gharborwa
Registered User
Posts: 8
(8/8/03 2:01 pm)

ATM vs Credit card

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Just found out my credit card does charge 3% (Thanks for the heads-up, Michele). What surcharge, if any, is usually charged for ATM cards? Are machines easily accessible in most towns and cities? Barring getting a new credit card, is it better to use ATM and traveler's checks for the most part?

garyvol
Unregistered User
(8/8/03 1:21 pm)

money

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When we had planned our trip, I attached a debit card to my checking account of my local bank. It worked great at the ATM's. No charges applied. It did all the conversion from Euro to Dollars and displyed these conversions on my statement the following month.

happy travels
-gary

Ande
Unregistered User
(8/8/03 1:25 pm)

Money

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Hi,

My credit card did not have a surcharge, but I found that some stores charged things at a higher exchange rate than the actual rate. For instance, the jeweler Brian de Staic charged my purchase at a rate of $1.23 per euro whereas a merchant a minute away the same afternoon charged $1.18 per euro. This adds up! Other "bad" companies were Hertz and Dromoland during my trip. I don't know what the charge is for using an atm, but it's nominal. Just don't get small amounts multiple times, get a good amount only once or twice. Next time I go I will just get out enough cash from the atm and pay by cash as much as possible.

Ande

Michele Erdvig
ezOP
Posts: 1695
(8/9/03 1:26 am)
 
Re: ATM vs Credit card

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Hi gharborwa,

Your own bank will charge you for using an ATM that is not their own. Irish ATMs do not add an additional charge. However, if you exchange traveler's checks at a bank there is a small fee. Buying traveler's checks in euros is not a good idea because the exchange rate is usually not the best. Also euro traveler's checks are not widely accepted in Ireland and if they are the establishment taking them will have to add a service charge because when they take them to their bank to cash them in they are charged.

So I would suggest using mainly ATMs and having a little bit in traveler's checks (in US dollars) in case of an emergency. You can always get a cash advance against any credit card but I wouldn't advise anyone to do that unless it were a real emergency since you are charged interest from the first.

If you plan on a lot of international travel getting another credit card would be a good idea.

Michele

P.S. Ande, did those companies actually charge you in US dollars converting the money themselves? Or did your credit card company convert it from euros to dollars? If it was the cc company, I would complain. I always tell merchants to put the amount charged on my credit card in euros.

Anita
Unregistered User
(8/9/03 1:46 pm)

Bank cards

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I took a combination of cash and traveller's cheques, but in the end wished I hadn't bothered with the traveller's cheques. They were a pain to cash, and the fees charged to do so were quite varied. In the end I cashed what I had left then once I ran out of cash I just went to a bank machine. Most banks will charge an international fee, check with your bank before you go. Mine charged $4Cdn for each transaction so I would take out enough cash to last me a few days. Fees or surcharges on Visa cards will depend on what kind of card you have, but the exchange rate you get will be much better than what you would get at an exchange bureau. Next time I travel I will take a small amount of traveller's cheques and keep them for an emergency such as if I were to lose my bank cards etc., but I would otherwise depend on cash from bank machines. There are bank machines everywhere in Ireland, but if you are concerned your bank should be able to provide you with a map of locations. I even looked up the Bank of Ireland on the internet and made sure each town I was going to be in had a machine that I could use my card in.

Michele Erdvig
ezOP
Posts: 1702
(8/10/03 12:20 am)

Comments Appreciated

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Hi Anita,

Thanks! Your comments are always appreciated especially your first-hand info on your travels in Ireland and what you experienced.

ATMs are the way of life now everywhere even Ireland as you learned. It is only in small out of the way places that they are not available. So if people are headed for the boonies they are best off to get some cash. Otherwise they will have no problems with ATMs.

Yes, the traveler's checks are antiquated now but a little for emergencies is always a comforting cushion to fall back on. Especially for those who can get them free at their bank or AAA. If they don't use them they can always use them at home or put them back in the bank.

Michele

Ande
Unregistered User
(8/11/03 9:36 am)

Credit Card

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Michele,

Brain De Staic shop did the converting to US dollars themselves, at the highest rate used by any business during my trip ($1.23 rather than the official $1.18 at the time). That should be against the law. I should have made them void the purchase and paid in cash. Thanks to your suggestions, I am going to ask why there was such a variance in the conversion rates. I have monitored exchange rates regularly for the past two years and never saw anything like what I saw on my Irish trip. There was no such wild variance on a trip to France.

Ande

DebbieK
Registered User
Posts: 56
(8/11/03 12:08 pm)

Re: Credit Card

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One note on using ATM's for cash.

If you are spending your first day in Doolin - be forewarned - There are no ATM's in Doolin. According to one of the shopkeepers, the nearest one is 20 min or so away.

SO - if you are heading there from the airport - be sure to get your cash ahead of time.

Luckily , I had gotten a day or 2 's worth of euros from my bank before I left the states. Came in very handy that first day.

Debbie

gharborwa
Registered User
Posts: 9
(8/11/03 4:33 pm)

Euros

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Michelle, in your opinion is it a good idea to order some euros from the bank before heading overseas? We never have, but my husband always thinks we should.

Michele Erdvig
ezOP
Posts: 1708
(8/11/03 6:42 pm)

Re: Euros

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Hi gharborwa,

It is not necessary to order euros in advance. You will not get a good exchange rate and will have to pay a fee. You can just get them at the ATM at the airport on arrival. Your better rate will be in Ireland.

Michele

P.S. Ande, some shops in Ireland make extra money by doing the conversions themselves into US dollars. I agree that it should be regulated. You should complain to Brain De Staic' shop directly.

Michele