If I don't bring Euros with me...

Not sure why you would not want to get euros at the airport, it is easy, and should cost you no more than getting euros at any ATM.

Some have been scared off by seeing ATMs run by Travelex, others suggest only getting cash from an ATM located in a lobby of a major bank during banking hours, but both tactics are overly cautious and do not (in my opinion) offer any more security or save any cost over just using an ATM that is convenient. I have used ATMs at probably a dozen different European airports many times, it is usually my first stop never encountering a problem or paying any bad rates.

I am one of those people who buys Euros before I leave home.

I'm just too paranoid to rely on an ATM machine at my arrival airport - I didn't know that some people even advise against using an ATM at the airport.

I know that my approach is costing me money - but it's worth it to me to have one less thing to worry about.

A few years ago I flew into Dublin airport on my way to France, and there were lots of ATMs from real banks. It took me less than a minute to get euros.

I also like to arrive to my European destination with at least €100, and that way I don’t need to worry about it for at least a day or two.

I usually save some €, or other local currency, at the end of my trip for the next trip!

This question is asked very frequently and you’ll receive many responses from those who don’t take any local currency to those who do.

Enjoy your trip!

Edited to add...
You may be interested in reading this recent post on the subject.

Don’t forget to notify your bank and credit card companies about your travel plans!

You may also want to increase your daily cash withdrawl limit before your trip ;-)

You can get Euros at the airport....I've always gotten them there no matter what country ( Europe, Turkey, South America, Mexico, etc). If the fees are high for whatever reason, you can still get a small amount to tide you over until you get to a city. This is not worth worrying over.

Get Euros at an airport ATM. Bring a few hundred dollars in USD (or whatever your home currency is) to change at a currency exchange place in an emergency (probably at a poor rate), in case you can't get an ATM to work or you can't use a credit card to pay for the car service.

We always get Euros at the airport ATMs. Why wouldn’t you do that?? We usually have some Euros left over from prior trips that we pack but still always get more on arrival at airports.

Your home town bank can order you Euros. But the exchange rate and service charges will be ridiculous.
I always obtain money in airports or train stations from bank ATMs only.
And let me warn you that your home bank may get you on withdrawal exchange and service charges. Wells Fargo discounts foreign transactions 5% and charges $5.00 service charges--not good. I use a no extra charges credit union ATM card when traveling.
I also carry 2 ATM cards and 2 credit cards when traveling as backups. And I use the credit cards any time I can to can avoid carrying much cash.

If I don't bring Euros with me, as everyone suggests just getting them
from an ATM in Ireland (and not at the airport), how do I pay for the
transportation service I use to get from the airport to where we are
staying?

Who exactly is "everyone"? Your parents? Friends? Certainly not "everyone" in the RS forums. When you arrive, go to an ATM (Bank of Ireland) for Euros. Done.

You’ll see this thread repeated ad nauseum on this board. Most folks just get their foreign currency at an airport ATM. I’m not one of those for this reason: I am wiped out after a long flight. I want to visit a bathroom and wash my face, clear immigration, get my ground transportation. I do not want to look for an ATM, use it surrounded by dozens of people and all the while trying to keep an eye on my luggage. To forego that experience I pay a little more for a small stash of Euro’s at my local bank. But other than my own foibles, there is no good reason not to buy them at the airport, your choice.

Thanks for the replies and suggestions and, ok, please don't be snarky: I'm 60, and have been reading a lot both in books and online and newpapers to research. I have traveled a lot in my life, but only to Canada and Mexico since chip cards came out. My research suggested that airports were the worst place in terms of rates. That was the nature of my question.

My research suggested that airports were the worst place in terms of rates. That was the nature of my question.

Worst rate may be true at the FX currency exchange kiosk. However, ATM rates (assuming you don't accept the Dynamic Currency Conversion option) is typically defined by your financial institution. That said, some "private" ATMs will have an ATM service fee.

I generally follow RS's money FAQ advice: https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money/cash-tips

Resist the urge to buy foreign currency before your trip. Some
tourists feel like they just have to have euros or British pounds in
their pockets when they step off the airplane, but they pay the price
in bad stateside exchange rates. Wait until you arrive to withdraw
money. I've yet to see a European airport that didn't have plenty of
ATMs.

Avoid (or at least minimize) cash exchange. In general, I avoid
exchanging money in Europe; it's a big rip-off. On average, at a bank
you lose about 8 percent when you change dollars to euros or another
foreign currency. When you use an airport currency exchange booth such
as Forex or Travelex, the hit can be as much as 15 percent.

If you have AAA they will exchange dollars for euros at no cost.

Thank you all so much. Can't wait!

Everyone has his / her own preference, but there isn't a "right" nor a "wrong" way to do this. The most important thing is doing it the way you feel the most comfortable. This has always been a subject that elicits many opinions. In fact, asking two people will probably get you three opinions.

In my opinion, it's always a good idea to have some local currency in hand when you land. Getting a hundred or two hundred Euros from your local bank will cost you a little more, but it eliminates the hassle of trying to find a machine, the stress of hoping it works (they do occasionally malfunction), and doing it all while sleepy and, jet lagged, and trying to keep up with luggage. The small amount extra it cost to have money in hand when arriving is money well spent, and the extra cost relative to the overall cost of the trip is not, in my opinion, that much. Just one point of view -- not three.

Enjoy the trip! It's a beautiful country.

I’m old school and always have pounds or Euros upon arrival so have never needed to use an ATM. Will do so on an upcoming trip. Even if you didn’t exchange a large amount of currency before the trip, you’d at least have some upon arrival in case you didn’t want to stop at an airport ATM or just wanted to buy a snack or get a bus ticket.

If you have AAA they will exchange dollars for euros at no cost.

"Cost" can be incurred in terms of added fees and/or less advantageous exchange rates. AAA may not charge a fee, but does have a less advantageous exchange rate in comparison to feet on the ground ATM exchange rates charged by most banks and much higher than most credit unions.

https://onlinetravelcurrency.com/mtwid000734/Basket
Today's AAA quote for 100 EUR:

100 EUR = 135.21 USD
0.7396 EUR Euro = 1 USD

Interbank rates:
https://www.oanda.com/currency/converter/

100 EUR = 124.141 USD March 8, 2018 Interbank +/- 0%

135.21/124.141 = 1.0892, an 8.92% markup over interbank.
Free is not free.

For some reason, I've just never found it stressful or a hassle to find an ATM at the arrival airport. I don't even use the airport ATM every time; sometimes I have 10 or 20 Euros left from last trip, or I just use my credit card to buy a train/bus ticket and get Euros at an ATM when I get into town.

Thanks for laying that all out in black and white, Edgar.

Edgars math is correct. But, the $11 it costs to have 100 Euro in my pocket when I land is chump change compared to the total cost of a European vacation. To some, that $11 might matter more, not me.

But, the $11 it costs to have 100 Euro in my pocket when I land is
chump change compared to the total cost of a European vacation.

That's the same reasoning that happens when you buy a new car and the salesman tries to upsell a bunch of bogus "extras" you don't need - after all, every relatively small expense as a percentage of a big ticket item is going to be "chump change" by definition...so why not, right? Same thing with buying a house - another large ticket item used to justify all sorts of oddball expenses like paying excessive real estate commissions or buying furnishings you really can't afford (and the list goes on and on). Everyone trying to sell you something or have you part with your money uses this same psychology because it frames the two numbers in a way that seems like the right answer is so intuitive, it shouldn't even be questioned. But that's essentially a decision bias that makes people rationalize all kinds of unsound small decisions which add up. The right frame of reference should be what's the opportunity cost of throwing $11 down the drain and what are alternatives to that action, not juxtaposing some small absolute amount as a percentage of some large number (or relative to some large number, which is also as striking). For some folks the $11 is the correct price to quell their worried minds (and if they see the value in it, then all the power to them), for others it's money that could otherwise be spent on something they value more.

I'm surprised that some folks still believe that AAA (or other organizations, even non-for-profits) is in the charity business. There is no such thing as a free money exchange. The cost may be buried in the exchange rate, but it's still there.

Could not agree more Agnes. As I said, to some that $11 matters more and they (you) see it as money down the drain. I see it as what I’m willing to pay to have that currency in my pocket when I land. It’s an individual choice. The analogy regarding the extras when purchasing a car? I’ve yet to see anything in a car dealership for $11. I’m not advocating getting a lot of foreign currency at an inflated price, it’s 100 Euros we are talking about. Just saying to me the $11 is worth it and it’s a rounding error when looking at the vacation costs in total. Others will wait and hit that airport ATM and save that $11 and it’s an individual choice. No psychological tricks here. It’s $11 !! We’ve been down this road before with your shopping ATM’s overseas to save a few dollars. We won’t agree on this either so lets agree to disagree!

Well, if a traveler is not only paying US exchange fees for up-front euros but also using fee-charging ATMs throughout his trip, we're not talking about $11 anymore, are we?

I converted about $100 myself in 2015, before my first trip of the 21st century. I hated to do it, but I decided it was worth it since I am so brain-dead upon arrival in Europe. Indeed, when I hit an ATM in Rome on my arrival day, I used a credit card instead of my ATM card. What I read on the screen surprised me, so I halted the transaction and waited till the next day, at which point I realized what I must have done.

I'm concerned when people write of getting foreign currency in the US without a fee / at the official rate / at no cost / etc., because if that's what you think is happening, you might perfectly well decide to convert a lot more than $100. After all, why not? So now it's $50, or perhaps more.

Okay, true life story - we flew into Dublin. We were supposed to have a ride meet us, but surprise - he did not. We had Euros with us, thank goodness, b/c there was nothing working with our bank cards that day at the airport. Our cab driver did not accept credit cards, so thankfully we had cash.

Long story short - you can always get money from ATM's (assuming you have a card that works AND you have called your bank ahead of time - which we did, btw). But in our situation - poster children of Murphy's Law - we were very thankful we'd gone by our local bank and picked up some local currency before we left home in this case.

I hope you have a wonderful adventure!!!

I always bring some local currency with me..not a ton but usually $100 or so...

Not sure what transportation you are using but if you are using the Airlink service like many of us in here seem to do, you can use your credit card in the ticket machine. Truth be told, I use my credit cards as much as I can when travelling.

aquamarinesteph:

Long story short - you can always get money from ATM's (assuming you have a card that works AND you have called your bank ahead of time - which we did, btw). But in our situation - poster children of Murphy's Law - we were very thankful we'd gone by our local bank and picked up some local currency before we left home in this case.

Could you have changed a few hundred USD (or whatever your home currency is) at the airport if the ATMs were not working for you? Have you ever been to a big airport that didn't have a currency exchange kiosk? They seem to be at even the smallest airports. I have never needed to use one in a very long time, but I have a few hundred USD with me just in case when I arrive in these places and the ATM won't work for some reason. I don't care what terrible rates they charge, because my chance of needing to use one seems to be very small. But if I buy Euros ahead of time, I GUARANTEE I'm paying extra for Euros, no matter what.

I'm one of those who likes to bring a couple of hundred dollars worth of the local currency with me. I don't like errands when I get off the plane. I want to get to my hotel and jump right into my visit. This is just me, but I'd rather pay a little for convenience. I just got $200.00 (actually plus a few cents but can't remember the cents) worth of Euro's at my AAA. Running the interbank rate vs what I paid, it cost me $9.00 for this convenience. Money well spent for me. I'm taking a trip to Europe afterall. $9.00 is nothing in comparison. Others prefer not to get money ahead of time. There is no right way. Do what is easier or makes you feel most comfortable.

We bring cash. I don't suppose it's really necessary, but it made us feel so much more comfortable the first time to we traveled to Europe in the age of all debit card no travelers checks. We still bring cash, but only because we keep a little from the previous trip for that purpose. It does save me from dealing with cash machines while jet lagged, and better yet we have coinage and small bills right away.

That doesn't help the OP much though. I suggest pricing the cost of getting Euros from your bank or credit union. If the transaction cost is worth it for your piece of mind, but some.

Andrew - I don't know if there was a currency exchange booth there or not. I don't remember seeing one, and at that point, I was so tired I didn't care. (It had been two days of travel plans gone wrong by the time we finally reached Dublin.) There may be one there, so, yes, that is an option if available.

ATM rates (assuming you don't accept the Dynamic Currency Conversion option) is typically defined by your financial institution

No. Not true. Your "financial institution" has nothing to do with the exchange rate at an ATM. That is set by the Visa/MasterCard/AmEx network (or by the ATM owner if you let them use DCC). Everyone at an ATM using that network's cards get charged exactly the same exchange rate for that date and time.

Your financial institution may add fees for you using your card outside your home country, but that is not part of the exchange rate. Your financial institution has no say in the rate and they see the settlement for your transactions in their country's money with the Euro or Pound or whatever amount just being passed as only a notation on the transaction. They don't have to worry about buying or selling foreign currency or anything like that. They just pay the network not more than 1% for the network to do the conversion for them. So why do some banks charge up to 5% to the their customers? Because they can. And it makes a tidy profit for them having done nothing except allowing you to use your card.

We have been to Ireland many times and the only time we exchanged money in advance was the first trip. Since then we have always had a few euros left from our prior trip and will use the airport ATM for a bit more cash to have on hand. Our home bank refunds the atm fees, which is nice.

The only time we had a problem with cash was our own fault. In Shannon airport there is a cafeteria upstairs. We got a cup of tea and a scone, then DH dumped the tray with our baggie of euros and change into the trash. We didn’t even realize it until we we were well on our way and I was thirsty, only to find we didn’t have any money to buy a bottle of water. Since then we have been a little more careful!

Thanks, all, for the helpful tips and information. Now, off to find out how I'm getting to Kinsale and beyond!