Euros, computers, phones

Linda, conventional wisdom is that it's best to just withdraw euros from an ATM when you arrive, not take cash to exchange. If you take a computer you won't need an internet cafe. As for your phone, please scroll down the threads on the helpline and you will find multiple recent threads regarding the many options for phone use. What works best for you will boil down to how/how much you want to use your phone (and whether it will actually work abroad).

Read through a few pages here you will find several threads about getting money in Europe almost everyone agrees ATMs and Capital One, Credit Unions and Charles Schwab accounts have the lowest to no fees associated with foreign withdrawals. Many hotels have wifi, some cities have wifi, it all depends where you are going but most cities have internet cafes or you can often get wifi at McDonalds etc. If you bring your own phone either get an international plan, and/or turn off data roaming on a smart phone. If you have an unlocked GSM phone you can buy a SIM card in many countries that is much cheaper then using your own phone in Europe. Verizon phones won't work in Europe unless they are world phones but Verizon will send a loaner phone that will by request.

Linda, Some brief answers to your questions: > EUROS: I normally like to have €100 or so for "travel funds" until I get settled at my first stop in Europe. You can obtain these at your local financial institutions. To obtain cash in Europe, ATM's are the most cost effective and easiest method. Note that your funds must usually be in a chequing account with a four-number PIN. It's highly advisable to carry a "backup" ATM card in case there are problems with the primary card! Be sure to tell your Bank that you'll be traveling so they don't "freeze" your Cards! > COMPUTERS: Many Hotels these days provide at least one computer for guests to use, and some also provide Wi-Fi. The computers in Europe often have different keyboard layouts than those used here, so can be a bit awkward for people used to "touch typing". I travelled with a Netbook for the first time last year, and will have it with me from now on. Net Cafés are good (but the same issue with keyboard layout), but in recent years I've noticed that they don't seem to be as prevalent any more. > PHONES: Could you provide any details on your "International Cell phone"? Which network are you with and are you sure it's a quad-band GSM model? What will you be using the phones for? Is it a Smartphone? As this is your first trip to Europe, I'd highly recommend reading the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door prior to your trip. It provides a lot of good information on "how" to travel well in Europe. Finally, don't forget to wear Money Belts! Happy travels!

Thank you for all the good pointers. I got Rick Steves
book and you are right, it has all the answers.

Just remember that the WiFi spots are not secure. Do not do banking, typing in credit card numbers etc. Think "I'm in a very public place".

Hotspots are secure when you are connected to encrypted (https) sites like banks, and other e-commerce sites. It's just as safe as connecting to those sites at home. What isn't secure is non-encrypted sites like this message board or when accessing email.

I will remember to be careful. Thank you.

Hotspots are secure when you are connected to encrypted (https) sites like banks, and other e-commerce sites. It's just as safe as connecting to those sites at home. What isn't secure is non-encrypted sites like this message board or when accessing email. If your email service gives you the option to forward all your email to another email address, you can get a google gmail account and forward your emails to that account. Gmail can be set to always connect through HTTPS - the secure encrypted connection that banks use. This way, you can read your email without too much concern about someone snooping your messages over wifi. I think yahoo mail may permit an HTTPS connection as well, but I am not sure. Lots of email accounts now permit secure connections. Comcast does, for example. If yours does, set your email program to use HTTPS or TLS, whichever works. Both are encrypted. If you can get an encrypted connection, there is no need, of course, to use the gmail work-around.