages. This one is helpful: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=730988. Some posters have done a really detailed analysis of the various methods.

 

Lisa

[whogo]

don't use atms the fees are to high they charge at both ends. Get them from Bank of America you will pay about 1.60 for 1.00.

I know of no European bank ATM's that charge a fee. "About 1.60" is currently $1.6439/€. The interbank exchange rate quoted on www.oanda.com is currently $1.5775/€. Bank of America's mark up is 4.2%. With an order worth $1000 or more you will not pay the $7.50 delivery fee.

 

ATM cards charge 0% to 3% plus a $0 to $5 withdrawal fee. Purchasing euros in the US will be cheaper for an unfortunate few at the high end of the ATM fee schedule.

 

Bank of America does not explain their mark ups in a straight forward manner: http://www.bankofamerica.com/foreigncurrency/index.cfm?template=fc_faqs.cfm#q20

 

Good luck getting Bank of America to confess that their ATM card is a better deal than their more profitable currency exchange service.

[Preds]

Does anyone know of a good Currency Exchange place in Western NY (Buffalo)? We also need euros for our Gem cruise in late June.

 

We're a family of 4, spending 2 nights pre-cruise and 1 night post-cruise in Barcelona. Aside from Cannes, we've settled on ship excursions for our ports in Italy and Malta, thus I don't need euros for that part of the trip aside from food and souvenirs.

 

I was thinking of bringing about 1,000euros. Think that will be enough? I'm not keen on using an ATM in Europe (I don't even like using them here). I'll use credit cards where I can (going to get a Capital One VISA specifically for this trip since they don't charge a fee), but obviously we'll need cash for taxi's, buses, food, etc.

[whogo]

Does anyone know of a good Currency Exchange place in Western NY (Buffalo)? We also need euros for our Gem cruise in late June.

Bank of America has branches. Any other large bank should sell foreign currency.

[Ohiosuzyq]

I am traveling to Europe in November for a cruise and I was wondering how much money would be adequate to take in Euro's? I have several tours planned I am pretty sure they take credit cards so would I be better off to pay for my excursions in Euro's or on a credit card? Any advice or help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

This is our first time to cruise the Med but our tour guide in Naples tells me that if we use a credit card in Italy, there is a 10% mark-up in the bill. Presumably this is an Italian law. As a former small business person, I know how much credit card use can cost the business and international credit cards always cost us more. I suppose that is the reason for the mark-up.

[Crusin6]

Does anyone know of a good Currency Exchange place in Western NY (Buffalo)? We also need euros for our Gem cruise in late June.

 

We're a family of 4, spending 2 nights pre-cruise and 1 night post-cruise in Barcelona. Aside from Cannes, we've settled on ship excursions for our ports in Italy and Malta, thus I don't need euros for that part of the trip aside from food and souvenirs.

 

I was thinking of bringing about 1,000euros. Think that will be enough? I'm not keen on using an ATM in Europe (I don't even like using them here). I'll use credit cards where I can (going to get a Capital One VISA specifically for this trip since they don't charge a fee), but obviously we'll need cash for taxi's, buses, food, etc.

You are going to need more than 1000E You are a family of 4 and 1000E is only$650 dollars!

[whogo]

You are going to need more than 1000E You are a family of 4 and 1000E is only$650 dollars!

You will not need many euros if you are able to use your credit card, and

 

€1000 is currently $1587 at the interbank rate.

a €1000 merchandise purchase is currently $1587 with a Capital One card.

€1000 is currently $1635 at a typical 3% credit card mark up or ATM withdrawal.

€1000 is currently $1654 from B of A beforehand.

€1000 is currently $1677 shipped to me by Wells Fargo.

€1000 is currently $1714 from Travelex online (plus shipping?)

[agabbymama]

You are going to need more than 1000E You are a family of 4 and 1000E is only$650 dollars!

 

Think you did something wrong here (backwards maybe?).

 

Whogo explains in the next post.

 

Thanks Coral Reef for the tip about AAA. I didn't even think of them for the EURO exchange. I ordered 400 EURO from AMEX and paid their higher rate, just to have some on hand when we leave, but think I will go to Triple AAA and get some more.

[whogo]

Thanks Coral Reef for the tip about AAA. I didn't even think of them for the EURO exchange. I ordered 400 EURO from AMEX and paid their higher rate, just to have some on hand when we leave, but think I will go to Triple AAA and get some more.

The AAA toll free currency exchange number connected to Wells Fargo. Last night I was quoted $1653.40 plus $8.00 shipping for €1000 delivered by Federal Express. That is 5.3% over the current $1.5785/€ interbank rate.

 

The Wells Fargo rep said that the tip packs are available from your local AAA office, currently €57 for $100, or $1.7554/€, or 11% over the interbank rate. It is possible that the tip pack prices vary from office to office.

 

A small withdrawal of euros from an ATM could be nearly as expensive as a tip pack. If it were possible to withdraw €57 with a Wells Fargo debit card, you would currently be charged $92.67 plus a $5.00 withdrawal fee, or $1.7135/€. A wise traveler would make one large withdrawal rather than a number of small withdrawals.

 

Note that there is nothing official about the interbank rate. It changes constantly, will vary between websites, and has already dropped to $1.5775/€ while I wrote this.

[lisiamc]

This is our first time to cruise the Med but our tour guide in Naples tells me that if we use a credit card in Italy, there is a 10% mark-up in the bill. Presumably this is an Italian law. As a former small business person, I know how much credit card use can cost the business and international credit cards always cost us more. I suppose that is the reason for the mark-up.

 

Your particular guide may charge extra for credit cards, but I haven't found this to be the case in restaurants, hotels, shops, etc in Italy. Unless they are including the 10% in the marked price and should be offering me a discount for cash!

 

Lisa