ATM/Money Help

Forget traveler checks. IF anyone will take them, the fee will be high. Transfer your money to the credit union and use that as your primary account. Use your bank as back up. On weekends and in high tourist areas you will find limits on machines at about 250E. Hit the ATM twice if you need more money. Second, I have always found that ATMs attached to banks during the week do not have a limit.

If I were you I'd shift my trip money to my credit union account and use that ATM card. $5.00 plus 3% is very steep. If your credit union card is linked to both a checking & a savings account, make sure you designate the checking account as "primary." When two accounts are linked to a single ATM/debit card, European ATM's always default to the "primary" account; they don't give you a choice. Finally, if you use ATM's owned by Italian banks, it's highly unlikely you'll run into any daily withdrawal limit other than that set by your own bank back home.

Travelers Checks - not any more. Credit Union ATM DEBIT cards - the only way to go. I use my CU DEBIT card in Europe every summer and doing so has really kept the exchange cost to a minimum.

We are just back and took two cards for different credit unions. The credit union was THE best. On one account a 3.20 dollar fee for 200 euros. So far we have seen no added fees on the other account,and we have been home two weeks. All machines we used would only let us have 250 euros. Be sure to have your money in your checking, not your savings account as that was where the withdrawals came from. We were fairly nervous about it all working, but all went fine.

Thank you so much! It's been 10 years since I was in Europe and we changed money and TCs back then. We're leaving next week & I was already a little worried about using the atm there rather than having "money in hand." When I double checked the bank and was told new & outrageous rates for my regular atm card, I really panicked. Once again I appreciate all the RS posters' help!!!!

LaVee, be sure to call your bank and credit card banks now, to tell them you are traveling and to which countries. To save some on those bank ATM fees in Europe, withdraw as much as possible each time. Some of the fees are per withdrawal. ....You may be able to get your bank to increase your daily limit. The banks in Europe sometimes have their own limits. I routinely withdraw 300 Euros at a time, mostly for convenience.

You might also check the credit card rates - I called mine to inform them of overseas travel and inquire as to charges in Europe. Most said a 3% charge on purchases, but Capital One had no charge for European purchases. Only problem is my wife doesn't have a Capital One card and I do, so it looks like I'm paying for everything. Have a good trip!

Most banks with ATMs here in Italy will limit single withdrawals to 250 euro, some allow a bit more. If you need more for some reason on the same day, I'd go to a different bank's ATM and try there. Definitely call your bank now and see if you can get daily limits temporarily raised during your trip. When traveling we always use combination of cash and credit - if a place takes credit (the place where we stay or for large expenses in shops, never use them at restaurants unless I go to the register directly), I'll go for the credit first to save up on the cash for other minor expenses.

Good advice to use your credit card whenever possible. As for the "only at the register" comment about restaurants, that seems overboard. I think you could amend that to say perhaps only at those restaurants where you can see the waiter take it to the register? FWIW, we've never even worried about that and we've never had a problem at any restaurant. Remember, you have a lot more protection when you use a credit card than when you use a debit card.

And your experience is a good warning to all travelers not to rely on what your bank tells you over the phone about fees. See it in writing or don't believe it.

Capital One ATM charges no foreign transaction fee and if you set up a MM account, they can send you a card within a week.

Michael: totally agree with you, it depends on the restaurant on whether I choose to use a credit card there or not. I generally avoid the huge tourist traps anyway :-) and go for small, family owned places if I can find them. And definitely have more protections in using a credit card over a debit in case something were to happen. In general, I try to keep cash to use to restaurants, bars and small shops, and when I can, I use the credit card to avoid needing to use the ATM too much and pay charges when out of the country.

I was able to call my bank after I incurred the $5 fees for withdrawing from a non home bank ATM and got the fees reimbursed. Got $40 back so far.