ATM machines: Cirrus or Plus?

Melissa5 · Guru

ATM machines: Cirrus or Plus?

wojazz3 · Guru

Melissa:

Good question. My ATM card is a Plus and I've never had a problem. There is also a Pulse system (kind of confusing) and it is not accepted on all machines. You should be fine.

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

First hand info from Bill. Plus is accepted at the following places: AIB, Bank of Ireland, Cashere, National Irish Bank & ACCBank ATMs. No worries about finding machines to accept your card.

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

Bill and Michele, many thanks! I guess my ATM card is one less thing I have to worry about.

Michele, appreciate the list of banks.

fennellkevin · Senior Member

remember that if you use more than 4 digit pin in the US, only use the first four in Ireland.

Kevin

Melissa5 · Guru

Thanks, Kevin. I only have 4 digits.

oopsy · Senior Member

Another consideration on the ATM cards: We have a low daily limit on our cards, but in Ireland we were paying for almost everything (lodging, meals, most gifts) with cash. My partner went to the bank to sign something okaying a higher daily withdrawl for the course of our trip.

We got to Ireland, only to discover that, though both of our cards are linked to the same account, the bank only upped the limit on HIS card. This wasn't a huge problem, but would have been quite an inconvenience if his card had started malfunctioning, or been eaten by the ATM or something. Of course, it irked me big time. I like to be the one in control of the money. I think he secretly loved my having to ask him for cash. Grr...

oopsy

Melissa5 · Guru

OOpsy, yep, ATM cards can be tricky in Europe. Our bank wouldn't allow any higher daily limits on the AtM cards, they said it was the same rule for everybody to prevent somebody from cleaning out your account. So we had 3 ATM cards amongst our family. Mine worked until 2 days before we came home when it stopped working for no reason at all. Hubby's stopped working halfway through the trip, again for no reason at all. My son had a card too but at the time was a poor student so didn't have much money to withdraw from his account. So we had to limit how much cash we could spend!

Not sure what I will do about this problem in Ireland. It's a good point. I feel like I have so much to do to get ready for our trip, I should be running, but I feel like I'm crawling instead! Maybe I shoulda opened up a new checking account at another bank just to have a spare ATM card.

I guess we can cash some traveller's checks in a bank, even though we won't get as good a rate on the exchange? I think Michele said they should be traveller's checks in USA dollars.

oopsy · Senior Member

Hi Melissa...Wow, I'm surprised your bank would not temporarily raise your limit with your signed consent. We didn't raise ours incredibly high, just to 500 USD per day. We don't typically use credit cards for cash, but we do have a PIN for one of them. We would have used that (and paid dearly for it) if our bank ATM card didn't work out. I'm sure you'll be okay.

You have done so much planning for your trip. I can't imagine that you are as unprepared as you seem to think you are. Keep in mind that you can also just roll over the bumps in the trips. If you don't get to LLBean or some place else for a raincoat before the trip, you can buy one in Ireland or get wet. You'll dry. (The waterproof aspect of my coat somehow died on my right shoulder midway through our trip).

When we got on the plane last month, I realized that I had left every guide book, every notes file, at home. I had the atlas, driving directions to base towns, my hotel, plane, and car reservations, and that's it. We still had a great time. Forgot to go to some of our planned stops, found some unplanned stops, and all was good. You'll have a great time!

oopsy

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

Yes, if you have some traveler's checks as back up get them in US dollars. It always pays to have a cushion if you have an emergency. If you have problems you can also get a cash advance from a credit card but you pay interest from day one on those.

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

Michele and oopsy, thanks for the advice.

Oopsy, I guess you are right, I can't be as unprepared as I feel. In fact I was quite surprised to come across notebooks full of notes I had taken on this trip to Ireland...how could I be unprepared with so many notes?! Of course I don't need to take all those notes with me, because by the act of writing them down, I find that they become lodged in my memory banks.

OOpsy, you make me laugh. If I don't buy the raincoat in advance, I can just buy one in Ireland...or just get wet and dry off! Now why can't I think of things like that?!

Instead, as the trip gets closer, my brain works like this....oh my Irish granny, it's an emergencyyyyyyyyyyyyy.....I am without a raincoat, clothes, shoes, plans, lists of restaurants, lists of long-lost relatives, and totally brainless...we will starve and perish in Ireland!

Funny thing is, I think I felt similar things before other trips and we are still alive! We were gonna get robbed penniless in Italy by those gangs of roving child-thieves...pickpocketed by women throwing babies at us...in Costa Rica we were gonna drive off the road, and get eaten by disease-bearing insects the size of tornadoes...

But here we are, alive and well, headed for Ireland in July! Amazing!

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

It sounds like last minute jitters. Don't worry everything will work out fine. BTW, please take a look at my message under your Kemwel car rental posting. It is important!

Michele

Dude · Guru

Melissa, try these:
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/purchase/products-found.jsp?_requestid=68316
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/purchase/products-found.jsp?_requestid=68475

They had a jacket I liked even better but it is no longer available. Shipping and handling are about $7 more for 2-3 day shipping.

Melissa5 · Guru

Dude, thanks for the link. Good prices. Nice light-weight waterproof wind-breakers. It doesn't say anywhere if it's machine washable and dryable. Very tempting, those are good prices and nice colors. Decisions, decisions...

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

Wouldn't it be funny if you didn't get a drop of rain? One of my clients is recently back and that happened to her and her daughter. They were actually disappointed they didn't see rain!

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

Michele, if I buy a raincoat it will be sunny.

If I don't bring one it will rain every day.

I love your sense of humor! That's why I gotta be here on IrelandYes every phase of my trip planning and thereafter...it really gives me a better perspective on things!

Have you heard about a pre-paid card you can buy here in the USA which works in the ATM machines in Ireland? I think I remember American Express has one. I am worried about the low limit on daily amounts we can withdraw with our ATM cards. Now why didn't I open up a new checking account in another bank to solve this problem? We had the same problem in Italy 2 years ago...Now it's probably too late to get a second ATM card in time from a different bank.

I thought I remembered seeing an add in the AAA travel office about some type of American Express card which isn't a credit card, it's a pre-paid card which allows you to use the ATM machines for withdrawals...

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

I have heard about those "pre-loaded" cards that you can top up with money and use at ATMs. Evidently there is a charge for them, a charge if you want to add more money. I would question them about the exchange rates that might be used. I haven't personally used them. Have any new banks opened in your area? They are usually begging people to open accounts. I wouldn't be surprised if they would bend over backwards to get you an ATM card quickly.

Michele

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

I just had another thought. You can get cash advances from your credit cards. Call and ask them if you pay them a certain amount in advance if you can get the cash advance without invoking the fees involved. For instance, let's say you owe nothing on the card right now and you send them a check for a thousand dollars. Can you then take out the thousand as a cash advance while on your trip?

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

Michele, thanks for the suggestion. Meanwhile our bank unexpectedly sent us a new ATM card which now has a Cirrus symbol on the back instead of a Plus!

Also, I called our bank, and they have a rule about NOT raising daily limits on AtM cards, not even at the customer's request. But they sent both hubby and I an ATM card for the same account. Apparently both of our cards have the same limit, so together they will provide enough cash. But I'm not sure if I believe them, I'm going to go test them before we leave!

-- Edited by Melissa5 at 14:00, 2006-06-27

Michele Erdvig · Host

Melissa,

Good idea. Take out a whole bunch of cash and go shopping. Since summer is just starting they should have the winter coats at the stores in about a week!

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

Michele, perfect idea. I HAVE to test those new ATM cards, after all. It's important research. Besides, cash from the ATM doesn't count as REAL money, because hubby will never see a credit card bill!