• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 31 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 31st Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $23,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $23 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    Tens of thousands of subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Bank conversion fee

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
So we went to our bank today to order $300 in Euros for our trip to Italy. Cost was $362.40 PLUS a $15 fee!!

$200 euro of that will be for the tour guide and the rest just to have for tips at the airports for my wheelchair and a few incidentals like a gelato or whatever while we are away.

They said they couldn’t give us coins which I wanted because I heard you need them for toilets. So I ended up getting a few more paper 5’s.

I’m hoping not to need more cash than that and not having to bother with an atm machine.

Anyway, just my rant but that seems like an incredibly high exchange rate.
 

elaine

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2005
Messages
5,343
Reaction score
2,298
Location
DC
Resorts Owned
HGVC Eagles Nest, DVC-AKV, HHI
300Euros=335 USD current exchange rate, plus a 10% bank mark up rate and shipping charge. Fairly normal. Not much you can do if you need Euros ahead of time. We got dinged at a bank ATM in a small town in France-$20 between exchange/bank fees for 100 Euros!
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
1st rule - use cash machine in airport.
2nd rule, then buy pack of gum and exchange large bill for change.
Some people had told me the machines at the airports were rip offs and to try to use only atms inside banks.🤷
 

VacationForever

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2010
Messages
17,082
Reaction score
12,212
Location
Somewhere Out There
Some people had told me the machines at the airports were rip offs and to try to use only atms inside banks.🤷
Look for the real bank ATMs. The airport ATMs are ripoffs. There are even ATMs that sit outside some establishment that look like bank ATMs but they usually have a disclaimer about how they charge you a fee to use them. Avoid those.
 

elaine

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2005
Messages
5,343
Reaction score
2,298
Location
DC
Resorts Owned
HGVC Eagles Nest, DVC-AKV, HHI
Some people had told me the machines at the airports were rip offs and to try to use only atms inside banks.🤷
Correct. An ATM at a bank (inside or outside) is best bet. Although my 20% was at a "real" bank--it was a small regional bank that obviously didn't participate with a banking network as most banks would. Also, to purchase food/hotel/souvenirs, via credit card always selection your total to be in the country's currency. Do not selection to "covert to USD currency," as one typically gets an unfavorable exchange rate.
 

JeffC

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 4, 2011
Messages
340
Reaction score
248
Location
Long Island
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Mauna Loa Village, Sweetwater at Kauai, Club La Costa
TD Bank tellers have euros, I paid $7.50 for the transaction fee and got an exchange rate of 1.17. Go to any cafe and order a coffee for 1-2 euros and they‘ll let you use the bathroom. Pay with a twenty and ask for change in coins if available.
 

ScoopKona

Guest
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
6,379
Reaction score
3,936
Location
Monkey King Coffee - Captain Cook, Hawaii
I use Foreign Money Exchange in Las Vegas. Their business model is "buy foreign currency from tourists in Las Vegas -- sell it as fast (and cheap) as possible to locals to be rid of it." I'll fly through Las Vegas just to change a lot of money. (Since I go often, I'll buy enough for several trips at a time for the economy of scale.)

Casinos used to give even more attractive exchange rates to employees. But they killed that relatively unknown perk when employees started exchanging as a profitable side hustle.

I also have a credit card with no transaction fees. So I use that everywhere I can, and only pull out cash when necessary.
 

bizaro86

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2008
Messages
3,893
Reaction score
2,765
Location
Calgary, AB, Canada
I got a considerably better rate than that and paid a lower fee using ATMs in Italy. They were everywhere. I ended up using quite a lot of cash (faster at restaurants) and typically ATM fees were 3EUR, with the exchange conducted by my bank at competitive rates.
 

ScoopKona

Guest
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
6,379
Reaction score
3,936
Location
Monkey King Coffee - Captain Cook, Hawaii
I got a considerably better rate than that and paid a lower fee using ATMs in Italy. They were everywhere. I ended up using quite a lot of cash (faster at restaurants) and typically ATM fees were 3EUR, with the exchange conducted by my bank at competitive rates.

I won't have an ATM card. That causes confusion at my bank once in awhile. But they figure it out.

Any ATM problems are "guilty until proven innocent" -- the account holder must prove the error to the bank. Considering all the ridiculous charges I've had removed from my credit card in Europe -- including more than $10K in medical textbooks -- I'm not using an ATM card there. No way, no how.

Too much risk. Zero reward.
 

WaikikiFirst

Guest
Joined
Apr 20, 2023
Messages
1,270
Reaction score
577
My pre-Euro story: I was in Turin on biz, as a summer intern between yrs in B School. 30+ yrs ago. Scheduled to go to Paris in a few days. I get urgent call saying I have to fly to Paris in the morning. I have lira but forget to get francs on teh way to the airport. "I'll do it in Paris." I fly to Paris in the am. Guess what? France, so BANK STRIKE. If there weren't a strike of some kind you could be anywhere else I guess. None of the machines at the airport giving francs. None of the FX places even opened. Now what?
At the airport. No francs. Don't even have a hotel res for the night. Can't even pay for a cab. Early in Paris. Nobody in the office yet, in the USA.
Ask a cab driver if he'll take me to a hotel that will exchange for me so I can pay him and also get on with life. He says "Certainment!" Takes me to the George V, which is a bit nicer than my hotel in Turin. Get it done. Merveilleux, except I know the nightly rate at the George V will raise a few eyebrows. I call them later to get marching orders for this emergency and tell them where I am. Take a short scolding from the President about being at the George V. All I can say is:
"I had lira. No francs. Bank strike. Whaddya want from me? Why don't these people use a COMMON CURRENCY????"

and about the only thing besides the francs & the bill that impressed me about the George V was the size of the closet. It was half the size of my room in Turin.
 

Krteczech

TUG Member
Joined
Jan 27, 2008
Messages
719
Reaction score
793
Location
Colorful Colorado
Resorts Owned
Towers at Mullet Bay, SXM
Silverado II, CO
We use Wells Fargo debit Card to withdraw any currency and get exchange fee reversed. You just need to check that your bank is on same system and ATM you are using elsewhere. Being in Europe for three weeks now and didn’t need cash yet. Finland and Estonia for two weeks and Czechia now.
BTW, if you want to tip for services, you can use dollar bills everywhere.
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
We use Wells Fargo debit Card to withdraw any currency and get exchange fee reversed. You just need to check that your bank is on same system and ATM you are using elsewhere. Being in Europe for three weeks now and didn’t need cash yet. Finland and Estonia for two weeks and Czechia now.
BTW, if you want to tip for services, you can use dollar bills everywhere.
Really? I asked the tour company if I should use euros to tip the tour guide and she said yes. Their literature had said the recommended tip should be $x per day- US dollars. So I just figured I’d just consider it the same amount- close enough.

So I ordered $200 in euros instead of giving her or him $200 cash.

I also had heard taxis, etc would want euros not dollars for the fare and tips.

Our bank charges fees to withdraw at atms. I believe they use VISA atms but have to double check that. Our card is strictly an atm card. It is not a debit card.

We plan on using credit cards as much as possible. I can’t deal with this cash stuff. I rarely even use cash at home! lol!
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
I won't have an ATM card. That causes confusion at my bank once in awhile. But they figure it out.

Any ATM problems are "guilty until proven innocent" -- the account holder must prove the error to the bank. Considering all the ridiculous charges I've had removed from my credit card in Europe -- including more than $10K in medical textbooks -- I'm not using an ATM card there. No way, no how.

Too much risk. Zero reward.
I actually never use my atm card but I feel like I have to bring it with me in case we need more cash. I really hate the idea of taking it actually.
 

rickandcindy23

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
33,860
Reaction score
10,324
Location
The Centennial State
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Founder; Disney OKW & SSR; Marriott's Willow Ridge and Shadow Ridge,Grand Chateau; Val Chatelle; Hono Koa OF (3); SBR(LOTS), SDO a few; Grand Palms(selling); WKORV-OF ,Westin Desert Willow.
I should have asked people here about Euros before we used the ATM at the Venice airport.
 

clifffaith

TUG Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2016
Messages
6,287
Reaction score
8,391
Location
San Juan Capistrano, CA
Resorts Owned
Worldmark
I actually never use my atm card but I feel like I have to bring it with me in case we need more cash. I really hate the idea of taking it actually.
Better get $20 each out of ATM at home to be sure your pin codes work if you never use it. We found one ATM card where code had been made inoperative since it was never used (probably Cliff’s since I was the one doing the banking and our bank debit/credit card is what you swipe for teller services). We found the bad pin code when we on purpose used the cards before a trip to test them. Just recently we found his pin didn’t work again and he had to go inside for poker money. He jokes I keep him around to pump gas and use the ATM because I do neither except under duress.
 

Carolinian

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
10,861
Reaction score
1,094
Location
eastern Europe
The best way to get euros is at bank ATM's using your debit card in Europe. You get the mid-market interbank rate. In some European countries that do not use the euro, you might do about as well at exchange booths away from the airport or train station. In Poland, I have seen "dynamic currency conversion" which is a ripoff on ATM machines of one major bank. If the ATM asks if you want the transaction sent to your bank in dollars, always push NO because that is dynamic currency conversion and will give you a bad rate. I have not seen that in any euro-using country yet, but it is a possiblity. I prefer using bank ATMs attached to a bank branch during banking hours.

Some airport shops will take dollars to buy something and give you change in local money. Doing that with a large bill, gives you a fair amount of local currency, but always ask the exchange rate. It the old days, the best place to change dollars for Luxembourg francs was at McDonalds. All the exchange booths and banks charged high fees, but McDonald's would take dollars and give change at the normal rate in Luxembourg francs. I would hand them a US $100 to buy a small coke.
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
Better get $20 each out of ATM at home to be sure your pin codes work if you never use it. We found one ATM card where code had been made inoperative since it was never used (probably Cliff’s since I was the one doing the banking and our bank debit/credit card is what you swipe for teller services). We found the bad pin code when we on purpose used the cards before a trip to test them. Just recently we found his pin didn’t work again and he had to go inside for poker money. He jokes I keep him around to pump gas and use the ATM because I do neither except under duress.
Oh we have to use it when I go into the bank to withdraw money through the teller. Still have to swipe the card and put in the pin.
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
11,256
Reaction score
7,500
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
Call bank, let them know you will be x country and put a $300 withdrawal limit on the card. Use a chip card with a pin.
That’s an interesting idea. Our atm card has a pin and I assume it’s a chip. I’m going to ask about that when I pick up the Euros.
 

isisdave

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
2,804
Reaction score
1,335
Location
Evansville IN
Resorts Owned
Marriott Waiohai
In airports, you can find ATMs both from major banks, and from third-party networks. Avoid the latter if you can, but on my last trip to the UK, most of them seem to be that kind. I can't remember which airport it was, probably Gatwick.
 

ScoopKona

Guest
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
6,379
Reaction score
3,936
Location
Monkey King Coffee - Captain Cook, Hawaii
That’s an interesting idea. Our atm card has a pin and I assume it’s a chip. I’m going to ask about that when I pick up the Euros.

I would leave the ATM card at home. Those things are more trouble than they're worth.

Why not just bring new, crisp $100 bills? Put them in your neck pouch along with the passport and credit card. If you don't need them, great. Spend the money at home. But if you DO need more Euros, it's not hard to find someone who will trade for dollars. I've made exchanges with other travelers and locals who were heading to the US soon -- we worked out what the rate should be and made the exchange. No fees at all that way.

There's also the strategy of bringing more Euros than you need. You can always gift them to a young relative going to Europe for the first time if you don't find a way to spend it.
 
Top