ATM's, credit cards, currency conversion, bank fees, card fees, etc etc etc

Do not worry how the ATM knows if you card is a debit or a credit - suffice it to say it knows. But you also need to make sure. If it is a debit card the money will be withdrawn from your account and the ATM will charge you a fee each time you do it. The fee I was charged was $1.50 ~ probably 1 euro. If it is a credit card you will still get your money and the fee plus interest charges - now that gets expensive. Using ATMs is the best way to go. Use the search feature to look for "ATM" or "currency exchanges" for a lot of info already posted on this topic. Going with lots of cash is probably not wise - theft is always a concern - in the states or in Europe. Call your bank and find out what kind of card you have for sure. ATMS are all over. American Express can be used all over too - but avoid using the credit card at an ATM

I'll try not to add too much to your confusion. Italy is very much a cash society. We were there in June, most of our hotels and many restaurants did not take credit cards. The major museums (Uffizi and Accademia) were cash only. I shopped around my locals banks for the best rate and got enough euros to apy all our hotels and many of our other expenses. We only hit the ATM a few times. The other bonus was that when we got home, we didn't have an enormous credit card bill to pay.

My card is a credit card but AMEX says it will act like a debit card when I use it at a cash machine.

American Express may not be the best card for ATMs. Usually cards w/ the Visa or MC logo are more widely accepted.

This is kind of funny. Usually people worry about going to the backward wilds of Europe and if the water is safe to drink and if they even know how to use money. Seems you have the opposite situation.

You are expected to wear shoes in Europe.

Shoes?? Really????

Carole,
No Italian bank will charge you to use their ATM (bankomat). All the charges will come from your bank. See http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/cc/20050624b1.asp for how this works.

Carole - I think you need to call back AmX for some clarification. I can really only speak to my own personal experience, but this is what I know:

Using AmX to get Cash - I have only had experience using this as a "cash advance" which has a separate pricing structure than simply charging items on your card. For example, if you charge on AmX you will not pay any interest when you pay the balance. But with a cash advance you will be charged interest from the day you took the cash out. This is separate from the foreign transaction fees, ATM fees, etc. I would call them again because I really was not aware that you can use this as a "debit" card as you state.

Foreign Transaction fees - The Italian bank does not charge you a fee - your own bank (UBS) and AmX will, most likely, charge a "foreign transaction fee". This usually ranges from 1-3% of the total transaction. This will be true whether you are making a credit or debit purchase or even if you are simply withdrawing cash from the ATM. You need to call your bank and clarify what their charge will be. Again call AmX back and ask specifically what this fee will be.

ATM fee - Many American banks will also charge you a fee for not using their own ATM. My bank, BofA, charges me $2.00 per ATM withdrawal from a non BofA bank in the U.S.And $5.00 in Europe. Again, you need to call YOUR OWN bank and ask them what this fee really is. I do take out as much as I can in one transaction to avoid multiple ATM fees. Having said that we had a hard time taking out more than 250 Euros per transaction in Italy. We could, however, have multiple transactions in one day.

Availability of AmX in Italy - found that many places took Visa over AmX and many more took cash over credit/debit. We used AmX only to pay for the bigger hotel bills (not the smaller B&Bs). Otherwise we almost always took money out of an ATM and paid cash for other items or used our Visa.

Hope this helps!

"ATM withdrawal: 2%-3% currency conversion plus fees ATM owner may charge. Cardmembers can enroll in Express Cash, which allows them to link their card to their bank account and us ATMs around the world"

So this means $20 - $30 fee every time I withdraw $1000 cash, so does this mean I should get euros here at home?

Carole,
I haven't found a place that will sell euro for less than 5% over the interbank rate. An ATM can cost you 0 to 3% above the interbank rate plus a transaction charge of 0 to $5.
An ATM is the cheapest way to get euro but you have to talk to your bank to find out what it will cost.
I gave you the link so you could ask the right questions at your bank. Some banks neglect to tell you about the foreign transaction fee. Make sure your debit card will work on the major ATM networks.

And Carole - be careful if you do check the different ways to purchase Euros here before you go. There are posters who will insist that they paid no "fees" and they may be correct. The exchange rate, however, is most often higher than the rate you will get at the ATM in Italy. This can amount to a fee that is in excess of the 3% foreign transaction fee. Plus I would never walk around with or even store in my hotel room enough Euros for my trip. You really need to call back to your own bank (and AmX) and speak with them now that you know what to ask (though I do warn you that in speaking with different representatives of the same bank I have gotten conflicting advice). This will be the best way to understand the fee schedules.

Now, if you have time, and are looking for an inexpensive option, I recommend the Schwab High Yield Checking Account. It is a free checking account that is linked to a Brokerage Account that can have a zero balance plus they will pay you interest. They charge NO fees for using any ATM and they will reimbuse you if the other bank charges a fee for the use of the ATM. Their foreign transaction fee appeared to be 0-1% from my experience using this in France this past March. I am only keeping my BofA account to handle some other family matters. Otherwise I have moved my banking to Schwab. It is a great account for travelers.

I am sorry, but there has been a lot of miss information posted or at best a little less than accurate.

First, a debit card pulls money directly and instantly from your checking or savings account in the US. In Europe the vast majority of ATMs pulled it from your checking account. I have seen a couple of ATMs that did give a choice. Not familiar with the current AExpress card but knowing AE I am sure they are collecting a fee somewhere. (I held a gold card for 25 years) The cousin is correct. AE and Diner Card, etc. are not widely accepted except at high end places. The most popular card accepted is a VISA followed by MCard. GET A VISA card. Currently Capitol one does not charge the common 3% conversion fee.

You are unwise to carry a large amounts of US cash because it may be difficult and expensive to exchange it. Reports indicate that some exchanges or other locations may refuse to accept dollars because of the current economic conditions. Buying a lot of Euro stateside may also be expensive because of a poor exchange rate. BEFORE beginning any currency transaction you MUST know the interbank rate -- it is in your local paper or internet every day, every hour.

Italy does like cash but we have found that nearly everywhere will accept a VISA card. But you often get a discount if you use cash especially at hotels - not at restaurants.

The United card (I have one) charges 3% on all credit charges. That is why I use Capitol 1 in Europe. The fees for cash advances on credit cards are awful. Use only in extreme emergency.

Because I like back up and redundancy I recommend two debit cards tied to two different checking accounts and three credit cards. However, in 15+ years I have never had a debit or credit fail but I still do it.

These recommendations may not fit with your life style but this the best and most economic way to do it based on my experience and many others.

Well I will check again because you all are right it is very confusing and even the AMEX people gave me different information different times I called.

I know that Amex is not as widely accepted as VISA so for credit card purchases, which I plan to keep at a minimum, I will have a VISA card.

My AMex card is a UBS Amex tied to my brokerage account. That is why I think it will work as a debit card at an ATM. At least it does here in the states. And at least they said it would in Italy. They also said that it would work in ATM's at Banca Varige, Ouibanca, Eufiserb, Banco Populare di Milano and DeutschVerke Bank. They said that even small towns would have these.

Carole,
"They also said that it would work in ATM's at Banca Varige, Ouibanca, Eufiserb, Banco Populare di Milano and DeutschVerke Bank. They said that even small towns would have these."

I think they are blowing smoke up your skirt. Ask them for the addresses of bankomats in some of the towns you will be staying in. This link shows about 10 Visa bankomats in the center of Siena http://visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/
I don't see any of the banks they named.

Well - that smoke up my skirt is looking pretty good. You all are getting me to thoroughly check things out and this is what I found.

I picked 7 towns where I know I will be and went to http://amex.via.infonow.net/locator/cash

just to see what they said. There were 2 in Sperlonga, 2 in Vernazzo, 2 in Monerosso, 2 in Rio Maggiore, 2 in Trequanda, 5 in Sorrento and 3 in Montepulciano.

So unless I am reading these wrong, I am feeling more confident!

Excuse the typos for towns in the last post. BTW I also went to Siena and found 42 listings for bancomats accepting Amex there. I think the list of "banks" I listed was incorrect - on the website they show the logos and list them as participating ATM networks.

Thanx Henry and all for your input.

Carol,
Look for machines that have your bank logo (ours is cirrus). The fees you will be charged will be lower. If you take cash you might have difficulty in exchanging it. The local banks in Sorrento would not exchange $100.00 bills. We were directed to a Deutesche Bank. I have been to Italy several times and do not remember ever needing as much actual cash as I did this time. In Rome we could use our credit card for most purchases (we don't use a debit card). In Sorrento and points south, it was very much a cash society. Many of the shops and vendors are small, family run businesses and can't afford the credit card processing fees. Be sure to let your bank know the dates of your trip. The unusual activity on your account could cause them to lock it down as a theft preventitive measure.

Debby