US dollar vs Euro

Good afternoon. I am sure there has been a post in the past about this subject but I could not find one recently.

I am traveling to Venice next week to catch a cruise. I have been looking on my computer and the dollar vs Euro is at 1.00 US vs .790 Euro. My mother just went to her bank & they are giving her $1.00 US vs 1.30(ish) Euro. I told her that is ridiculous & the teller told her that is what it is but they are not charging her a fee.

Would I be prudent to change money when I arrive in Venice, on the ship, or at the airport before I leave. It has been a few years since I have travelled to Europe & cannot remember the best way.

Thanking all in advance

Usateg

Best way IMHO is always take a small amount in foreign currency with you and then use ATM's at the destination for more cash...

Is there a Travelex located in any of the malls near you? They generally have the best exchange rates. If not, purchase a small amount of Euro here & hit the ATM for cash as you need it. Use your credit card for any purchases you can.

Let your bank know you're going to be using your ATM and/or credit card before you go.

You are looking at two ways of saying the same thing. $1= approximately (today) 1.265 euros. 1 euro is approximately .79 cents.

A little reading on the board will find dozens of threads that recommend ATM in Europe as the best place for exchange rates.

Good afternoon. I am sure there has been a post in the past about this subject but I could not find one recently.

I am traveling to Venice next week to catch a cruise. I have been looking on my computer and the dollar vs Euro is at 1.00 US vs .790 Euro. My mother just went to her bank & they are giving her $1.00 US vs 1.30(ish) Euro. I told her that is ridiculous & the teller told her that is what it is but they are not charging her a fee.

Would I be prudent to change money when I arrive in Venice, on the ship, or at the airport before I leave. It has been a few years since I have travelled to Europe & cannot remember the best way.

 

Thanking all in advance

 

Usateg

I like to arrive at our first stop in Europe with the correct currency equaling at $100. Thereafter, I only use the local ATM machines to get additional GB pounds/Euro/Kroner/etc. Now, we travel often enough that we make sure to come home from our trips with the starter money for our next trip. We've never had to go to a bank to get money changed in advance.

You aren't in that position. If you are willing to accept a bit of stress, you can wait until you land to use the ATM machines in the airport with the following warning: some of the ATM machine in the airport give relatively poor exchange rates. In fact, they may be worse than the exchange rate your local bank is offering and you're already balking at that.

If you plan on arriving with no foreign currency, you should arrive with information about the location of the better/fairer ATM machines. If you post another question, please supply both the airport name and whether the final destination will be your trans-Atlantic flight or after a change of planes in Europe. Knowing the precise terminal where you'll arrive will result in more useful information. (Plug in your future flights for today or tomorrow and you'll have close enough information. The specific gate may vary, but the terminal tends to stay the same.)

FWIW, the teller is accurate when she says the exchange rate is $1 Euro = .8 Euro. (Or put the other way, 1 Euro = $1.3) Go to the following internet site to see the exchange rate for yourself:

http://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/convert/?Amount=1&From=USD&To=EUR

My final destination will be Marco Polo Airport in Venice. I am traveling from Miami to Philadelphia & then to Venice. We will be boarding the ship in Venice but will be arriving one day early to do a bit of sightseeing. We are staying at the Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal. Thanks!

I like to arrive at our first stop in Europe with the correct currency equaling at $100. Thereafter, I only use the local ATM machines to get additional GB pounds/Euro/Kroner/etc. Now, we travel often enough that we make sure to come home from our trips with the starter money for our next trip. We've never had to go to a bank to get money changed in advance.

 

You aren't in that position. If you are willing to accept a bit of stress, you can wait until you land to use the ATM machines in the airport with the following warning: some of the ATM machine in the airport give relatively poor exchange rates. In fact, they may be worse than the exchange rate your local bank is offering and you're already balking at that.

 

If you plan on arriving with no foreign currency, you should arrive with information about the location of the better/fairer ATM machines. If you post another question, please supply both the airport name and whether the final destination will be your trans-Atlantic flight or after a change of planes in Europe. Knowing the precise terminal where you'll arrive will result in more useful information. (Plug in your future flights for today or tomorrow and you'll have close enough information. The specific gate may vary, but the terminal tends to stay the same.)

 

FWIW, the teller is accurate when she says the exchange rate is $1 Euro = .8 Euro. (Or put the other way, 1 Euro = $1.3) Go to the following internet site to see the exchange rate for yourself:

 

http://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/convert/?Amount=1&From=USD&To=EUR

We travel a lot so we always have euros with us. But when we arrive at the airport or train station or port at a non euro country we just use the ATM there. If there is a problem - and none so far - we just ask our cab driver to take us to one or we ask a local person where we can walk to one.

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I have checked with my bank and credit card companies about exchanging US$ to Euros this week to prepare for my upcoming trip (first timer). From what I learned, my bank here can exchange the euros for me without a fee and it will be whatever the daily exchange rate at; if I use my bank card to get cash at a foreign ATM, then both the foreign bank/US bank will charge a foreign transaction fee. As to using credit cards on a foreign ATM to withdraw cash, it will be treated as cash advance with a high interest rate charged from the time you make the withdraw. In addition, credit card company like Chase will charge a 5% transaction fee, Capital One does not charge a fee but their CA rate is higher.

I'm now leaning toward getting euros here beforehand and still carry a Capital One card as a back up.

Have just looked $1 is equal to 0.79 euros take of what the banks make you may get about 0.73 euro for every dollar. When we travel from the UK into europe we exchange a few pounds into euros then use a debit card, have found you get a better rate. It's the same when we travel states side. Enjoy your trip.

I have checked with my bank and credit card companies about exchanging US$ to Euros this week to prepare for my upcoming trip (first timer). From what I learned, my bank here can exchange the euros for me without a fee and it will be whatever the daily exchange rate at; if I use my bank card to get cash at a foreign ATM, then both the foreign bank/US bank will charge a foreign transaction fee. As to using credit cards on a foreign ATM to withdraw cash, it will be treated as cash advance with a high interest rate charged from the time you make the withdraw. In addition, credit card company like Chase will charge a 5% transaction fee, Capital One does not charge a fee but their CA rate is higher.

Your bank is fibbing to you (that's the polite version) except for the bit about using a credit card for getting Euros (always a terrible idea). Your best exchange rate is almost always going to be by using your debit card in a European ATM.

I have checked with my bank and credit card companies about exchanging US$ to Euros this week to prepare for my upcoming trip (first timer). From what I learned, my bank here can exchange the euros for me without a fee and it will be whatever the daily exchange rate at; if I use my bank card to get cash at a foreign ATM, then both the foreign bank/US bank will charge a foreign transaction fee. As to using credit cards on a foreign ATM to withdraw cash, it will be treated as cash advance with a high interest rate charged from the time you make the withdraw. In addition, credit card company like Chase will charge a 5% transaction fee, Capital One does not charge a fee but their CA rate is higher.

 

I'm now leaning toward getting euros here beforehand and still carry a Capital One card as a back up.

Withdrawing money from an ATM in Europe isn't the same transaction as handing a bank some US dollars and walking out with Euros (or GB pounds or whatever). Eventually, your US bank will have to figure out how much US currency to deduct from your account when the international withdrawal gets processed. For that step of the process, they'll figure the exchange rate. You'll get a somewhat better exchange rate because your lone transaction will get bundled with every international transaction made by all customers of your US bank. But your bank was not fibbing about the exchange rate for the specific transaction you were trying to make. Again, individual transactions are not handled at the same rate as bulk transactions. If you chose the individual transaction approach, you can check the exchange rate for that day on the most commonly used internet conversion site: XE.com

You haven't indicated when you'll be making your trip. You may still have time to open an account and get a cash card from a bank that charges no foreign transaction fees. Also, some banks in the US have branches in foreign cities. When I withdraw money from a Citibank in foreign countries, I'm essentially banking at my home town bank. I know we're on the Italy board, but the Santander bank of Spain has branches in the northeast. There may be other banks with international and US branches.

Ideally use an ATM after you arrive to Europe for best rates.

If you need to get some money at the USA ahead of time then go to Travelex or just use the bank. Say you are talking about 500.00 in Euros and you overpay by 5%. You are talking about $25.00 and for that amount I just would not lose any sleep.

Lately I have been getting some currency at my local bank if I know I will be rushed to get local currency when I first arrive abroad..

Keith

Have just looked $1 is equal to 0.79 euros take of what the banks make you may get about 0.73 euro for every dollar. When we travel from the UK into europe we exchange a few pounds into euros then use a debit card, have found you get a better rate. It's the same when we travel states side. Enjoy your trip.

Just a heads up - there are several ATMs in London run by Raphaels Bank (mainly at main tube stations) which dispense both GBP and Euros. I do not know what exchange rate they use but worth bearing in mind if you need a few Euros quickly.

My final destination will be Marco Polo Airport in Venice. I am traveling from Miami to Philadelphia & then to Venice. We will be boarding the ship in Venice but will be arriving one day early to do a bit of sightseeing. We are staying at the Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal. Thanks!

The Hotel Monaco and Grand Canal is near one of the more unusual churches in Venice: Chiesa di San Moise (Church of St. Moses). This is a Baroque church, a particularly excessive version of Baroque, with an altarpiece of St. Moses bringing the tablets of the Ten Commandments down from Mt. Sinai. Both Moses and the angels are literally flying off the wall.

If the over-the-top architecture isn't enough, the name of the church ought to intrigue you -- a Catholic church named for a major Hebrew Bible figure. Historically the Venetian branch of church recognized the following non-Christians as saints: Moses, Job, Jeremiah, Samuel, and Zachariah. Today you can also visit Chiese di San Giobbe (Job), Chiesa di San Geremia (Jeremiah), Chiesa di San Samuele, and Chiesa di San Zaccaria.

San Moise is a favorite of Venetian brides and you can often get lucky and see a wedding there on a Saturday.

After my experience this summer, I would have some Euros handy. Arrived to Venice a day early, but no ATMs would take my card (even though I called the bank in advance)! If you plan to use the People Mover, you need either cash or a chip-and-pin card (my chip-and-signature didn't work). You may also need to pay your hotel tax with Euros.

Most currency exchange places in Venice are a rip-off. Some banks don't deal with tourists and others may be closed when you get there. Better to have some Euros on hand than to take any chances.

It's kind of a funny situation. More people are traveling to foreign destinations, but the money exchange is becoming more limited. We used to have an exchange here in Southern California called Thomas Cook (not just at airports) and it was easy to exchange dollars for any other currency. Not so anymore!

The only currency exchange I could locate was at Los Angeles International Airport and I wasn't about to exchange money there. I checked with AMEX and the charge was ridiculous. My local Credit Union wouldn't even do foreign currency. I checked for Travelex and it was about 50 miles one way from my home. I ended up using AAA (our local automobile club) and getting 50 EUR only. I took good old US $$ with me and went into banks along the way. Actually found better exchange rates in Europe than in the US.

And some of the retailers (mostly jewelry stores) would even take the US dollars. In a small town in Turkey (Sirince) many of the vendors actually would take EUR or Dollars since so many of us did not have Turkish currency.

I had my debit card held at an ATM one Friday night (not far from my home) but couldn't access my money or my card over the week-end. Monday morning I was able to retrieve my card from the institution. I can imagine my state of mind if that were to happen on a single port day. My debit card (linked to my checking/savings account) does not go on my foreign travels with me. I have used credit cards (before the chip/pin problems arose).

Now someone on this website has stated they have a travel account with a debit card, separate from their main banking account, and I've thought of doing that, but since my traveling days are mostly over, I don't know as I want to go to that trouble either.

I've used traveler's checks years ago, switched to currency of destination and finally just take US cash and exchange at location. If I can afford $6000 for a Med cruise, I'm not going to worry about any exchange fees. You can worry yourself silly over $20 here and there, or just accept that if you are going to travel, you are going to be charged exchange fees one way or another. The financial institutions kind of have a captive audience.

Now I only travel maybe once a year or every other year, so we aren't talking large amounts, but at 68, I'm more into convenience. We all travel differently and have to make the choice that is best for us. JMHO

Have a great trip, whatever you decide!

Good afternoon. I am sure there has been a post in the past about this subject but I could not find one recently.

I am traveling to Venice next week to catch a cruise. I have been looking on my computer and the dollar vs Euro is at 1.00 US vs .790 Euro. My mother just went to her bank & they are giving her $1.00 US vs 1.30(ish) Euro. I told her that is ridiculous & the teller told her that is what it is but they are not charging her a fee.

Would I be prudent to change money when I arrive in Venice, on the ship, or at the airport before I leave. It has been a few years since I have travelled to Europe & cannot remember the best way.

 

Thanking all in advance

 

Usateg

You appear to be mixing up an indirect and direct rate. Divide the 1.3 into 1 and you will get .77 - near the rate you looked up. Your mom misunderstood - the euro is running at about 1.265- 1.28 right now (in other words it costs $1.28 to buy a Euro. The way the bank quoted is the usual way it is quoted. What you looked up was rate that tells you it costs .79 Euro to buy a dollar. In other words, if things were priced the same in the US and in Euro countries (they are not) than the euro would be "worth more".

just checked with PNC and there is no fee, they need 2 days and todays exchange rate was 1.375

just checked with PNC and there is no fee, they need 2 days and todays exchange rate was 1.375

And the bank rate is around 1.265, so you are paying an approximately 9% mark up.

Most ATMs in Europe will be 1% over bank rate, plus 1-3 percent, depending on your home bank. Banks in Europe don't charge anything to use their ATMs.

Have just looked $1 is equal to 0.79 euros take of what the banks make you may get about 0.73 euro for every dollar. When we travel from the UK into europe we exchange a few pounds into euros then use a debit card, have found you get a better rate. It's the same when we travel states side. Enjoy your trip.

I went to AAA in the states to exchange for Euros. They charged me about eight cents more than the big money exchange rate. Euro $1.36 US$ cost me $1.42. Got a small amount and will use ATM debit card in Europe.

I went to AAA in the states to exchange for Euros. They charged me about eight cents more than the big money exchange rate. Euro $1.36 US$ cost me $1.42. Got a small amount and will use ATM debit card in Europe.

However, the Euro is about $1.26 right now. ATM rate would be around $1.28ish. US banks add 1-3% on top. So at $1.42, you are paying over 12% above ATM rate, and 9-11% above ATM rate depending on the rate your bank charges for using that foreign ATM.

However, the Euro is about $1.26 right now. ATM rate would be around $1.28ish. US banks add 1-3% on top. So at $1.42, you are paying over 12% above ATM rate, and 9-11% above ATM rate depending on the rate your bank charges for using that foreign ATM.

I mistyped. sry. it was $1.26 and I paid $1.34. I knew it was higher than the ATM rate.

Venice airport - there is an ATM just to the right as you exit baggage claim, in what is called the arrivals lobby. This airport is very small so you can't miss it.

When people report difficulties using debit cards at European ATM, I can think of 3 reasons why - they are asking for over the daily withdraw allowance - or they didn't notify their bank of foreign travel - or they didn't have a 4 digit PIN.

pv_girl,

I still don't know why my ATM card didn't work, but I had covered all of those bases. (However, I only took 1 debit card....I'll take a backup next time).

We use a capital one money market account that charges no transaction fees. We notify them before we leave and have a 4 digit pin number. Some cards will only be accepted at an ATM that is compatible such as the "cirrus" network - if your card network is not listed on the ATM, it won't work - check your system compatibility before you leave and look for ATMs with that system listed. Take a backup ATM card, if possible, with another system compatibility to maximize your chances. Even if that card charges extra transaction fees, you are stranded.

Venice airport is small - before you exit for the water taxis, buses, etc. there is an ATM near the exit over near a shack bar. We just exchanged money using our MM card and there was even a men's room nearby where DH could place his extra cash in his money belt in private. The easiest ATM we every used.

If you do a search on these boards you will see a lot of discussion about this subject. Nothing has changed, ATMs are still the cheapest way to go. But if you are a very nervous person who doesn't travel abroad a lot, get some cash before you go - the most important thing is to enjoy yourself, not stress over finding Euros. And don't forget, credit cards are just as easy to use over there as here, but that, of course, is another discussion covered a lot on these boards (Andrews Federal Credit Union and Capital One credit card).