Taking euros vs just getting them from ATM

SaraJane, IMHO, it's MUCH better and cheaper to obtain Euro's from ATM's rather than taking a huge sum from the U.S. If your bankroll is ever lost or stolen, your holiday will be significantly affected. However, I always take about €100 or so for "travelling money" for meals, Taxi or whatever until I get settled in my first stop. A few notes regarding ATM's. Your funds must usually be in a chequing account with a four number PIN. It's a really good idea to take a "backup" ATM card, in case of any problems with your primary card. Happy travels!

And to call your bank to let them know you'll be traveling in Europe and to request an increase in your daily withdrawal limit.

X2 on Doug's suggestion.

X3 on Doug's suggestion! Cannot stress this enough. Our bank actually cut us off once when we did not do this, and we had only traveled from New York to the Midwest. Of America! Midnight. The Day's Inn somewhere outside of, I can't exactly remember.... maybe Kenosha? And the card didn't work. Thank GOODNESS my mother-in-law had laid some cash on me before we set out on our road trip, or we would have been sleeping in the car. Can't imagine how gnarly this would have been in Europe! Oh - and, what Ken said. We always get a little traveling cash, but use ATMs when we get to where we are going.

I agree that it's best to just use the ATM's to get your Euros. Ask what you bank's fees will be. Some are more expensive than others. Also, I too usually have some Euros or Pounds with me when I arrive. I feel better knowing I have enough with me to get me to my hotel and buy me a meal just in case there are issues with the ATMs. Pam

Thanks all! We will follow these suggestions :) 2 weeks in Switzerland, Austria and Chamonix France in Sept! Yea!!!!!

One additional thing to consider: I have heard that the convenient 1-800 number you use in the USA to get your card turned back on won't work in Europe! You need a "real" number! For example, Capitol One says: "Capital One Direct Banking employs fraud monitoring and protection capabilities to help protect you from ATM/Debit card fraud. These protection systems are designed to block transactions that occur outside of our customers' ordinary transaction patterns and may block transactions originating in countries that are experiencing a high incidence of card fraud. To avoid the inconvenience of having your ATM/Debit card blocked while you are traveling abroad, please notify us before any international travel or international purchases by calling 1-800-655-2265 from inside the United States or 972-916-4111 collect from outside the United States" Just sayin' Seeya
ATB

We are leaving for Europe in 2 weeks and just finished calling our banks/credit cards notifying them of our trip. I believe that every single one asked what countries we would be traveling in and the dates we would be out of the US.

I just got done calling the banks in preparation for our trip, too. We have been stranded in foreign countries without access to ATM funds not because we didn't have available funds or because we didn't call our bank but because some of our banks actually have time limits on those calls. Wells Fargo, for instance will note your vacation for 30 days FROM THE DAY YOU CALL THEM. Trust me, if that 30 days is up before your vacation is, they will put the fraud protection on your card and you will not have access to your funds. Now when I call the banks, I make sure I have less than 30 days from the END of my vacation. When I called US Bank, they noted our account that we would be in certain countries at certain times and then told me that there was still no guarantee that all of my transactions would be honored. If they suspect that I am using my card for things "outside the norm" the fraud protection will kick in. When I asked them what that unusual transaction might be, they told me they had no idea. My advice is to have "survival" cash on hand. Having now had this kind of trouble in a foreign country (or three), I wouldn't be without it.

I would recommend using your ATM to get money when you arrive. I save my euros from previous trips for "mad money" when I go back to Europe. 1. Double check with your bank to make sure they made note of your trip. 2. A second ATM card is a god-send if the first one doesn't work, gets stolen, eaten by the ATM, etc. 3. Make sure you can access your account via the internet.
I have never had a problem using my ATM in England, France, Greece, Italy. Once a friend had her's eaten by the ATM after trying to use it three times. She put in the wrong PIN. Yes, we had drank a bottle of wine that night!