bringing euros to France

Only bring Euros if you have leftover Euros from a prior trip. Otherwise, stick to your ATM plan.

Yes, we always bring euros from the US. We have a travel checking account with Wells Fargo that allows us to "purchase" euros for a discounted rate prior to departure as well as withdraw euros from any ATM twice/month without any fee. Before that, we used BofA as they have select banks in Europe and UK (Barclay, BNP + others), with a low % fee for withdrawal. It used to be free.

Once at CDG, all the ATM's were down and we did not bring euro's with us; we now have a $150 equivalent in euros that we bring with us.

There are two schools of thought on this, and many many many threads where people restate the two points of view over and over.

1) Yes, bring some with you. It's more convenient to arrive and have money right away, and not to have to look for an ATM upon arrival.

2) No, just wait until you get there, and use an ATM at the airport. It costs 7-10% more to get euros in the US compared to getting them in France - why pay the markup?

Choose based on how you feel. As evidenced by the fact that this is a continuing "argument," there is no right answer - only what works best for you.

If you know any one who has returned from any euro country - offer to buy some of theirs. That way, you can arrive with some cash and not pay a markup. This is "best of both worlds" - convenience of arriving with cash (including some coins), and not paying extra for it.

If you don't know anyone with euros, see if there is a Rick Steves Travel Group near you, and offer to buy euros from one of the other attendees: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/travel-meetings

As the previous poster said, folks feel strongly about this. Yes, you can get to France with zero euros, and use an ATM in the airport. I did that once and found between passport control, jet lag and general travel fatigue that was one more hassle I didn't need. I get 100-200 euros from Wells Fargo before I go. The additional cost compared to an airport ATM in Europe is about $10-20. In the big scheme of things that is a small part of the cost of my European adventure. We often have Euro's left but with the fluctuations in currency a few years later you may win or lose on that one.

I also take Euros with me. I like not having to look for an ATM when I land. I can just get my luggage and go.

Even if you wind up getting a few Euros before you leave home (paying the extra costs for acquiring them in the USA), you'll likely want to get most of your cash after you get to France. If you haven't done so already, make sure you notify your bank that you'll be traveling to France, with exact dates, so they'll know it's you withdrawing money and not some thief, so they aren't tempted to lock up your bank account. Also, make sure you understand whether your bank puts any daily limit on how much money can be withdrawn so you don't have a surprise over there.

We always bring home some Euros for "next time," but if you haven't been before, of course, you haven't had that option yet. By the way, will you be using a credit card in France? Ours charges no foreign transaction fees, and while we still use cash, many of our payments are via credit card these days. Bon voyage!

I am fortunate that I usually have euros left from prior trips but I used to be one of the people who hit the ATM upon arrival but I have had problems twice with the ATM network being out upon arrival (neither time was in Paris). These days, I would get 100€ if I did not have any left over from a prior trip. The most convenient ATMs at CDG for the flights that I take are all Travelex machines, which do not give a great exchange rate so rather than have to look for an ATM, I would just take the cost hit and get the euros from the US. But there is no right or wrong answer. My husband travels overseas for about two weeks per month and he refuses to land in a country without what he expects to spend in a day in the currency of the country. Some of his colleagues take the exact opposite view and get cash from an ATM upon arrival.

I agree with Alan. I get euros ahead of time. Don't want ATM to be one more line after landing.

We take 500 Euros home each trip for the next trip. I like not having to worry about cab fare and just generally hitting the ground running. But if I didn't have those, I'd probably get 100. I once landed in Salzburg without money and the ATM at the airport was not working. I just like to have some money in my pocket.

I take euros with me so I am not having to search frantically for an ATM when I first arrive. After I use what I brought with me, then I am fine using ATMs; I try to locate a partner bank (I am a Bank of America customer) so I do not have to pay for use of the ATM.

When I would travel to France on business (and vacations) before moving here I never brought euros with me, unless I had a few left over from a prior trip. ATMs are ubiquitous.

I bring Euros from the previous trip since I plan it that way, esp if the exchange is very favourable.

It was 1996 and there was a long line at a Paris bank for converting my travelers checks to francs. On a lark I decided to try my American ATM card at the machine outside. To my surprise it worked! Haven't looked back since.

My first thought when I saw the title, "bringing euros to France", was "Why? Did they run out?"

Seriously, I like a few in my pocket as well and then use ATMs.

If you are only talking about taking 200 - 300 EU in cash, your bank's fees won't be too high, and I'd recommend you put your order in right away, as it can take a couple of days to process, depending where you are.
If you want to get where you're going - including a taxi that might not take credit cards, and merchants who have a minimum of 10 or 15 EU to buy something - I'd recommend it.
Other than that, you should always take the maximum 24-hour amount allotted by your bank.

Harold from NY said it very well. We are of the opinion that it's always a good idea to have some local currency in hand when you land. Getting a two or three hundred Euros from your local bank will cost you a little more, but it eliminates the hassle of trying to find a machine, the stress of hoping it works (they do occasionally malfunction), and doing it all while somewhat jet lagged. To us the small amount extra it cost to have money in hand when arriving is money well spent, and the extra cost relative to the overall cost of the trip is not, in my opinion, that much. Just one point of view

I travel solo and always bring some currency with me, get more as needed. I don't want to have to immediately look for an ATM, like to be ready to start my trip without that worry.

I'm with Agnes. ATM's are plentiful, so getting cash when you hit the ground is easier and less expensive that buying euros before hand. If you have something left over from a previous trip, it's a bonus.

There may be another lesson here. Big banks (BofA, Wells Fargo, Citi, etc.) love to charge you a lot to get money overseas. Often something like $5 plus 3 percent of the transaction (or more). This can add up to a hundred dollars or more for a two week trip. Many credit unions and smaller banks have debit card fees of a flat one percent on foreign ATM withdrawals. Ask yourself how much you like your big bank, is it worth a hundred or two to use their debit card to get cash vs opening a travel acount at a local credit union? Believe me, you won't receive extra priveleges or have more ATM's available to you with one from a big bank. If the debit card has a Visa logo, you can use it anywhere.

There are also some options for paying zero fees, but I find those come with strings (other accounts, min. balances, etc.). If the strings work for you, zero fees is even better.

So many people talk about not wanting to wait at the line at the ATM when they arrive in Europe as the reason they pay to have Euros before leaving the US.

In my 50 trips to Europe I have NEVER seen any line at airport ATMs. They have plenty machines, many more than 1, so there is always an available machine. I have seen lines at the currency exchange booths.

Get a few before you leave if you feel better having some for your immediate expenses on arrival. But it is simply more cost effective to use your debit card at ATMs to get most of what you need.

"I'm with Agnes. ATM's are plentiful, so getting cash when you hit the ground is easier and less expensive that buying euros before hand. If you have something left over from a previous trip, it's a bonus.
There may be another lesson here. Big banks (BofA, Wells Fargo, Citi, etc.) love to charge you a lot to get money overseas. Often something like $5 plus 3 percent of the transaction (or more). This can add up to a hundred dollars or more for a two week trip."

Banks charge some account holders fees for overseas transactions but not all customers. Many banks have levels of accounts for which there are no foreign transaction fees -- it all depends on your bank balance.

Some people like to arrive with some of the local currency and some don't. I used to be in the group that was quite happy to land with no local currency until two unpleasant situations occurred. But in the end if a person bring 100€ with them that they get in the US, at most it will probably cost them $10 more than if they withdrew the 100€ euros from an ATM at CDG and if it makes them feel more comfortable to land with local currency, $10 is not a lot to pay for a little peace of mind.

I always take at least a couple hundred euros with me for two reasons. 1) It eliminates the need to immediately hunt down an ATM upon landing when there are plenty of other pressing tings to take care of. 2) It gives some protection against the bank dropping the ball on clearing your ATM card for overseas travel as Bank of America did to my wife a few years ago.

22 years of international travel...I take 300 whatever's with me to avoid brain dead jet lagged ATM issues....you will be glad you did....and if going back is on your list keep 300 Euros for next time....it gets you through your first day or two of cash issues....

Do not be pennywise and pound foolish