Hello. My wife and I are going on a 3 week Globus tour of Europe for the first time! We wanted to know about bringing cash (Euros) to Europe.

I know we will need some Euros to start with when we arrive there for cab, food, and tips. We realize that the US Dollar is WEAK realtive to the Euro right now. Our questions:

* How much should we bring initially?
* Is it better to get Euros in the US or in Europe?
* Is the exchange rate (vs the US dollar) better in Europe than the US?
* When getting additional Euros in Europe, is it better (RATE wise) to use our ATM card to withdraw to get cash OR getting the cash at a currency exchange place?
* OR is it better to NOT use cash to pay for stuff in Europe - rather use our credit card or debit card?
* Does you credit card company or bank charge a fee for using their card in Europe?

Thanks in advance for your tips, comments, and suggestions! Happy traveling!

Well those are fairly easy questions to answer, of course it is just my opinion. We bring around $200 (of their currency) for a family of 4 and that gets us through the first 1-2 days, but we have our transfers already paid for before we leave . .. .. ..much easier even if the plane is delayed. You will have to pay a "fee" when you buy Euros call around and see who offers the best deal for the amount you want.
Once you are in Europe you will find ATM machines fairly easy (ast the TD) that will charge only 1-4 euros for withdrawals of large to small amounts, best to stay away from exchanges places as their "fee" is much higher. Most IMPOTANTLY notify your bank & credit card companies that you will be using them in europe so they dont put a hold on your account because of "Unusual Activity" and while you are at that take a few minutes to find out about your health coverage over there.. .. ..better safe than sorry and all that takes us less than 1 hour of time to guarantee no problems with money (unless your wife spends like mine . .. ..lol)! If you charge meals or optionals or whatever, most credit card co. just charge the exchange rate at the time of submittal without any extra charges (ask when you call). .
Hope this helps, have fun.

honest I meant to say ImpoRtantly, dang hat it when I slur my words.. ..lol!

We took no Euros with us. We just used an ATM when we got there. Many, but not all countries use Euros. If you are going to England, you'll need pounds and Switzerland uses Swiss francs. So when we were about to leave those countries, we tried not to have much extra of their currancy.

We used the credit card whenever possible. We have several so I called the companies and asked their exchange rate. MC or Visa charge 1% I think it is. Some of the banks tacked on another 3% and some didn't. Discover is not used over there.

I also checked with the banks on the ATM fees. Our personal bank charged $3 per transaction I think. The credit union account I have with my college daughter only charged $1 so I used it.

We never used the currency exchanges but my gut feeling is that they are expensive. There was one on the boat crossing the channel and another lady was appalled at the percentage she had to pay to use it.

Debbie

We took several credit cards and split them between my husband and myself. That way if something went wrong, we had a backup. And if one of us got robbed and lost our cards, we could cancel just the ones that person was carrying. We did the same thing with the ATM card. One of us carried the one with my daughter and the other carried the one from our own bank.

We had a list of all the phone numbers for the companies just in case. When I called them, they usually said that their toll-free number didn't work abroad and gave me a different number.

The old convential advice to use credit cards for foreign purchases does not apply to all credit cards. Many have decided that they can [u]HID[/u] a large fee in the exchange rate and the customer does not realize. The exchange fee generally used to be 1% but many now charge 3% . . I just cancelled my Citibank for that reason. I now use USAA master card that does not charge an exchange fee and has no ATM fee.

I have found the worst currency exchange to be in USA airports. Just use your ATM when you arrive at the foreign country.

In general your worst exchange rate is to buy in dollars in a foreign country followed closely by the currency exchange booths. However, sometimes merchants offer a great exchange rate to get your business.

The best is a bank with no foreign ATM fee and little or no foreign exchange fee on credit cards. Most foreign bank ATM's that I have used do not charge a fee, but if they do it is per transaction. Then don't take out small amounts.

RULES FOR MONEY IN EUROPE:

1. WEAR A MONEY BELT OR NECK BELT AND NEVER CARRY A PURSE OR WALLET.. ..PICKPOCKETS.
2. YOU WILL NEED 200 EUROS AS DOWNPAYMENT FOR GLOBUS SIDE EXCURSIONS.
3. YOU WILL NEED 20-30 EUROS A DAY FOR LUNCH.
4. CREDIT CARDS FOR ALL MAJOR SALES..NOTIFY CC COMPANY IN ADVANCE WITH DATES OF TRIP.
5. NEVER USE CREDIT CARD WITH STREET VENDORS.
6. TAKE TOURS RATHER THAN GOING TO MEALS ON OWN. PRICES HIGHER IF NOT WITH TOUR GROUP.. ..TOURS ARE KING IN EUROPE.
7. ATMS ARE USUALLY BROKEN AND ONE RUNS THE RISK OF ISSUES.
8. HAVE THE OVERSEAS DIRECT TELEPHONE NUMBER FOR CC COMPANY AS 800 NUMBER WILL NOT WORK IN EUROPE.
9. BUY PHONE CARDS IN EUROPE AND ALWAYS USE PAYPHONE AND NEVER HOTEL ROOM PHONE.

THANKS

I am going to go along with Brian (above) on this one. Good advice all around. BTW, if you don't notify your credit card company, they will shut you down after three transactions. I have never had trouble with ATMs (I think I have only found one not working in the two years I have lived in Europe). . Also, if you happen to have T-mobile cell service, you can change the band on your phone when you get here and use it to call home. Sure, it is expensive (about a buck a minute), but it is just for checking-in, not for long conversations. Call T-mobile for all info. 800 numbers will work in Europe, but you just pay regular international rates. Also, I respectfully disagree about only dining with optional tours. It depends on the city - Venice is a great place NOT to take the optional dinner - there are tons of restuarants in all price ranges. Have fun!

Just returned and I was concerned about the same things you are. I took the money needed for bus driver tips and tour guide tips.. . Put them in an envelope and never had to worry about it again. Took an additional $200.00 which was more than we needed but I wanted the security. I found some places won't take a credit card unless the purchase is over $10.00. Some places a little more. I had a fright when a little restaurant couldn't get my credit card to work- it worked fine everywhere else after that. I had checked with my bank letting them know I would be in Europe. I wouldn't eat all my meals with the optionals as one meal alone was 71 Euros each! Another was 55 each. They add up fast. The 2 of us did 5 optionals and they cost us $450.00. I had to use the money exchange once that was when we were at the airport to come home and I had 75 Euros to change back to $$. . I got $69.00 for it. USe the atms for 1 or 2 days expenses. You will soon find out the approximate amount you will nedd. Wwwwwwhew!! enough from me!

I think most of the advice above is good but not necessarly all. Taking a few hundred Euro to start with is a good idea. Always be prepared for the unexpected. Use your ATM for all cash needs. The bank machines are everywhere. Most card companies don't charge for the conversion and you get the rate at the time of the exchange. Use your credit card for major purchases. Check with your card companies to check out any rules they may have and when you do let them know your plans for travel.

The most important thing I would like to suggest is if you can, do as much of the trip outside the tour group as possible. Buddy up with someone else who is trying to discover and enjoy Italy. The group dinners are overpriced and as you will soon see at places that have no other business. If you want to see Italy and see some Italian culture do as much as you can outside the tour. You can spend a great deal of money on a meal not associated with a tour but I found than you will spend much less over all and find better food and have a much more interesting time.