MONEY CHANGING AT HEATHROW AND IN PARIS

Arif....there are all sorts of Bureaux de changes at both spots....but why travellers' cheques? You'll get a very poor rate of exchange on them. Far better to take debit cards and use bank ATMs to withdraw cash. No one uses travellers cheques any more.

Greetings

Norm is correct - traveler's checks are NOT the way to go. Few places - including banks - will exchange them, and you get terrible rates. Also avoid the speciality exchange bureaus - you'll get awful rates.

You are best advised to get money from an ATM at the airport and/or train station. If you want to have GBP and/or Euros in hand when you get to Europe, get some at your bank in the US. Banks offer the best rate, so if you have to exchange money, do it at a bank.

Kate

Norm is right, there are many places to exchange currency, but you'll pay a high % conversion fee. As for traveller's checks this is what Rick Steves has to say about it in Europe Through the Back Door

"I cashed in my traveler's checks long ago. And I haven't stepped into a European bank in ages. Now, I get my cash from ATM machines.... You'll pay fees [for using ATM card], but you'll still get a better rate than you would for exchanging traveler's checks."

Arif,

One thing I do before leaving the US and heading to England is to go load my ATM account with a whole gob of cash. I also give the dates of my travel beginning and ending to the bank teller and she puts some sort of note on my account with that information. It is for the account in England....I guess....so they won't put a stop order on my account (that would be fatal) and that it is really me who is withdrawing the money!

For some reason, unknown to me....I get no bank charges from Barclay Bank and they have ATM's everywhere. I do have an old checking account with Barclay from 1991 and it has about 60GBP in it....maybe that's it.....

Mollie

i agree.. use an ATM/Debit card to withdraw money. The Tc's are a hassel and you'll end up bringing them home. You can bring like $200 as a "just in case" but really if you're going to London and paris, you won't have any problems finding an ATM.

When you get outside Heathrow's customs area, you'll see a line of ATM's ... one big name bank after another.

Same thing with paris.

If you're worried about someone stealing your ATM info, I would open a new bank account just for the trip. I have one credit union for my trips, which is not linked to the personal money (used to pay bills).

My daughter lives in England and she swears by just using the ATMs over there and no traveler's checks period. She says the exchange rate is better if you use the ATMs no matter where you are. So, when I went in November, I just used the ATMs when I needed money. Right now the $$ is at it's worst in exchange!!!!!

If you take money out of the ATM, you get charged a conversion fee of about 2% At conversion bureaus, to exchange cash or traveler's checks it's 8+%

So, I would take some Amer. dollars....maybe $100 or so just in case.....and just use ATMs. I guess you run the risk of a machine not working sometime, but she's never had that happen and she's lived abroad a ton of times.....they've been in England 2 years now and she also went to school in France and didn't have a problem.

Hope that helps!

I'm considering purchasing EU for our trip next June, considering the current exchange rate, What is the best method/rate to purchase EU in the US. Any thoughts on where the rates will go from here?

Barclays Bank, Deutsche Bank and Bank of America are part of a Global Alliance and as such do not charge fees for withdrawing money from an ATM when you use one of their ATM's. Look online to see what other banks this might include and in what countries.

I would never use travelers checks. Take some cash for emergencies if you want.

Carolyn, no one knows what will happen to the rates in the future. I wouldn't bother buying euros now. Even if the rates fluctuated in your favor in the meantime, the difference in rate would probably not make up for what you would lose by not having your dollars in a money market account for those months. You can order euros from your local bank, but you'll pay high fees to do so if you live in an area that doesn't do a lot of international business (for example, I live in central Illinois and my bank would have to order them from Chicago). If it makes you more comfortable to have some euros before leaving, exchange some money at the airport here before leaving. But for all the hassle, buying euros now to try to hedge against a worse rate later isn't going to save you anything.

You need to let your credit card bank know you will be using your card in Europe before you go. Two weeks ago my card with HSBC was frozen after I made a purchase in England.I had forgotten to notify them that i would be overseas. Actually I had not planned on using that card but then I wanted to see if the exchange rate would be any better. I had informed the other 2 cards that I have that I would be traveling in Britain and had no problem with them. We were pleased with the exchange rate as it was dropping during our trip. Have not used traveller's checks in 30 years.

ATM's are everywhere. Put you cash in checking at home. You cannot transfer money from saving to checking using ATM in UK and Europe. We get 400 Pounds or Euros every 3 or 4 days. It cuts down on fees a bit. We use credit cards for big purchases - hotels, plane fares, etc.

You need a 4 digit pin and be SURE to tell your bank you are going. Also, call the 800 no. on the back of your card and tell them. You also may wish to increase your daily withdrawal limit. 400 dollars per day is not 400 Pounds. I usually get mine increased to 1200 dollars then come back down when I return home.

Thanks to all you wonderful folks, my wife and I followed your advice, and had a wonderful time in UK, France, Spain and Portugal: eight days of our own travelling on trains, and thirteen on a cruise ship. We had absolutely no problem in withdrawing cash using our debit cards at ATMs conveniently located at airports and railway stations. We ensured informing our banks in advance as well as kept just enough money in our bank accounts. Our banks did not charge us a fee for use of our debit cards. One bank did not charge us a transaction fee for use of its credit card.

Has anyone had problems w/ ATM's in Europe not taking US ATM cards? Or will any card work?

Dave, as you will read in the above posts, I believe there is just no problem in using an ATM card in Europe. However, you must be careful of the fees: you must ensure that your bank as well as the location does not charge. Other than that, I found using an ATM card was a breeze in UK, France and Spain.

There will NEVER be a charge for using an ATM in Europe by the owner of the ATM. Your bank may charge your but the usage of the ATM in Europe is free.

There will NEVER be a charge for using an ATM in Europe by the owner of the ATM. Your bank may charge your but the usage of the ATM in Europe is free.

Not entirely true. Bank ATMs won't charge but private ATMs can and will. They won't be an issue in airports etc. but you may come across them in convenience stores or petrol stations - they must, by law, make you aware of the charge and give you a chance to cancel the transaction before charging.

Wise travelers stopped buying travelers checks years ago. They use the ATM card for convenience, safety and economy.

You will find ATM machines almost anytime you need one.

I have found them in air terminals,RR stations, supermarkets, service stations. post offices. shopping malls, retail stores, bus stations, ferry terminals and hotels.

Forget about the fee; it is a small price to pay for the convenience you will experience.

Add to Jo's list above French bank BNP Paribas. My experience as a Bank of America ATM/debit card holder--using the B of A card at Deutsche Bank, Barclays, or BNP Paribas ATMs did not incur a bank fee, but there was an international transaction fee. Using the B of A card at other banks' ATM I was charged both a bank fee and an international transaction fee.

Last August we arrived at Heathrow late in the evening to find that the ATMs would not accept our cards -- issued by two different US banks. If we had not had pounds with us we would have been in a difficult position. The ATM cards worked fine for the rest of the trip, but you must have a backup in case this happens to you. I have also had this happen at the bank in the Palais de Nations in Geneva. I bank with a major US bank, but systems differ and there can always be glitches. Don't rely entirely on ATMs. Always have a back up.

My wife and I stayed in central London for 10 days last fall, and never had a single problem using many different ATM machines around the city. We took the Heathrow Express to Paddington and used the ATM there to get our first 100 pounds. We usually withdrew 100-150 pounds whenever we needed cash, and never had any machine not work with our ATM card, which was a Washington Mutual card. I think there was about a $1.80 fee per 100 pounds we took out of our checking account, so not too bad, and a lot cheaper using cash than paying with a credit card.

I buy my pounds before I leave the country. I get a good rate at my bank and do not have to worry about exchanging after I get there. I just have to keep it safe!!!