Question for Capital One Users

[CleoPat]

I have just opened an account with Capitol One and plan on using my debit card while in Italy/Croatia figuring I would get Euros at the ATMs instead of charging. If any of you have done that, could you let me know if I can use ANY ATM machine and not pay a charge or are there certain ones I have to use? I haven't gotten my card yet. Thanks.

[eandj]

I believe it has to connected to cirrus or plus. Those symbols are found on the back of debit cards.

 

Note that debit cards DO have a daily limit which you need to find out about before your trip. Also be sure to let your bank or credit company know where and when you'll be traveling for security resons. Or you may find yourself locked out of your card. (protection for you re theft)

[TinaLee]

I hope you mean you've opened a bank account, and not a credit card account? If you use your Capitol One CREDIT card to make cash advances to get Euro, the interest accrues from the moment you make the withdrawl, and they can add up quickly. We use our Capitol One card for credit purchases only, not for cash advances, and there are no fees imposed by the card company and a good conversion rate. We use our debit card from our home back for "cash" withdrawls for euro spending money.

 

Hope that helps!

[samscruiser]

Also make sure your pin is only 4 digits. Many European ATM's won't accept pin's greater than 4.

[SuburbanMom]

I hope you mean you've opened a bank account, and not a credit card account? If you use your Capitol One CREDIT card to make cash advances to get Euro, the interest accrues from the moment you make the withdrawl, and they can add up quickly. We use our Capitol One card for credit purchases only, not for cash advances, and there are no fees imposed by the card company and a good conversion rate. We use our debit card from our home back for "cash" withdrawls for euro spending money.

 

Hope that helps!

 

What do u mean by "We use our debit card from our home back for "cash" withdrawls for euro spending money." I realize that Capital 1 does not tack on a fee for money conversion so I plan on using my card for credit purchases.

[lambs2]

I hope you mean you've opened a bank account, and not a credit card account? If you use your Capitol One CREDIT card to make cash advances to get Euro, the interest accrues from the moment you make the withdrawl, and they can add up quickly. We use our Capitol One card for credit purchases only, not for cash advances, and there are no fees imposed by the card company and a good conversion rate. We use our debit card from our home back for "cash" withdrawls for euro spending money.

 

Hope that helps!

I was thinking the same thing when I read the original post! Thanks for expressing it, Tina! We also only used our Capital One card for credit card purchases and a separate debit card for cash. This article shows some of the financial institutions that off the best deals for travelers using credit and debit cards and rates and fees:http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange

[TinaLee]

What do u mean by "We use our debit card from our home back for "cash" withdrawls for euro spending money." I realize that Capital 1 does not tack on a fee for money conversion so I plan on using my card for credit purchases.

 

What I mean is that when I am charging something, like my hotel, a fancy dinner, etc., then I use my Capitol One card. For spending money, money for gelatto and espresso, cash for my private tours, I use my local bank debit card at an ATM machine to withdraw cash euro. Luckily, my bank does not charge any ATM fees, so this isn't an issue for us. And the exchange rate is the interbank rate plus the 1% Visa fee (it's a Visa debit card).

 

I guess the point I was trying to make is that a credit card and a debit card are two entirely different animals, and people shouldn't think you can use a CREDIT card at an ATM to withdraw euro for spending money, etc., or they are going to get hit with some HUGE interest charges. For all I know, Capitol One may also charge fees for cash withdrawls using their credit card. I've never done it, so I'm not sure. I just know that we get a great exchange rate and no fees when we use our Capitol One as a CREDIT card, not to make cash advances.

 

:)

[SuburbanMom]

What I mean is that when I am charging something, like my hotel, a fancy dinner, etc., then I use my Capitol One card. For spending money, money for gelatto and espresso, cash for my private tours, I use my local bank debit card at an ATM machine to withdraw cash euro. Luckily, my bank does not charge any ATM fees, so this isn't an issue for us. And the exchange rate is the interbank rate plus the 1% Visa fee (it's a Visa debit card).

 

I guess the point I was trying to make is that a credit card and a debit card are two entirely different animals, and people shouldn't think you can use a CREDIT card at an ATM to withdraw euro for spending money, etc., or they are going to get hit with some HUGE interest charges. For all I know, Capitol One may also charge fees for cash withdrawls using their credit card. I've never done it, so I'm not sure. I just know that we get a great exchange rate and no fees when we use our Capitol One as a CREDIT card, not to make cash advances.

 

:)

 

TinaLee, thanks for the explanation.:)

[CleoPat]

Yes, I opened a bank account with Capitol One, not a credit card. I will use the DEBIT card for ATM withdrawals to Euros cash spending money and to pay my hotels. Just wanted to make sure about the ATM charges. I had Bank of America but it was not good Italy ATMs. Does Capital One automatically give you a 4-digit pin number or do you have to ask them for that:confused:

[Softball20]

We opened a Capital One credit card account last year before we went to Italy because they had no foreign transaction fees. We also used it, and perhaps one of our other cards, for cash advances in euros for day-to-day cash while there. I do not believe that we got hit with any sort of interest/finance charges for those cash advances.

[Softball20]

I stand corrected. My husband just reminded me that we did get hit with finance charges for those occasions that we used the "credit" card for cash advances rather than a "debit" card. We did still use the Capital One card for all credit purchases because of the fact they do not charge any fees for foreign transactions.

[shop516]

I was wondering the same thing, so I spoke with commerce bank today and was told that they do NOT charge any fees for the ATM and that as long as you keep a balance of $ 2500 in your account they will credit any fees on your statement charged by other banks anywhere in the WORLD. sounds like i'll be opening an account at commerce for my trip!!

Good Luck!

[slomotion]

Bank of America has an agreement with Deutsch Bank and Barclay's Bank to have BOA customers use the others ATM's in Europe with no charge and Deutsch Bank and Barclay's Bank's customers get to use BOA's ATMs in the US for cash withdrawls with no additional fees.

 

This applies to debit cards NOT credit cards

[PIC-2 psychologist]

For those ofus who continue to "plan" and only have experience when American Express Travelers Cheques were the way to go in Europe, I offer the following couple of observations:

Impressed enough by observations on CC that I identified 2 close-by Capital One branches:

Have (1) credit cards No Hassle Platinum Visa (with 4-digit pin)for purchases to be sent home, etc. where I want the same protection and security I have when making online purchases inn the US. Cards charge no conversion fee. My other best credit card (will take as backup) is a USAA card that charges 1% (others charge 3% as indicated in lambs2 table from wikipedia). Under no circumstances take a cash advance from a credit card (very high interest rate that usually starts when you have the money in your hands. Considering the price of meals and new size/weight luggage limitations, will consider mailing stuff home. Considering we will end up in Venice, also limiting ourselves each to one less than 50 pound under 62-inch suitcase (a true challange).

Actually (2) opened a Tower Advantage checking account at Capital One.

Each of us have our own debit (Master Card) for cash withdrawals at ATM machines. Unlike the wikipedia table which only lists Visa and a money market account (some previous arrangement?), have been as assured as Capital One can, that these debit Mastercards will work with European ATMs and that as long as there is a $5000 balance, ATM fees will be reimbursed. This is to draw out euros or Turkish lira for tours, food, small cash purchases. I have been asked to return to the branch bank the end of this month if I want the withdrawal daily maximum modified (have to decide; don't want to have to find an ATM at each port).

(3) I have been advised by USAA and Capital One to call 7-10 days before our departure and provide countries to be visited and date of departure and date of return so that debit and credit cards will work in Europe.

(4) Don't expect, if you are going on a ship with 2,000-3,500 passengers to use the purser as your private bank. My understanding is that each euro draw with include a fee plus very unfavorable conversion rates (plus a long wait in line).

In expectation, I found that credit and debit cards arrived in less than 2 weeks so that most folks have plenty of time to take these actions.

I certainly would appreciate any financial advice beyond the above from readers with experience on tours in Europe!

Happy traveling,

David

[lambs2]

Bank of America has an agreement with Deutsch Bank and Barclay's Bank to have BOA customers use the others ATM's in Europe with no charge and Deutsch Bank and Barclay's Bank's customers get to use BOA's ATMs in the US for cash withdrawls with no additional fees.

 

This applies to debit cards NOT credit cards

 

 

Hope you are not looking for either of the banks above in Italy because you will not find them there. Bank of America has NO financial partner banks in Italy and charges a $5. per transaction use with any other ATM's in Italy. That is why we used our Paypal debit card in Italy. Only $1. per transaction and 1% conversion fee.

 

We researched and made many calls to Bank of America, insisting to speak with an expert in Iinternational banking, to determine this before our Mediterranean cruise last May. We used this website http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange

to help us find the best card, but in Florida there were not as many choices for us as in some states so we went with our existing Paypal debit card, pre-loaded it with cash, notified them of the dates we would be overseas. All went well and we were very pleased with the exchange rate we got while we were in Europe. The bank ATM's we used in Italy and France charged no usage fees to us.

[CorgiGuy]

Hi all,

 

Since this is somewhat related to the original topic, I thought this website might be useful for some of you.

 

When you get on the website below, just input the country & city you will be visiting, and it will list all the Visa ATM locations & addresses within the city specified.

 

http://visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/jsp/SearchPage.jsp

 

Stay well,

 

Anthony

[lambs2]

We used Mastercard so use this link just like advice in previous post:

http://goeurope.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=goeurope&cdn=travel&tm=6&gps=98_242_785_580&f=20&su=p284.8.150.ip_&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.mastercard.com/cardholderservices/atm/

[mixed family]

Hope you are not looking for either of the banks above in Italy because you will not find them there. Bank of America has NO financial partner banks in Italy and charges a $5. per transaction use with any other ATM's in Italy. That is why we used our Paypal debit card in Italy. Only $1. per transaction and 1% conversion fee.

 

We researched and made many calls to Bank of America, insisting to speak with an expert in Iinternational banking, to determine this before our Mediterranean cruise last May. We used this website http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange

to help us find the best card, but in Florida there were not as many choices for us as in some states so we went with our existing Paypal debit card, pre-loaded it with cash, notified them of the dates we would be overseas. All went well and we were very pleased with the exchange rate we got while we were in Europe. The bank ATM's we used in Italy and France charged no usage fees to us.

 

 

Not sure exactly what Lambs2 is speaking of. I use BOA and I found 19 Deutsch banks in Rome alone. They are for the Visa cardholders so maybe she was speaking of mastercard.