Exchanging Currency

I would at least exchange the amount you need to pay for the B&B at a United States Bank before leaving.
And then get a little more in SMALL DENOMINATIONS for daily walking money.

Depending on ATMs is risky, simply because mechanical devices in Italy are not maintained in the same manner as they are in the US. And lots of small businesses will tell you that their Credit Card Reader is temporarily not working.
This is because what they really want is "cash-off-the-books." Italians appreciate it if you understand this.

"Depending on ATMs is risky"...not in my experiences. If you happen upon a malfunctioning ATM then just move to the next one. It's not as if there are only 2 or 3 machines serving the entire country. There are thousands.

Generally, yes, airports are the worst option.

Do you have an ATM card? If so, the best way to get euro is to withdraw your daily maximum (usually around 200-300 euro) each day you are there, until you have enough--assuming you pay your hotel bill at the end of your stay. Be sure to let your bank know that you will be using your ATM and credit cards in Italy so they don't freeze them.

If you need more money up-front or don't have an ATM card, try to exchange at a Bank of America or Wells Fargo here in the U.S. It will cost you a bit more than the ATMs, but at least you won't be wasting your precious vacation time standing in line at a bank.

Any time you hand someone dollars and they hand you Euros, it will be expensive. The airport ?? probably more expensive but not substantially more than a foreign bank. However, the key to understanding fees,etc. is you have to know the exchange rate. Money changers will bury some or all of their fees in the exchange rate. The day before you leave make a note of the exchange rate. It will vary some, day to day, but should not move more than a penny or so unless there is a big economic crisis somewhere. Then just check the local paper.

I agree with Liz - go with the ATM card. Currency exchange places usually charge you a percentage commission, and sometimes they also charge you a service fee on top of that. In my experience, you always get the best rate by going to an ATM machine at a European bank and getting your money directly from there.

The daily maximum will depend on whatever is set by your bank for your account so make sure you speak with your bank before you go. Also let your bank know that you will be using your ATM card, as well as any credit cards, in Europe before you leave or they will deny the transaction thinking that it is fraudulent.

Finally, make sure that your ATM PIN code is four-digits long as most European machines are not programmed to accept five-digit codes. If your code is not four digits long, speak to your bank and they can get it adjusted.

If the machine eats your only card, then there really isn't the option of using the next machine.
So, if using ATMs, you'll need multiple accounts and cards. My wife and I use what we call our Italy Account, a single purpose checking account, which issued us two cards. Both have different pins and we keep these separated from each other. We use these first; and if one gets eaten, its no big deal, we have a backup. And if that back-up gets lost, de-magnatized or eaten by another machine, we then have our usual ATM and Credit Cards as another level of back-up. Using multiple accounts also lets you compound your daily withdraw limits to accommodate just about any emergency.

My experience is like Tim's. In the last ten years we have only had two or three machines that would not take the card but a subsequent machine did. I will admit the first time it happened I did panic a bit because I had allowed myself to get a little low on cash. I think the machines in Italy are maintained as well as anywhere else. We do take a second card on a second account as backup but have never had to use it. I would not advice anyone to take a lot of cash from this side simply because it would be very expensive. You will pay between 5% to 10% on this side and my experience is closer to 10% but it has been reported that some banks, WF, charges around 5%. As I posted earlier, we try to use only ATMs attached to a bank during business hours. Someone made a comment about using a machine after someone else has used it. That is a good recommendation and we follow that also thinking that if it works for them it will work for us.

ATMs usage is universal. My son just returned from a five month around the world honeymoon and an debit from WaMu that work everywhere and I mean everywhere -- SE Asis, Turkey, Middle East.

Wow! Thanks so much for the great info. I think I will just bite the bullet and exchange the money at the airport for the B&B and do the rest with ATM's.
Happy travels all.

Katie,

If you exchange your funds at the airport, you'll likely pay more in currency exchange and "service fees", as the others have mentioned.

I'm assuming you won't have to pay in advance for your B&B? My preference would be just to go out and find the nearest ATM after checking into the B&B (what city will you be visiting first?). If do need to pre-pay, you could always stop and withdraw cash when you arrive in the neighborhood (and before checking in to the B&B).

Be sure to notify your Bank that you'll be traveling in Europe, so they don't "flag" your ATM card and de-activate it. Also note that your funds need to be in a chequing account with a four-number PIN. I'd also suggest packing a "backup" ATM card as well, preferably on a different account in case you have problems with the primary card.

Good luck and happy travels!

Thanks :)

Katie, your airport should have an ATM-- no need to use the currency exchange booth.