# Eurods-Purchase before leaving the USA?



## launes (May 25, 2008)

This is my first posting on this link so if this question has been answered before, forgive me. We are going on a cruise in October which includes several countries having Euros as their official currency. With the fluctuating value of the US dollar (mostly going down) is there any advantage to purchasing Euros prior to sailing? Where can I expect to get the best exchange rate?

Thanks to all,

Lenny


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## Carolinian (May 25, 2008)

There was a time that AAA had a great exchange rate for foreign currency denominated travellers checks, and no fee for members.  Back when the Deutsche Mark was rising, I used this to lock in good rates several months out from a trip and did the same with French francs for a later trip.  Then once in country, I found the AMEX office which gave me local currency at face value of the TC's with no fees.

AMEX has € denominated TC's, but when I checked the rates early on, they were NOT good.  I understand that AAA has now gone back to Amex TC's after pawning off useless Visa TS's on members for a while.  It might be worth checking that rate, especially if you are an AAA member.

Exchange houses in countries that use the € typically have bad rates, high commissions, or both and so are not a good option.

It is hard to find good exchange rates within the US.

ATM machines using a debit card have been a good bet, but some banks now charge 3% exchange commission on these transactions, up to $5 usage fee from your bank, and up to $5 usage fee from the bank on the other end.  Check the rates on your debit card.  Some are still 1% plus a 75 cent usage fee.

Fortunately for myself, being in eastern Europe, I can often use local exchange houses to do a 3 way transaction, $ to local currency to €, for less than 1% all the way through.  One cannot do that in western Europe.


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## Linda74 (May 25, 2008)

Normally, I would say just wait til you are there and use an ATM machine.  We have always done that, but chances are the Euro will continue to rise against the dollar.  We returned from a Mediterranean cruise and a week in Tuscany two weeks ago.  We came home with about 500 Euros and have decided to just keep them for our next trip.  We should have done that on previous trips.  Anyway, you might look into buying some now.


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## Carolinian (May 26, 2008)

It is extremely difficult to find any foreign currency rates that are decent in the US.  You may lose more from bad rates, commissions, etc. than you would from currency fluctuations.  Years ago, when the Deutsche Mark was rising, I looked into rates of all the local banks, and they all stunk when you added in bad rates and commissioners.  That's when I discovered what was then a good deal on AMEX travellers checks denominated in marks from AAA.

The unfortunate thing was that soon after the € came out, I checked the rates on the € denominated travellers checks and they were NOT good.  Last year, when AAA was still selling useless Visa TC's, I again asked for a quote, and again it was NOT a good rate or even close.  Now that AAA has learned its lesson from customer complaints about the crappy Visa TC product and has gone back to Amex TC's, it might be interesting to again see if they have a decent rate.

Buying currency ahead of time is NOT going to help you if you buy it at a bad rate and/or pay a high commission.

If you debit card charges 3% commission on foreign currency transactions, it is time to change banks.  Hint: credit unions.


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## HuskyJim (May 30, 2008)

I think the best way is to use your credit card for your purchases to get the best rate.  FYI - Capital One and Commerce Bank have no currency-conversion exchange fee.

Here are two articles that may help you decide.

http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/markets/currency/10418567.html?cm_ven=YAHOO&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA

http://www.smartmoney.com/deal-of-the-day/index.cfm?story=20080529-exchange-rates&afl=yahoo&hpadref=1


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## Carolinian (May 31, 2008)

Cap One cards are great.  Most others charge you 3% conversion.  Even thoough the country I work in does not use the €, most of the time the exchange house rates here are such that I can do a three currency transaction, $ to local currency to €, for around 1% total.  I am not about to pay a credit card company three times that amount.

There are also some credit union cards that charge 1%, but if you use cc's, watch out for rip-off 3% currency exchange fees.  Cap One is the only cc I use on this side of the pond.


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## hibbeln (May 31, 2008)

I usually get some "starting out" money when we travel to Europe before I leave.  Just about $150-200 in Euros (get it through my bank, have to order it and takes up to 10 days to get, though often faster).  Yep, the exchange rate is not good, but it's not completely god-awful either so I can stomach it.  

I do this so we have the convenience of being able to get there and not worry right away about having to find an ATM.  It's enough to buy coffee and pop in the airport, maybe a snack, pay tolls if we're driving, pay a cab if we're not, buy breakfast in the morning and THEN find an ATM!!!!

After that we use an ATM daily for cash (credit union, good rates but limited how much we can take out each day) and a credit card without a bunch of fees.


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## Carolinian (May 31, 2008)

Most places, I have found that it is completely unnecessary to have arrival money in local currency.  One can almost always get into town with plastic, and most airport shops will take dollars and give you chnage in local currency.
If I absolutely have to have local currency (Istanbul comes to mind), I change $10-20 at the bad rates of the airport exchange houses.  When I get into town, I look for an exchange house or ATM, depending on the country.

London is a case in point.  I will usually buy a Daily Telegraph to read on the train at the airport with US currency and get a bit of UK change, then use plastic to buy a ticket on the Gatwick Express to Victoria Station.  I will then walk across the street from the station to an exchange house with good rates and no commission and exchange money.

Back in the days of real national currencies, one of the most interesting places to exchange money was Luxembourg.  The only places that made a business of exchanging money were a couple of banks, both with high minimum commissions and bad rates.  Thanks to a guidebook tip (Rough Guide) I had learned that the McDonalds would accept dollars and give change in local money at a reasonable rate and, of course, no commission.  I found the McDonalds, got breakfast, and handed them a US $50, getting Luxembourg francs in return.  I have never known of a McDonalds anywhere else which would take dollars, however.  The breakfast set me back less than what the exchange loss would have been at one of the banks.


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## Passepartout (May 31, 2008)

Carolinian said:


> Back in the days of real national currencies, one of the most interesting places to exchange money was Luxembourg.  The only places that made a business of exchanging money were a couple of banks, both with high minimum commissions and bad rates.  Thanks to a guidebook tip (Rough Guide) I had learned that the McDonalds would accept dollars and give change in local money at a reasonable rate and, of course, no commission.  I found the McDonalds, got breakfast, and handed them a US $50, getting Luxembourg francs in return.  I have never known of a McDonalds anywhere else which would take dollars, however.  The breakfast set me back less than what the exchange loss would have been at one of the banks.



We found the same deal at a McD's at a service plaza between Prague and Budapest. Or maybe it was between Krakow and Bratislava. They would accept any currency we had, USD, Euros, Slotys, and I can't remember what we got in exchange. This was our first trip to this neck of the woods, and it's been quite a few years.

Another good hint is clean, free restrooms at McD's.

Jim Ricks


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## Carolinian (Jun 2, 2008)

Passepartout said:


> Another good hint is clean, free restrooms at McD's.
> 
> Jim Ricks



Usually, but in some countries in eastern Europe you have to make a purchase at McD to get a code number to get into the restroom, and once in either France or Belgium, I encountered a McD with a pay toilet.


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## Zac495 (Jun 3, 2008)

HuskyJim said:


> I think the best way is to use your credit card for your purchases to get the best rate.  FYI - Capital One and Commerce Bank have no currency-conversion exchange fee.
> 
> Here are two articles that may help you decide.
> 
> ...



I just wrote to my husband - sent him your post - he said:

"Capital One changed...however I'll use the marriott Advance Ck (2% interest vs 3% for the foreign bank chg)"

I don't know what he means by that - but it doesn't sound smart. Or does it?


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## Carolinian (Jun 4, 2008)

Zac495 said:


> I just wrote to my husband - sent him your post - he said:
> 
> "Capital One changed...however I'll use the marriott Advance Ck (2% interest vs 3% for the foreign bank chg)"
> 
> I don't know what he means by that - but it doesn't sound smart. Or does it?



Just looked at my Cap One visa account online, and as of the most recent transaction in foreign currency, on June 2, 2008, there is no currency conversion charge.


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## HuskyJim (Jun 4, 2008)

Zac495 said:


> I just wrote to my husband - sent him your post - he said:
> 
> "Capital One changed...however I'll use the marriott Advance Ck (2% interest vs 3% for the foreign bank chg)"
> 
> I don't know what he means by that - but it doesn't sound smart. Or does it?



I'm not sure what he means by "Capital One changed".  Cap One has had this policy (no exchange/conversion fee) since at least 2006.

And 2% vs 3% vs 0% seems obvoious, if you have a Cap One card (and they have $0 AMF).


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## clsmit (Jun 6, 2008)

On trips out of the country I like to try the local McD's once, usually near the end of a trip, even tho a rarely go to McD's in the US. Sometimes you just need a taste of home....


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## Twinkstarr (Jun 7, 2008)

I purchased some Euros for DH's trip at our bank. They didn't charge us a fee for the exchange. He used plastic most of the time, but sometimes it makes sense to have some cash(especially for the pay toliets or to tip the bathroom attendant).

I think I got him about $250 in Euros, he came back with about $50 of it.


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## Carolinian (Jun 7, 2008)

Twinkstarr said:


> I purchased some Euros for DH's trip at our bank. They didn't charge us a fee for the exchange. He used plastic most of the time, but sometimes it makes sense to have some cash(especially for the pay toliets or to tip the bathroom attendant).
> 
> I think I got him about $250 in Euros, he came back with about $50 of it.



Those in the exchange business charge a differential between buying and selling rates and some also add a commission on top of that.  Just because they didn't pop you with a commission didn'dt mean that they gave you a good exchange rate.  Most US domestic banks do NOT, and airport exchange booths almost universally (Zurich and Mexico City being notable exceptions) do NOT.


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## Twinkstarr (Jun 7, 2008)

Carolinian said:


> Those in the exchange business charge a differential between buying and selling rates and some also add a commission on top of that.  Just because they didn't pop you with a commission didn'dt mean that they gave you a good exchange rate.  Most US domestic banks do NOT, and airport exchange booths almost universally (Zurich and Mexico City being notable exceptions) do NOT.



It's actually the bank my company does FX through, and it was  a few Euro cents more than my commercial rate. (Might help my private account is in their personal banking division though ).


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