Bank ATM fees climbing? - Fodor's Travel Talk Forums (2024)

alandavid

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Has always been my go-to to get euros at a large bank's ATM after arrival.
Hearing from more that even these are using inflated exchange rate and/or trying to trick you into converting to US dollars to up the fee.

Is there a source/app for locating good ATM rates?

Heimdall

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Avoid the blue and yellow Euronet ATMs that seem to be cropping up everywhere. For Greece, the ATMs to look for are Alpha Bank, National Bank of Greece, and Piraeus Bank. These ATMs will charge about €3 for each withdrawal, so it’s best to make fewer withdrawals in larger amounts.

If an ATM asks if you would like the amount shown in your home currency (Dynamic Currency Conversion or DCC), refuse and insure it is calculated in euros. If the amount is shown in euros then the exchange rate will be determined by your credit card company (Visa or MasterCard) plus charges imposed by your own bank.

Here is a page from Forbes that explains DCC:
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/credi...cy-conversion/

mjs

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janisj

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joannyc

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Traveler_Nick

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To begin with in Italy today you almost don't need cash. You can pay for most things with your card. Thank Covid for that.

There are a few banks charging a withdrawal fee. It's not huge but if you withdraw small amounts it'll add up. Many banks don't. DCC is something you can easily refuse. It's not like the machine will frown or give you a nasty look.

brotherleelove2004

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Heimdall

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FYI, both Visa and MasterCard have exchange rate calculators that show you what the conversion rate is each day. These are the actual rates that will be charged and appear on your account, but of course you need to include the charges, if any, from your own bank. This is especially useful if you are thinking about an expensive purchase:

https://www.mastercard.co.uk/en-gb/p...-currency.html

https://www.visa.co.uk/support/consu...alculator.html

Last edited by Heimdall; Jun 19th, 2023 at 11:38 PM.

Surfergirl

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Another Charles Schwab debit card user.

For Greece, though, we found you have to keep refusing the conversion (DCC) several times before you get the damned ATM to accept your refusal. You say, "NO" and it says something to the effect of "Are you sure?" You say I'M SURE and it says, Are you REALLY sure . . .!

Even though you will mostly be using credit cards, we did not find that to be altogether true in Croatia last summer. Especially if you like to buy a gelato or street food. In Greece, at least when we were there 7 years ago, the preference is for cash . . . as it's easier to negotiate a price with them. I think they prefer cash to avoid paying taxes.

bvlenci

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It's really true that you can pay with cards for almost everything now. In the course of a month I only use about €100 in cash.

Some banks are putting the option to refuse DCC in small print at the bottom left of the screen.

Last edited by bvlenci; Jun 24th, 2023 at 11:57 AM.

Melnq8

Join Date: Jan 2003

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Avoid the blue and yellow Euronet ATMs that seem to be cropping up everywhere.

We ran into these for the first time while traveling in Portugal last year and they definitely need to be avoided.

We've been visiting Switzerland for years, but recently noticed that the option to refuse DCC is getting harder and harder to find.

ATM providers seem to be getting more stealthy as tourists collectively wise up. Sometimes the options seem intentionally confusing.

We also use a Charles Schwab card for our travel cash. It's a wonderful thing.

We still use cash quite a bit as we've gotten caught out in Swiss restaurants that don't take cards. I also prefer to pay cash to avoid having to match up a gazillion credit card receipts to my monthly statement when we get home, but that's just me. Although we now tap and pay whenever possible.

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