Currency exchange in/near Frankfurt Am Main's airport

Yes- don't. You'll get the best exchange rate using an ATM and they're easy enough to find.

Seriously? I guess I should find out what fees and max withdrawals are allowed by my bank, then. Sounds like I ought to put the greenbacks back in the account, heh.

I completely agree that using ATMs is the way to go rather than exchanging money. Although, it doesn't hurt to take about $200 cash in US currency just in case.

This question comes up here with regularity. You should read Rick's advice about changing money:

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/moneytip.htm

Most money exchange bureaux have terrible exchange rates and are an outrageous ripoff. Never use them unless you have no alternative. Even a cash advance on your credit card is cheaper.

For example, a typical rate for Euros from an ATM today would probably be around 1.40 to 1.43, depending on what ATM and exchange fees you pay.

By contrast, if you bought Euros before you left for Europe, at Bank of America or Wells Fargo, you would pay about 1.46.

But, at one of those exchange bureaux, such as Travelex, you will pay over 1.50 per Euro.

You can have your bank temporarily raise your withdrawal limit while you are gone, but will probably still be subject to the limit for a particular ATM. Having cards from two separate accounts will allow you to essentially double your limit per day.

Using Deutsche Bank with your Bank of America debit card is the best deal for you. I have heard that Bank of America may now be tacking on a one percent foreign exchange fee (which they didn't previously), but other than that, there are no fees if you use Deutsche Bank, and the exchange rate is excellent.

Beware, however, of using your BofA card at OTHER banks in Germany! Bank of America will charge you $5.00 for that -- plus maybe other fees that could total $10 or more.

Frankfurt airport has tons of ATM's.

Holly,

I use my debit card for cash. Some people substitute the term ATM card for debit card. The difference is a debit card will have a Visa or Mastercard logo on it, which works in almost every ATM in Europe. An ATM card will have much fewer options. You may get by with an ATM card but you have to look for machines you can use.

There are mulitple ATM's in the Frankfurt airport. They will be hard to miss. I've heard a caution lately that the exchange bureaus are installing ATM looking machines that are actually automated exchange booths. Make sure the machine in the airport has a bank name on it and you will be okay.

I order new cards from the bank before my trip so the magnetic strip is fresh and the card isn't warped slightly from heat or being in my wallet (which might get it stuck in a machine).

I let the bank know I'll be traveling so they won't put a fraud alert on my card. If they mess up, you need to call the non-800 number to get them to clear it (which usually happens overnight). Have that number available in case you need it.

I always bring a back up. My wife and I have seperate accounts (both of us are authorized signers on each). I bring a card from my account and she brings a card from hers. If my card were lost or stolen, we can transfer our cash to her account and use her card. So far we haven't lost a card but it's better to have a back up and not need it than the other way around.

I also bring some US currency (about $200) for an emergency. So far I haven't had to use it. If I did, I'd try to change it at a bank rather than an exchange booth. It's worth the hassle of visiting a bank during business hours because the exchange booth rates are pretty outrageous.

Thanks all for the terrific responses! I found out that my bank (BoA) is partnered with Deutsche Bank, so finding an ATM to use should be easy, and they won't charge a foreign bank fee (probably get hit with an exchange fee, but it sounds a lot better than the Wechsel places y'all are describing).

Brad: Thanfully I have a debit card rather than just an ATM card, but I will definitely make sure I am using it in an ATM and not an automatic exchange machine. Thanks for the warning about that!