USBank and traveling

What Frank said. Those were the fees last summer (2010) for me. A few months ago I switched to a credit union because of checking account fees at US Bank. It's a good idea to have a backup ATM or debit card tied to a different account (as well as a backup credit card), in case something goes wrong with one. But if you talked to your bank about your cards, there's no reason (in theory, of course) why the cards wouldn't work.

I have a USBank account and am a reluctant stockholder. Their debit card works fine in Europe except that it is expensive $5/transactions plus 3% currency exchange fee. We use it as a back up card. Second, in the era of rapidly changing bank fees, double check the fee structure. That is what they were charging a year ago.

I had no trouble using my US Bank Visa card last fall in Italy and France. I called Visa and told the representative that I would be leaving for France on a specific date and returning on a specific date. I also told the representative that I would be traveling in Italy. I used the card to get money and for purchases. Don't forget, there will be a foreign transaction fee and of course, the cost of conversion from euros to dollars. I didn't have any problems. Good luck!

Have you been to Europe before? We go every year and would never consider caring around large amounts of cash since ATM machines are all over the place where we can get a couple of hundred local currency when we need it. We do not use regular US banks due to their fees. We use a credit union that has a 1% fee that covers everything. We do, however, take a bank credit card and ATM card for "back-up" just in case anything goes wrong with the CU cards. Have you called USBank to ask them about using their cards in Europe? Always a good place to start. Happy travels

Thanks for the replys everyone. I have been to Europe before with the family, but this is my first time traveling by myself. I will begin to talk to USBank as the date of my trip approaches (March 2012).

I used my USBank Debit card in Europe this summer and in 2009. The thing with Debit cards is that sometimes the ATMs won't take them. My brother had this issue with a debit card at another bank. This year, for a back-up, I also had a US BAnk card on my premier line of credit. Never a problem. I also had no trouble alerting US bank as to when I was traveling and where. The staff on the phone also gave me a number to make a collect call from Europe in case of a lost or stolen card.