We are travelling to these four cities in October. We want to open a debit acount with a US bank that has ATM machines in these cities. What is the best debit card to have? We live in NJ between Philadelphia and New York. Also will there be any fees charged if I use that specific bank's ATM in these German cities?
Thanks
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9371 posts
You aren't going to find a US bank with ATMs in those cities. But no European bank's ATM is going to charge you fees - any fees will come from your own bank. Shop your local credit unions to see what the fees are. I carry cards from two local credit unions and an online bank. One of my credit union cards charges absolutely nothing to make a withdrawal (they absorb the 1% currency conversion fee that Visa charges). The other credit union card and the online bank both charge me the 1%, but there is no per-use charge like some banks charge. My online bank also refunds any charges from other ATMs (though European banks won't charge, as I said before).
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23626 posts
ATMs are generic. The last thing I worry about is who owns the ATM other than to make sure it is a bank ATM. ALL CHARGES for using an ATM are determined by your card issuer.
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
Have you checked your own existing bank's fees? You may find the extra time and effort not worth it to save less than $50. But otherwise, several people here highly recommend the Capital One Money Market Account which offers free withdrawls anywhere and can be setup online.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
The ATMs will not be with a particular US bank but with their associate, Plus or Cirrus. Earlier this decade, I was going to Germany for a vacation, and I had not yet become comfortable with the ATM system in Germany. I went to my local bank and found that they had a big book with all of the Plus accepting ATMs in Europe, by town. I just looked up the towns I was going to be in. Check with your bank. I'm not familiar with all those towns, but I feel sure you will not have any trouble finding an ATM in any of them. I no longer worry about it. ATMs are every where, as common as they are in the US.
Posted by
Margate, FL, USA
204 posts
if you have time to open an account with charles schwab bank, they re-imburse the fees charged by the bank you do ATM with. so, all withdrawals are free.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15788 posts
I used a Capital One ATM card all over and never paid ATM fees. But there are ATMs that say you will be charged a fee for withdrawing cash using certain credit cards - I don't know if there are fees for debit cards. I wasn't paying that much attention, since it didn't apply to me. Open a Capital One money market account and use the ATM card. No fees, good exchange rate.