Change dollars to euros before taking taxi?

[palm aire]

Do we have to change our dollars to euros before taking taxi to hotel? If so, where in the airport would we do that?

[shoshona2]

No one in Europe wants U.S. dollars except maybe Russia. We have been in Europe twice this year and are leaving next Friday for Rome. Get Euros at a bank in the U.S. or look for an exchange window at the airport upon arrival.

 

Use your credit card (advise your bank in the U.S. before you leave) wherever you can in Europe. There will be a 3% exchange rate added by YOUR bank. Carry TWO versateller cards in case one doesn't work in Europe.

 

Sheila

[Hlitner]

You do not say which airport or country, but I can tell you what we have been doing for about 30 years. We do not change any currency in the USA because its a pain and the exchange rates/fees are pretty bad. When we arrive at any major airport in Europe, we simply get money out of an ATM at the airport. There are always some ATMs in or near the baggage pick-up area and there is always at least one bank near the baggage area that will change money at better rates than in the USA. Dollars are not popular in Europe (about as popular as the Euro is in the USA) and if you try to use dollars iin a taxi the driver might accept them, but at a very bad exchange rate. The previous poster is correct about carrying multiple cards when you travel. Make sure you notify your ATM bank and your credit card companies about your itinerary. By the way, to use an ATM in Europe you should have a 4 digit PIN number and know the PIN in numbers since most ATMs do not have any letters on the keyboard.

 

Hank

[happy cruzer]

Not all cc's have the 3% charge. Do some searchs and you'll find some that don't. I think Citibank is one that does not have the fee.

 

Yes, you will need local currency for tha first taxi ride in Europe.

[2ndtimecruising]

I was looking at exchange rates online and I saw $1 US is equal to .7 euros. Does this sounds correct? So you basically lose $.30 on every dollar you spend in Europe? I was going to exchange money at my bank here in VA but I'll just wait till we land in Germany or Spain.

 

Will the aiport in Frankfurt have the same rates as Barcelona's airport or not necesarily?

 

What kind of fee's will you have to pay to exchange money? Is there a %? Thanks.

[hajekfam]

The exchange rate varies each day depending on how the dollar is doing against the foreign currency. We usually bring a couple of hundred in Euros to start with - just so that we don't have to find the ATM innediately on landing or in case of a problem. We then use ATM's to get more along the trip.

[Hlitner]

I was looking at exchange rates online and I saw $1 US is equal to .7 euros. Does this sounds correct? So you basically lose $.30 on every dollar you spend in Europe? I was going to exchange money at my bank here in VA but I'll just wait till we land in Germany or Spain.

 

Will the aiport in Frankfurt have the same rates as Barcelona's airport or not necesarily?

 

What kind of fee's will you have to pay to exchange money? Is there a %? Thanks.

 

Yes, this is about right. The current wholesale rate (nobody gets this rate) is 1 Euro = $1.43 or $1 = .70 Euros. The sad thing for we Americans is that the Euro used to cost about .89 cents (vs the current 1.44) and the dollar has declined over 20% in the past 3 years. To put this in simple terms, the dinner for two we used to get in Paris for about $70 now would cost about about $110 for exactly the same meal. You might want to ask why this is happening? Well, just blame our wonderful Congress and their willingness to spend, spend, spend.

 

Hank

[Travelbug 2]

The exchange rate varies each day depending on how the dollar is doing against the foreign currency. We usually bring a couple of hundred in Euros to start with - just so that we don't have to find the ATM innediately on landing or in case of a problem. We then use ATM's to get more along the trip.

 

 

Yes this works perfectly, we do the same when in Europe. Make sure to get enough at one time, getting money from an ATM in small amounts can be costly, we usually get 400 Euros at a time.

[Hlitner]

Yes this works perfectly, we do the same when in Europe. Make sure to get enough at one time, getting money from an ATM in small amounts can be costly, we usually get 400 Euros at a time.

 

 

You do raise another issue. There are always daily limits on ATM withdrawals and we have run into situations where the European ATMs sometimes have lower limits than set by our bank. We have sometimes tried to withdraw certain amounts (such as 400 Euros) only to have the transaction rejected. When this happens we just reduce the request to 300 Euros and it usually works. We carry two different ATM cards (drawn on different accounts and banks) so that we always have a back-up.

 

Hank

[shoshona2]

Hi Happy Cruzer,

 

Just wanted you to know that my husband and I have two Citi Cards each and they all add 3% to our bill when we return from Europe.

 

Sheila

[babsinpbg]

I just changed $100.00 at my local AAA office and rec'd a whopping 61 Euro in return. (They have premade packets called "Trip-packs" in this amount.) I just wanted enough for the cab ride to the hotel (45 Euro) and then we'll find an ATM. A terrible exchange rate, but I'm just considering it a "less hassle at the airport" fee.

[whogo]

I was looking at exchange rates online and I saw $1 US is equal to .7 euros. Does this sounds correct? So you basically lose $.30 on every dollar you spend in Europe?

You do not lose $.30 on every dollar you spend. $1 is currently worth €.70. If you only get €.65 for $1, that is where you have lost the money.

 

I find it easier to compare prices by looking at the exchange rate the other way around. €1 is currently worth $1.4280.

[Love Cruis'n]

We also got about $100 worth of Euros before our trip this past summer – lousy exchange rate, but wanted taxi fare in my pocket. It costs us a few extras bucks, but we were so out of it upon arrival (not a lot of sleep while in flight) I’m glad we did that. I did not want to be forced to seek out an ATM upon arrival at the airport.

 

Once at our hotel, we took a walk, and one of our first stops was a local ATM where I took out 300 Euros and we went from there…

 

I’d say, don’t get hung up over trying to save a dollar here and there. If you’re like us, and just wanted the comfort of having a few Euros in your pocket before boarding your flight, then do it. It’s a vacation, so try to relax and enjoy. :)

[cruiseluv]

The only card I'm aware that does not charge that ludicrous 3% is Capital One. I ahve a Citibank and a Chase Visa and they both charge the 3%. We now only use Capital One.

[pris993]

After spending 1000s on a cruise and air, I don't worry about exchanging a couple of 1000 dollars to euro's before I leave for Europe. It is a lot easier to get some euro's here for taxis to ship and miscellaneous purchases in ports. Taking some US currency too for tips and non euro ports, i.e., Egypt and Israel. We do what is easy. We only use credit cards for hotels and our cruise ship account. Have travelled for over 40 years. When the dollar had more value it was easy to exchange money with taxi drivers, local banks, hotels. Now that many countries are on the euro, it is just as easy to exchange a a reasonable sum before we leave home and not need to worry about finding an exchange center. Once we were in La Havre France and could not find a bank to change dollars. We were lucky we had been in Belgium the day before and exchanged about $200. We had just enough to buy a bottle wine and a few other items. :)

[whogo]

The only card I'm aware that does not charge that ludicrous 3% is Capital One. I ahve a Citibank and a Chase Visa and they both charge the 3%. We now only use Capital One.

Capital One is not the only 0% card. There are others listed here

http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange

Rates of 1% to 2.5% are also available.

 

3% is not that bad of a deal. Banks typically charge 5%. Exchange Bureaus may charge 13%.

[pcur]

Stop at an ATM in the airport and get enough Euros for the cab ride, even if you have to pay an ATM fee. It's just to get you by.

 

Bank of America and Barclays partner and there are no fees using your BofA ATM card at any Barclays ATM, and they are ALL over Europe.

 

Barclays are usually in airports, too. I just ask at the information desk. If not, then I just use whatever is there.

 

Then, we either hit a Barclays on the way, or we use the currency desk on board the ship, which is still cheaper than the dreaded currency exchange kiosk in the airport.

 

We've been to Europe 3 times on cruises, and we just get enough Euros for a few days. With all the Barclays all over, it's never been a problem, especially with the cruise exchange desk available as a back-up.

 

Leftover Euros go to the crew as tips at the end of the cruise.

 

We also use Capital One. The previous poster is correct: no surcharge on purchases; just the exchange rate for the day.

[slomotion]

The only card I'm aware that does not charge that ludicrous 3% is Capital One. I ahve a Citibank and a Chase Visa and they both charge the 3%. We now only use Capital One.

 

Does Capital One treat this transaction as a cash advance?

 

Is there an extra charge of any kind to your account or is it just the US dollar amount of the Euros?

 

a

[RetiredFL]

Since we like to cruise and most of Europe uses the Euro we always make sure we have a hundred or so left over and keep it for the next trip. (Coins are always good to keep for the WC etc.) That way we always have "seed" money to get started. (Keep a baggie in your carry on)

Considering how much the euro has appreciated over the last few months it seems like it has been our best 'investment"

[pcur]

Does Capital One treat this transaction as a cash advance?

 

Is there an extra charge of any kind to your account or is it just the US dollar amount of the Euros?

 

a

 

Capital One should be used ONLY for credit card PURCHASES. That's where they do not add on the 3% surcharge. They only chargethe US dollar amount of the Euros.

 

If you use it for a cash advance, then you WILL pay their rather high cash advance fee.

 

Therefore,

 

credit card purchases = Capital One

cash = ATM, preferrably one that has a partnership with your bank, such as Barclays with Bank of America.

[slomotion]

Capital One should be used ONLY for credit card PURCHASES. That's where they do not add on the 3% surcharge. They only chargethe US dollar amount of the Euros.

 

If you use it for a cash advance, then you WILL pay their rather high cash advance fee.

 

Therefore,

 

credit card purchases = Capital One

cash = ATM, preferrably one that has a partnership with your bank, such as Barclays with Bank of America.

 

Our last trip was a land tour of Ireland. Before we left we bought two of the AAA convenience packs of Euros @ $100 each and received about 132 Euros total and took about $1,000 in cash and exchanged that at hotels and banks, depending on where we were. We used both Citibank and Amex credit cards for purchases and did the dollar conversion the time of sale. When we got home we found that Amex's fees were a little less than Citibank's.

 

For this cruise we will open a BOA checking account with a sufficient balance and order a Capital One card as well.

 

Thanks to all for the info