Wells Fargo

I'd also recommend that you talk to a personal banker at your local Wells Fargo. They have lots of different kinds of accounts and some have no transaction fees when withdrawing money in Europe (the European bank will still have some sort of fee) and a decreased fee when ordering foreign currency. If you qualify, they can switch your account type immediately. You can increase your daily withdrawal amount for the duration of your trip, just by calling customer service. It's also a good idea to notify them that you're traveling in Europe (pretty sure you already knew that).

Check with Charles Schwab. They refund ATM fees.

Do a quick search of this website as there have been recent discussions.

The general consensus (for what its worth) is that buying Euros in advance is expensive as you pay fees and/or don't get as good an exchange rate as you would at the ATMs where you are visiting.

For how long are you traveling and is it possible to use credit cards for some/all of your major purchases? Generally, you should only take money out of an ATM on a weekly basis rather than every day. The exchange rate you get from the ATM withdrawal will be as good or usually better than any currency exchanger in the US.

I don't understand Eric's recommendations. No one can survive by only withdrawing once a week. And beside daily or weekly makes no difference in the fees. You need a couple of different approaches. If you buy currency through WF in the US you will pay about 5% for your money. Instead ask WF to increase your daily limit. BUT, that might not completely solve you problem. In high tourist areas and especially on weekends the ATM will have a limited to the withdraw so that the terminal is not quickly drained of cash. For that reason we try to use only ATMs attached to a bank during open hours. They often will not have a limit on withdraws. Second -- and fairly important -- get a second ATM card tied to a different account. Serves as backup should something happen to the first card and with two cards you can withdraw the limited on both at the same time. Third, make sure your bank allows multi withdraws in a 24 hour period. That way you can hit a ATM with a low limit more than once. This will be much cheaper and convenient than buying a lot of currency from WF.

While I agree that a weekly withdrawal won't work for most people (partly because of the limits imposed by the ATM), more frequent withdrawals DO cost more if you have a card that charges a per-withdrawal fee.

I'm not sure I understand the comment about being concerned about making frequent withdrawals because the dollar is so weak. I don't see that that would much of a difference over the course of a trip. It's not going to change that much at one time.

Frank is so right. Get a second ATM card or more depending on how many in your group have bank accounts!

I just recently realized that I could get a second card tied to my money market (HAHA) account which would be completely separate frommy checking a/c card. Since these are both with the BOA, I am still getting a third card from another bank just for back-up. Last year, I had my ATM frozen because some stupid merchant put a hold on my account three times in the same amt. (over $330 each time) unknown to me.(this was for things I was sending home). This caused me a lot of grief so I will NEVER travel again with one ATM card.

And yes I agree, keep anticipating your cash needs and never run too low in cash...it's a little like topping off your gas tank as the prices keep rising.
I NEVER buy Euros/ponds in the USA. The airports in Europe are filled with cash machines. But I do carry a few hundred in dollars as an emergency fund.

Wow Natashia, that's a lot of money to be carrying around.

I have WFB and I refuse to use their ATM card because like BofA they nickel and dime you to death. Instead I opened an account with a credit union who's sole purpose is for traveling. I do carry my WFB as a back up since it has a Visa logo, while my C.U. is a MC.

I'm surprised you found it hard to find an ATM in Italy. Was it not a bigger city? I was in Milan and found them in abundance. Still, if you had a challenge in 2006 I understand why you'd be spooked this trip.

Personaly I'd wait to pull more money when you get there. Even with a money belt, that's an awful large sum of money to carry.

I'd suggest calling WFB for an increase, and also to open a new account. Check the search box here for the Charles Schwab post.

When we started traveling to Europe alot upon retirement we opened a second checking account at B of A. We use it for trip related expenses only which is nice as it gives us a clear idea of how much we spent/are spending on any one trip. I carry a Well Fargo ATM card (our main account) as backup. When an ATM machine chewed up my B of A card it was nice to have a back-up. Additionally with two cards you can withdraw a thousand a day if necessary for an emergency.

Thank you for all of your suggestions I will take them under advisement.