travelers checks

NO, ABSOLUTELY NOT !!!! TC haven't been readily accepted for years. On the few occasions that they might be accepted by a bank you will get hit with high service charges and poor exchange rates. A debit card at an ATM is the most cost effective and convenient way to obtain local currency.

You cannot use Travelers Checks anywhere in Germany. Not even in banks. The only place that will take them are the Money Exchanges in the airport or train stations and you will pay a high fee for exchanging them as well as get a really crappy exchange rate.

Sue, The last time I cashed an American Ex. traveler's check (2 x $20 ) was in the summer of 2001 in Pilsen (CZ) at the exchange office (Wechselstube) outside the train station as I was on a day trip from Nürnberg. This summer in Paris and Vienna I saw the American Ex. building where it has always been...on Rue Scribe across from the L'Opera and on Kärntnerstraße in Vienna.

Sue - Frank is right on. Forget about travelers checks and use, (This is important.) the Atm machine but the Atm machine that is compatible with your debit card here in America. Check with your local bank to see if they have branches in Slovenia as mine did. You save a transaction fee. Do NOT use your Visa card as they have a 3% transaction fee which can mount up. Ljubljana is a good choice; was there a couple of years ago and it was really neat. If your schedule permits get up to Lake Bled. Final word on travelers checks. For YEARS took about a $1000 worth as back-up "just in case." - Year after year returning them to the bank for deposit has finally sunk in. Have fun; you will really enjoy Slovenia. It's great fun and relatively cheap, too! As a "bonus" think just about everyone I met spoke at least some English; the young people, of course, were fluent. Richard

Echoing my last post, you can't even use cashier's checks in Europe (well, at least in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands) for paying regular bills. Some merchants who cater to tourists MIGHT take them. But you can't use checks to pay things like utilities and rent.

Last time I used travelers checks in europe was 1999. To cash the TC you need to bring your passport and who wants to carry their passport with them. I just use my ATM cards and try to pay everything in europe with cash unless it is a major purchase.

The last time I used TCs was in 1991. I'm so glad to be done with them!

Hi Sue. As Richard said, DO NOT use a credit card at an ATM. The interest is sky high. I use an ATM card for cash and carry 2 credit cards for purchases of 20 euros or more. On my last trip I called my credit card companies and got the PIN for each card, in case my ATM card didn't work and I really needed cash. But I would only use a credit card at an ATM in a last-resort situation.