ATM Use in Europe

If an ATM machine will only give €100, go to another ATM and make another wiithdrawal.

Sounds odd. My bet is that the ATM has a maximum per transaction limit of 100 Euros.. but using an ATM from another bank should solve the problem.

Hi Mary Ellen, We've never had that experience of being limited to 100 Euros. We usually withdraw the Euro equivalent of $500 each transaction, which currently is about 400 Euro. We have come across ATM's that limited us to 300 Euro. When you say you are bringing 3 ATM cards, are they linked to different banks? We always bring 2 ATM cards linked to 2 different banks. This way if needed, we can withdraw double the ccash limit if needed. Never needed to do this though. In addition, if anything should go wrong with one of the cards/accounts, we have a back up. Paul

Norma's suggestion makes the most sense. Some ATM's in Europe have withdrawal limits so the ATM won't run out of cash. Another possibility is that your friend's own bank has a 100 euro withdrawal limit on his account, unusual as that would be.

I just got back from three weeks in Spain and never had a problem getting what I asked for at an ATM except for once, when neither of my cards (different cards from different financial institutions) worked in a particular ATM. I just moved a half block down to the next bank and got my money just fine there. I don't think you need to take more with you than you took before.

I used ATMs exclusively on my last trip and had no issues. Maybe it had something to do with their bank. I did call my bank to let them know I'd be traveling. I would also recommend taking some extra cash or an extra card just in case.

Mary Ellen, In addition to the suggestions mentioned by the others, be sure to call your Bank(s) and ask about increasing your daily withdrawal limit for the duration of your trip. Also, travel funds must usually be in a chequing account with a four-number PIN. As always, don't forget to notify each of them that you'll be travelling so they don't "freeze" the cards when they see transaction activity in Europe. Cheers!

I'm not sure what happened to your friends. I have run into limits at a particular ATM. In Portugal in 2002, I found that every ATM in the country had a limit of 200 euros per withdrawal, so I had to make more of them (luckily, I wasn't needing a lot of money, and my bank didn't charge per withdrawal). I've had transactions rejected for being over either the ATM's limit or my bank's limit, but that's what happens - it's rejected. I've never requested one amount and just gotten another, without being asked to re-enter another amount first. One point that I saw in another thread. You need to do the conversion from dollars to euros yourself, before getting to the ATM, to know how much to withdraw based on the limit from your bank. For instance, if your bank allows 500 dollars, you need to figure out roughly how many euros that is, or you could easily ask for too much and have the transaction blocked. This is a particular problem when you're arriving jet-lagged, and still thinking in dollars.

The first time I was in Italy, about 4-5 years ago, there was a €250 limit on ATM withdrawals, but I did not encounter that in subsequent visits. I have had that problem here in Israel with one bank, but not with any of the others. The only other problem I've had with ATMs in Europe is on Sunday mornings. My bank goes offline for several hours in the wee hours around 1-4 am on Sunday (generally down-time in the US), so I've had to wait until early afternoon.

Just got back yesterday from three weeks in Europe and took zero money, just planned on using ATM's while there. We used ATM's in Austria, Germany, Czech Republic, and Paris and had no issues drawing up to 400 euros from each. Only issue was one in Berlin at a fancy hotel displayed the exchange rate it was going to give me and I did not like it so went to another and got a better rate.

Hi Mary Ellen, I started using ATMs in Europe to get the local currency back in 1991. The only issues I have had in over 20 years have been non-functioning machines. But I have also never pushed the limit as to how much I withdraw each time. When I visited Austria and Italy last month, I withdrew a max of 250 euro. No problems. The only thing that irks me is that Austrian ATMs don't give receipts. Its not that the printer doesn't work, its that the ATM does not even have a printer. The only thing you can do is check your account on line or with a smart phone.
When I traveled last month, I arrived with no dollars or euro in advance of the trip. Just the plastic, with backup plastic.