Where is the euro bargain?

"Why such an exorbitant rate?"

Because they're Travelex and because they can. The worst place ever to exchange money. Not sure where you're located but I get my € at Wells Fargo for a whole lot less than that. You should be able to get them from any large major bank, smaller branch offices of banks no longer carry them. Lesson learned, in the future you'll know better.

Because making a big profit on exchanging currency is how they stay in business. Nancy was posting at the same time. Condolences.

Brighter side, now that it's done: In the overall cost of your trip, it's not a huge amount of money, and the peace of mind of having currency in hand when you arrive, possibly with sleep deprivation or jet lag, is worth something.

Even if I order euro in advance from my local bank, the exchange rate is not as good at the ATM rate in Europe.

Travelex charged you that rate because they can. You obviously paid it, right?

Rick's own advice:

http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money/cash-tips

"Don’t buy foreign currency in advance. Some tourists just have to have euros or pounds in their pockets when they step off the airplane, but smart travelers don’t bother and know better than to get lousy stateside exchange rates. Wait until you arrive at your destination; I’ve never been to an airport in Europe that didn’t have plenty of ATMs."

This thread may be helpful as well:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/budget-tips/bring-euros-or-use-the-atm-the-math-seems-to-say-bring-them

Whether to pre-purchase or wait and use an ATM upon arrival is a topic which has been discussed at length on the forums this past year.

You PURCHASED Euro. The sale price is not the exchange rate.
When you get Euro from an ATM in Europe you are simply withdrawing your money, in Euro. And the bank does it at the exchange rate (plus hopefully less than 1% for the friction)

Because they can. For your future reference, the usual advice is that if you want to get some foreign currency before your trip, get it from a bank. Most banks have or will order euros for you at a better rate than Travelex.

Jgrasso7,

Travelex always charges a higher percentage for foreign exchange than most banks.

I usually purchase Euros at my bank, or I've read from others posting here that they purchase them at AAA ( Auto Club).

You will get the best exchange by using an ATM in Europe.

I'd recommend using a bank ATM during business hours just in case the machine 'swallows' your debit card.

Make sure you notify your bank(s) regarding your travel plans (dates & countries) so your credit & debit cards won't be frozen.

You may want to read RS money tips advice before your trip: http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money

EDIT: It looks like we were all writing at the same time. When I started writing, there were no other posts, so my post may be repetitive...

Here are a couple of important points:

• You may consider increasing your daily cash withdrawal limit (dcwl)
  so you'll be able to make larger withdrawals & thus fewer
  
  transactions while on your trip (your bank may charge a fee per
  
  transaction, my bank charges $5) Years ago I forgot to do this &
  my dcwl was only $300, so subsequently I could only withdraw €200 per
  day.

• It's a good idea to take 2 debit cards (separate accounts) & 2 credit
  cards with you... just in case.

• Keep all your valuables in a money belt under your clothes where
  pickpockets can't get them.

Enjoy your trip!

There's really no reason to buy euros here before you go.

This is a frequently re-occurring topic on the forums and you'll see everyone agrees it is best to wait to get your Euros till you've landed in Europe. This is why Rick does not recommend purchasing cash in the U.S.

Banks/Financial institutions are happy to slap on big fees and to me it is not worth it.

At least you've learnt one thing, why everybody says use ATM's.

I usually leave with a few US Dollars. I use a credit union ATM card to withdraw cash from with no additional charges or discounts.

Don't think that a big box U.S. bank gives customers any good deal on purchasing Euros. Even on ATM transactions, they charge an exorbitant $5.00 plus 3% discount from the daily market rate.

Upon hitting ground, I'll immediately look for a bank ATM--not Travelex or private owned ATM.

And when I return home, I'm usually coming in with almost zero Euros (or other currencies) in my hand.

Jgrasso,

You will get varying responses here regarding taking Euros with you. Ultimately, it's a personal choice.

On a positive note, you already have some Euros & can always get more at a bank ATM upon your arrival.

I usually leave with at least €100 in hand and that way I don't have to stress about finding an ATM right away, especially since
I know I will be jet-lagged. I may need the cash in case I decide to take a taxi, buy a train ticket, a meal or snack on the day of arrival.

Have a wonderful trip!

It pays to do a bit of research and call around before you buy your Euros.

First, check out the daily interbank rate on a site like oanda.com or xe.com. These sites will give you the current interbank rate which i understand what the currency is trading at between financial institutions. You won't get that rate unless you are some big forex trader dealing with hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars. This just gives you the base line for your research.

Second, call your own bank or credit union to find out the rate they will sell to you. Make sure you also find out if they charge you a transaction fee. There are some banks or credit union which offer very good rates. A typical bank mark up may be about 2%-5% over the oanda interbank rate, but some people say their credit union offers cheaper rates (my bank was about 2.5-3.0% over the onada interbank rate). There can be a lot of variation amongst the different financial institutions. It is up to you whether you want to open a new account to take advantage of these better rates.

Third, call your local currency exchanges to find out their rates and fees. You may find that some currency exchanges offer a better exchange rate than a bank. This is an ever changing market. Companies like Travelex are offering convenience and charge major premium rates accordingly. Some other currency exchanges fight for market share and offer competitive rates to try and take away business from the banks. In my experience, at least in Vancouver, BC, there are currency exchange outlets like VBCE which offer a better rate (in my case, less than 2% over the oanda interbank rate) than the bank.

The above applies to buying euros while still at home.

Once you go to Europe, the conventional wisdom is to use your debit card and to withdraw from a bank ATM (not a non-bank kiosk-type money machine). But there can be variations in the rate and possible a transaction fee depending upon your bank and the foreign interbank machine. I ended up paying a $3.00 Cirrus fee to withdraw €350 from an Italian bank ATM.

Using your credit card to purchase goods or services will usually be about 1% higher than your bank ATM exchange rate. Ergo, the conventional wisdom is to use the ATM and to pay in cash instead of using your credit card. However, if you have to pay an ATM fee and depending on how much you withdraw, you may find, like I did, that the actual differnce between an ATM withdrawal and using a credit card is small.

So at least in my experience, my best Euro exchange rate was from a Vancouver currency outlet, not from an Italian bank ATM.

YMMV. See first sentence in my post.

We'll be taking Euros for sure. It's our first time to Europe, we will be jetlagged and anxious in more ways than one. We just don't want to be fooling around with figuring out ATM's at the airport. Since we are doing carryon...we just want to walk off that plane, and start walking to the water taxi's. We'll also be carrying $$$$. Not to be used, but just to have in an emergency and kept in a safe or money belt if no safe in the hotel room. DH always does this. You never know when something goofy could happen to our debit card. (we'll have a CC, too).

Just a clarification to funpig's post - the website to which he/she is referring is OANDA, not onada.

I checked with AAA a couple of weeks ago and they were the same as Travelex - $100 for 67 Euro.

Thanks to all. My first time on RS, great information. So looking forward to the trip and won't let this get in the way.
Great observation- I PURCHASED euros, fool me once......
Thanks fellow travelers.
JG

jgrasso7, here's the way to look at this: you've saved some expensive vacation time looking for an ATM, standing in the ATM line, etc., for the convenience of already having some starter Euro in your money belt and wallet! Sometimes it's worth it to spend a little extra for the convenience - that 3€ convenience charge for a 'skip-the-line' museum ticket, a taxi for when your legs (or the weather) take a turn for the worse, etc. Don't sweat it. Your vacation time costs a lot of money per hour, so enjoy scratching that 'gotta find the ATM!!!' off of your arrival must-do list. Spend that time instead on an arrival espresso or gelato (and break some of those larger bills if possible, if you received no small bills).

More than one person has posted on this very forum that upon arriving in Europe there were NO ATMs to be found either 1) in working order, or 2) that weren't out of Euro, or 3) that would accept their ATM card (yours and/or the bank's fault, but still = No Euro). DO get cash from an ATM ASAP, though! You want to make sure that your card(s) do work.

The Euro bargains are IN Europe ;-) Have a fabulous time!

..and when you return from Europe, keep a couple hundred Euros. Then you can make your life or a close relatives' life easier for the next trip. I had an easy Xmas present ready when my daughter-in-law announced an Italy trip last fall.

I purchased mine at Chase (my bank) and the Euro was 1.05 at that time and I paid 1.12 from Chase.

If that's the most expensive travel mistake you make, consider yourself lucky.

I also have purchased euros at Chase without a transaction fee for slightly more than the exchange rate. Necessary to order several days in advance. Most of the time, I return home from Europe with 50-100 euros as I know I'll be going back.

I normally purchase from AAA beforehand so we can have something in hand upon arrival but I checked my local office a week or so ago and was shocked when they were selling €77 for $100. No thanks. I then checked with my local bank, Chase and they confirmed no transaction fee and no fees whatsoever but I found that hard to believe. Thanks to those who have posted what they've paid to chase, that helps! I knew there was no way they would sell without making anything from it. This sounds like the best way to go. Given how strong the dollar is this year I'll be planning to bring some home for our next trip to hedge against higher rates next year. I know there's no guarantee rates will be higher next year but given it was ~$1.3 to €1 last year it's worth the risk in my opinion.

I have never been sorry that I had a couple hundred Euros, or any other currency of countries we've visited upon arrival. Not all ATM's work, multiple plane loads of 300 people lined up at the ATM's, taxi's that don't take credit cards, small vendors that won't take large bills, toilets requiring a few coins to enter -- we've seen it all. So what if you pay an extra $30 or more for foreign currency? Consider it the price of the hassle factors YOU won't have to endure. Savvy travelers don't always blindly follow the gospel according to Mr. Steves relying on ATM's upon arrival.