Best place to exchange money?

[Belm]

I'm going the the UK and Spain in November. Where should I exchange USD for BP & euros? No local banks do it around here.

Thanks!

[Hello Kitty]

You really don't need to do that. Your bank debit card and credit cards should all work fine. You may want to notify your financial institutions ahead of time so that they keep your account open for int'l transactions.

If you're worried about needing funds, I would get some traveller's checks in USD as a back-up. You can always cash them in at an exchange if necessary.

I would also suggest keeping a back-up ATM card seperate from everything in case yours gets eaten, lost, or stolen.

[emmjay]

I have found that you get the best rate using ATMs in the countries you are visiting. I generally don't bring any foreign currency with me - I just use the ATM at the airport when I arrive. That can be risky in case the ATM isn't working, but I've never had any trouble. If I have any USD on me, I'll change that at the airport currency exchange when I arrive - it's usually a small amount so I don't mind the higher rates. If you are concerned you should be able to use the foreign currency exchange at the US airport before you leave.

FYI: "cajero automático" is ATM in Spain :)

[Belm]

Great feedback!

Here's another question for ya. I heard that credit card companies charge you an exchange rate when you purchase something abroad? Is this universal for all cc companies?

[kazata]

Credit cards used to give you the best exchange rate, because they get excellent exchange rates, however, in recent years, credit cards have started to add an additional charge for foreign transactions, I forget exactly what it is, but it's a percent (maybe 1%, but could be up to 3%) of the total transaction amount on top of the exchange rate. I believe that all credit card companies do this now, however, there may be different rates depending on the card (for example, I believe that there is a set charge imposed by Visa or Mastercard and then your specific credit card, i.e. Citibank, may have another charge on top of that). Sorry, I can't remember the exact charge, but you can probably call your credit card company to find out.

Remember that you will also likely be charged a "foreign ATM transaction" fee from your bank for any ATM withdrawls. This amount can vary by bank.

ETA: I've always been fine travelling with a credit card, ATM card and some travellers checks. I usually also take a small amount of US cash with me, but I've never exchanged money before getting to a foreign country. Exchange rates at your local bank in the US will be the worst. And, as mentioned above, airports also have bad exchange rates, so just exchange a small amount and then find somewhere in town. If you have travellers checks an American Express office (or Thomas Cook if that's what you have) will give you good rates. Most places will post exchange rates and you can compare and find the best rates. (Remember that some places charge a commission per exchange, or per check exchanged).

ETA#2: Just wanted to point out not to rely solely on credit cards, as parts of Europe have started to accept only "eurocards" or something like that, which is similar to a debit card, (yet my debit card did not work either) so I have had to pull money out of an ATM to pay for a purchase that I hoped to put on my credit card.

[emmjay]

Great feedback!

Here's another question for ya. I heard that credit card companies charge you an exchange rate when you purchase something abroad? Is this universal for all cc companies?
I think most of them are starting to do this, and it is true that many of the banks will charge for foreign ATM transactions as well (although the individual ATMs don't have the $1.00 or $1.50 surcharge like they do here). I'm lucky that my credit union doesn't charge anything for ATMs anyway, so for me it's totally free when I travel outside of the US.

Anyway, you should call your cc company about the fee for charging abroad and see if they do or not. I don't remember this happening to me, but the last time I used my credit card overseas was over a year ago and it might have changed since then.

[Mrs. M.]

ETA#2: Just wanted to point out not to rely solely on credit cards, as parts of Europe have started to accept only "eurocards" or something like that, which is similar to a debit card, (yet my debit card did not work either) so I have had to pull money out of an ATM to pay for a purchase that I hoped to put on my credit card.

Eurocard = Mastercard

What you are referring to is the Maestro Card, which is like a check-card, but usually only works in the country of the issuing bank.

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I travel internationally on a weekly basis, and I never bring cash. I always get it from the ATM (make sure you get a four-digit PIN from your bank if you don't have one), or I charge it to my credit card. You would have to pay a fee for exchanging cash anyways.

[Hello Kitty]

Call your own financial institutions to find out what fees they impose when charging/withdrawing abroad. I also belong to a CU and wasn't charged any fees, but all FIs are different.

When we were there last time, I withdrew and used cash much more than here at home. All of our attractions and food were purchased with cash. Most purchases were, too. We only put a few things on the credit card that we thought we'd care about having the purchase protection a CC offers. Overall, never had a single problem making withdrawls, using our visa-logoed debit cards as credit cards, or using our Capital One credit cards.

Even considering the fee that a CC tacks on for purchases (I thought it was 1% last time for my bank) it's still MUCH less expensive than dealing with currency exchanges.