Euros in Paris

Have you been to Europe/Paris before? Have you used DEBIT cards to access $ from ATMs in Europe before? Have you asked your financial institutions to raise you daily withdrawal
limit just while you are in Europe? When faced with similar requirements, we let the folks know that it will take 2 days to come up with the funds - then the wife and I each take the daily limit out with each of our debit cards (different checking accounts in different financial institutions) for 2 days and that has always given us enough $ to pay the bill. We have never been turned down with this approach and if we ever are, we will have to seriously consider staying elsewhere. Good luck.

We rented an apt in Paris last summer and needed a large amount right away so we got euros from our BofA here and brought them with us in a money belt. Been to Paris lots and ATMs are everywhere, which we use regularly when there, but BofA would not allow us to withdraw more than $1200 per day and we needed more than that for our month deposit so we brought euros with us.

For such a large sum you might have problems getting that much from ATM machines so quickly, even if your daily allowance is increased. Will the person you are paying accept travelers checks? I wouldn't get them unless you can be sure they would be accepted. What about a credit card? Otherwise, this might be the exception about getting euros here. If you do get them here, be sure they are in your money belt until you pay for your apartment. That is a lot of money to lose!

Get from a local bank in USA, stick in your money belt with passport, credit cards, etc....

You will not get a good exchange rate if you buy euro from a US bank. There is a fee for euro travelers checks. Will your landlord accept a bank draft in euro? If so, open an account with XE Trade. Money will be taken from your checking account by electronic transfer and a bank draft in the currency of your choice will be made payable to the party of your choice. Have the draft mailed to your home and hand it to the landlord when you arrive in Paris. The exchange rate will be only slightly more than the international rate on the day the transaction is initiated. There are no fees. For security reasons it takes a little time and effort to set up an account, but everything goes swiftly and smoothly after that.

Ok, Tim, if that doesn't work for the OP, how much extra would they be paying by getting euros here? $30 or so (assuming no service fees)?

Michael, At today's international rate $2100 = €1625. I just checked Wells Fargo online. €1625 would cost me $2214. Other banks might charge less, of course.

We had a similar situation last year. Needed Euros to pay for B&B's in cash. We purchased them in the US at our local Wells Fargo - took them in our money belts and were just fine.

I use the Charles Schwab debit card. They will increase your daily limit so it's not a problem to get the money in one day. Since ATM's have a lower limit I just make multiple withdrawals. The Schwab card reimburses the ATM fees so this has not been an issue for me.

maybe ask the landlord to open a paypal account and transfer the money that way. its safe and secure and you can make the transer of funds when you arrive.

I was about to suggest the same as Conor. I've made several transfers (for deposits) via paypal to our reserved accomodations and it couldn't be easier. We've also done the ATM route - but one small downside of that approach is that all the cash you pull out goes to the lodging and doesn't leave you with much for daily spending until you've been there a few days. As others have said, getting euro in the U.S. is more expensive - although you may feel the extra cost is worth the convenience - and also carries a bit more risk, especially if you get separated from your baggage/money belt while going through airport security.

Just for the sake of information, I'll add some comments to my note above suggesting opening an account with XE Trade. You can choose from several options: 1. Have a bank draft in euro mailed to your home (which is what I proposed originally). 2. Have a bank draft sent to the landlord by US mail. 3. Have the money deposited directly into the landlord's bank account. There is no fee for any of those options. 4. Have the money sent by wire transfer. This is the fastest, but of course there is a fee.

Hey all, Thanks for your great suggestions. Haven't decided which way we will go, but now have some alternatives.
Much appreciated!

Another way to do it is just have the total amount wired from your American bank to the French bank account. It may cost $4.95-$15.00 or so, but worth it not to have the cash change hands. We've done this multiple times. Get the landlord's bank account information, it's very common to share this information, as you will just get permission for deposits only. You may be able to wire it online, or just make a quick phone call to your bank to get it processed. This is the safest to me, plus you have a record of the transaction.

I had to pay the deposit for the apartment I am renting in Paris by wire transfer ($45 fee at my credit union) and it has STILL not arrived. I transferred the money on 1/3. It left my bank account within a day, but so far has not arrived in Paris. The credit union is looking into it. Maybe it was my bad luck and this usually doesn't happen, but I just wanted to caution you that it can.

"At today's international rate $2100 = €1625. I just checked Wells Fargo online. €1625 would cost me $2214." Ok, but XE isn't going to give you the international rate, right? They have a slight markup, that is how they make their money. So the difference between Wells Fargo and XE won't be $114 will it? It is probably more in the $40-$60 range. I like the XE option, but bringing cash from home is not going to cost that much more and you don't have to jump the hoops of setting up an XE account and moving money around. If you have a way to secure your passport and credit cards, stick the cash in the same place for 24 hours until the landlord is paid.

Michael, Yes, XE Trade makes its money by charging a rate which is a little bit higher than the international rate. I haven't used my account for several years so I don't remember what the difference was for my last transaction. I have no qualms about carrying fairly large sums of money in my money belt, but doing an XE Trade online is faster than making a trip to my bank.