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how much cash in Euros to bring on cruise?


eskiemomo

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we will be cruising the Mediterranean on Royal Caribbean, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Malta.

 

how much cash in Euros do we need on hand? We have cruised before but to the Caribbean where dollars were not a problem. I am thinking of cash for things like taxis, trains, shopping in bazaars where credit cards might not be an option.

 

Also would you recommend getting them way ahead of time at the airport, bank, or wait until you're actually on the trip? I don't want to waste my vacation running around looking for ATM machines.

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we will be cruising the Mediterranean on Royal Caribbean, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Malta.

 

how much cash in Euros do we need on hand? We have cruised before but to the Caribbean where dollars were not a problem. I am thinking of cash for things like taxis, trains, shopping in bazaars where credit cards might not be an option.

 

Also would you recommend getting them way ahead of time at the airport, bank, or wait until you're actually on the trip? I don't want to waste my vacation running around looking for ATM machines.

 

How much cash to bring to Europe I don't now, but I can tell you that

Spain, Italy an d Malta is much more expensive than Greece and Turkey

 

I travel to all those country's and you must realise that for you Europe

is expensive now a days (dollar/euro), If you take a taxi in those country's

ask the price most off the time there is no meter, public transportation

is most off the time resemble.

 

I don't now if you will sit on a terrace and take a coffee or a lunch then you will see that in Italy and Spain on all the tourist spots its very expensive for you in Italy you pay easily 5 dollar for a cup of coffee (and now refill), on the other hand in Greece and Turkey you pay last.

 

When you are in Greece order on a terrace for lunch Tzatziki and bread

(that's Yogurt,cucumber,and garlic) the taste of tad is so nice.

also the dessert from yogurt whit walnuts and honing is yumie.

 

Bring your dollars whit you, don't ruse for ATM, I hope you have

a wonderful trip, and if you have any questions ask them I'm glad

when I can help you.

 

Greetings Toos from the Netherlands

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I would wait until you get over to Europe and I would get them at an ATM. On a related note be sure to let your ATM and Credit Card companies know the dates of your trip and where you are traveling to so they don't think the tranactions on your cards are fraud related.

 

How much you need really depends on how much cash you will spend. Everyone is different. Based on what you have said maybe you should start with say a couple hundred euros but again it depends on how much you plan to spend.

 

Keith

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I would wait until you get over to Europe and I would get them at an ATM. On a related note be sure to let your ATM and Credit Card companies know the dates of your trip and where you are traveling to so they don't think the tranactions on your cards are fraud related.

 

How much you need really depends on how much cash you will spend. Everyone is different. Based on what you have said maybe you should start with say a couple hundred euros but again it depends on how much you plan to spend.

 

Keith

 

Good advice.

 

If you have private tours booked, you will know how much you need for that. A couple hundred euro is a good start on a multi-port trip. I started out with 600 eu (had back-to-back private tours planned) and replenished as I went along. If I needed money I kept my eyes open for an ATM. They are everywhere.

 

The only place I'm not sure about is Turkey. We paid our tour guide in dollars. Market vendors asked for euro but I said "I only have dollars" and they took dollars. I think the ATMs there give out Turkish lira and I wouldn't want to be stuck with that.

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Good advice.

 

If you have private tours booked, you will know how much you need for that. A couple hundred euro is a good start on a multi-port trip. I started out with 600 eu (had back-to-back private tours planned) and replenished as I went along. If I needed money I kept my eyes open for an ATM. They are everywhere.

 

The only place I'm not sure about is Turkey. We paid our tour guide in dollars. Market vendors asked for euro but I said "I only have dollars" and they took dollars. I think the ATMs there give out Turkish lira and I wouldn't want to be stuck with that.

 

Market vendors in Turkey are happy taking dollars, euors and pounds.

 

Keith

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eskiemomo

 

My bank tells me my bank card won't work in Europe, so not ATM searching for me. I have already gotten 1000 EUR and I will have my Capital One credit card.

 

I went to Austria & Hungary in 2001, thinking I could exchange my money there, I wouldn't get any ahead of time. I arrived in Budapest on a Saturday, their Independence Holiday. All banks and exchanges were closed until Tuesday. Then I had an all day tour planned for Wednesday, so I ended up 5 days with no Hungarian money. If the stores were large, they would take the credit card, but it sure put a damper on shopping.

 

So I don't take a chance now. I will get the money of the destination I'm going to, before I leave home.

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we will be cruising the Mediterranean on Royal Caribbean, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Malta.

 

how much cash in Euros do we need on hand? We have cruised before but to the Caribbean where dollars were not a problem. I am thinking of cash for things like taxis, trains, shopping in bazaars where credit cards might not be an option.

 

Also would you recommend getting them way ahead of time at the airport, bank, or wait until you're actually on the trip? I don't want to waste my vacation running around looking for ATM machines.

 

Without knowing what you plan to do it would be hard to make a recommendation.

 

If you are doing private tours it can run you 100+ Euros/person per port. Then you add entrance fees, guides, shopping, food and you could easily be at another 100 Euros.

 

If you are doing all ship sponsored then you could probably get away with as little as 20-30 Euros/day if you are a thrifty shopper.

 

ATMS are indeed everywhere, but hard to find right at the most touristy locations. Avoid the ship exchange at all cost as their exchange rate is horrible.

 

Happy planning.

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eskiemomo

 

My bank tells me my bank card won't work in Europe, so not ATM searching for me. I have already gotten 1000 EUR and I will have my Capital One credit card.

 

I went to Austria & Hungary in 2001, thinking I could exchange my money there, I wouldn't get any ahead of time. I arrived in Budapest on a Saturday, their Independence Holiday. All banks and exchanges were closed until Tuesday. Then I had an all day tour planned for Wednesday, so I ended up 5 days with no Hungarian money. If the stores were large, they would take the credit card, but it sure put a damper on shopping.

 

 

Even the ATM's were closed? Was this a land vacation? I think that is different from a cruise holiday, where you always have the ship's convenient (although expensive) backup exchange.

 

btw I called my cc company in advance to let them know I would be using my Capital One in Europe, but it was still rejected at a merchant. When I called in, they said they had no information that I would be traveling in Greece. Huh?? So double check with your credit cards. (I had a backup cc, just in case. Same with debit card)

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I remembering reading last year that Capital One had some advantage in Europe--can someone remind me what it is? I have gotten one since my last trip but can't remember why it's going to be a good thing!

 

Also, I plan to take $500 worth of euros with me because last year I had an incident where my debit card, which had been working fine, all of sudden was not accepted and it scared me to death! Still don't know what the problem was; but I found a different bank's ATM and it was fine. So I am just taking some euros as back up but plan to keep my stash at about that level--just in case! Most of the time it worked well and there really were atms everywhere--just like starbucks!

 

Thanks,

Cathy

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I got Euros before I left. I didn't want the hassle of searching for an ATM. Just my luck there would not be one when I needed it. Ordered them online through my bank and had them delivered to my local branch. Got a better rate than my friends did. I did have to get more euros while on the cruise but I just used the ship's ATM and then had the Guest Relations desk convert to Euros for me. When I got home what I didn't use I took back to the bank. Turns out of the $200 (+$6 fee) I only used about $55 of it.

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Everyone has pretty much covered your question, however I can address the ATM card issue.

 

Most ATM cards will work in Europe and is one of the safest and cheapest ways to get your Euro.

There are a few ATM cards that won't work in the machines, if you have one of these all you have to do, is walk into any bank, show your passport and they will manually do the transaction.

 

I had a co-worker with me overseas, who had an ATM from a small bank that didn't work overseas. He did this several times.

 

My card had problems in Asia and I did the same thing.

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We took 700 Euros last summer (trip totalled 18 nights) and replenished at ATM in Rhodes (200 Euros). One tip would be to ask your bank for some bills in small denominations; this may require a few trips to the bank as they don't have small bills on hand all the time.

Kathy:)

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hi English yes we are still on the Navigator for October 10th!

 

I haven't visited the board for a while. I can't wait for the vacation! How do I sign up for the meet and mingle?

 

p.s thank you for all the good tips on Euros!

 

Rather than discuss it here I will leave a message for you on the roll call thread.

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While everyone says there is no trouble finding ATM's - I'm like the OP, I didn't want to waste time in port looking for a machine. I bought 600 Euro's from an exchange bureau at home. We used only ship's tours so didn't have to worry about paying tour guides, just tips. Have a wonderful cruise

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While everyone says there is no trouble finding ATM's - I'm like the OP, I didn't want to waste time in port looking for a machine. I bought 600 Euro's from an exchange bureau at home. We used only ship's tours so didn't have to worry about paying tour guides, just tips. Have a wonderful cruise

 

I guess the point we are trying to make is that there is no time wasted, as ATM's are everywhere. When you get off the ship, ATMs. Off the plane, ATMs. In town, ATMs. The only place you might not be able to find one easily is, for example, if you are on the side of a mountain on the Amalfi coast, if you are en route to Ephesus right in the middle of the highway, if you are in someone's vineyard in Tuscany. If you are not in any of those places, you will find an ATM!

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Wells Fargo will Fed-Ex your order next day delivery.

 

https://www.foreignexchangeservices.com/cfx/faqs#1

 

 

After just looking at the Wells Fargo site, it appears their current rate of exchange for today is 1.49, while the bank rate is 1.44, which ATMs usually give.

 

So to obtain 500 euros, you'd pay $745 through Wells Fargo, plus an $8 shipping fee.

 

To obtain 500 euros from your ATM, you'd pay $720 plus whatever ATM fee your bank may charge (some charge $2 to $3 per transaction).

 

For the peace of mind of having the money, I suppose a $30 difference isn't much in the scheme of things. But for 1,000 euros that becomes $60 and so on....

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I bring about 100 per adult. Then use the ATM's as needed. Even though I've never had a problem, I'm always cautious and aware that others have. I'd hate to order 500 or 1000 euros and lose it all early on. The transaction fee is a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things. And, there are so many things to do that don't cost tons of money that usually lasts me a while.

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eskiemomo

 

My bank tells me my bank card won't work in Europe, so not ATM searching for me. I have already gotten 1000 EUR and I will have my Capital One credit card.

 

I went to Austria & Hungary in 2001, thinking I could exchange my money there, I wouldn't get any ahead of time. I arrived in Budapest on a Saturday, their Independence Holiday. All banks and exchanges were closed until Tuesday. Then I had an all day tour planned for Wednesday, so I ended up 5 days with no Hungarian money. If the stores were large, they would take the credit card, but it sure put a damper on shopping.

 

 

 

Even the ATM's were closed? Was this a land vacation? I think that is different from a cruise holiday, where you always have the ship's convenient (although expensive) backup exchange.

 

btw I called my cc company in advance to let them know I would be using my Capital One in Europe, but it was still rejected at a merchant. When I called in, they said they had no information that I would be traveling in Greece. Huh?? So double check with your credit cards. (I had a backup cc, just in case. Same with debit card)

 

Yes, this was a land vacation, and as I stated earlier, my debit card from my bank does not work in Europe, so ATMs were no good to me.

 

And while the ship may exchange some funds, I can't see them doing so for the 2800 folks on board.

 

I would rather pay the fees and know I have the money before leaving home. But that's just my opinion. It used to be fun to get the foreign currency for each country visited, but now the EURO looks like monoply money.

 

There are many different ways for people to exchange currency, and each has to decide which is best for them.

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eskiemomo

 

My bank tells me my bank card won't work in Europe, so not ATM searching for me. I have already gotten 1000 EUR and I will have my Capital One credit card.

 

I went to Austria & Hungary in 2001, thinking I could exchange my money there, I wouldn't get any ahead of time. I arrived in Budapest on a Saturday, their Independence Holiday. All banks and exchanges were closed until Tuesday. Then I had an all day tour planned for Wednesday, so I ended up 5 days with no Hungarian money. If the stores were large, they would take the credit card, but it sure put a damper on shopping.

 

 

 

Yes, this was a land vacation, and as I stated earlier, my debit card from my bank does not work in Europe, so ATMs were no good to me.

 

And while the ship may exchange some funds, I can't see them doing so for the 2800 folks on board.

 

I would rather pay the fees and know I have the money before leaving home. But that's just my opinion. It used to be fun to get the foreign currency for each country visited, but now the EURO looks like monoply money.

 

There are many different ways for people to exchange currency, and each has to decide which is best for them.

 

I agree, people should do what works for them. People often post that they fear not finding an ATM handy; I am saying that on our 12 night med, we found ATMs easily, in every port. I'm sure people would like to know that.

 

I am making the point that on a cruise ship, one does have a backup exchange facility available, in case they arrive at an airport, or a town, where no ATMS can be found, or are not operational. As you were on a land vacation, you didn't have this option, so that would be something to think about on a land vacation.

 

btw I don't understand your comment about exchanging funds "for the 2800 folks onboard".

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