Somewhat O.T. - - Please Help.....How to handle left-over $ from travel abroad

DBSTrader2

My son will be heading from the U.S. to England & France as part of the People-to-People "Student Ambassador" program.

I have already bought him a AAA "Tip-Pak" (WHAT a RIP-OFF from actual exchange rates!!) for each country (53 British Pounds and 78 Euros) to get him started. He will only have to pay for snacks, gifts, & misc purchases on the trip - - the rest is covered by the tuition money we've paid.

On top of that, I will send him off with one of those AAA "Travelmoney" refillable debit/cash cards he's been aggressively "practicing" with at home, which comes with a PIN for safety - - can't be used without one.

His challenge will be learning how to balance his need for and use of his "cash-on-hand" to get him thru the approx 9 days per country, with his need to use the debit card for bigger gift purchases or further cash advances.

Obviously, my intent is for him to neither run out of local currency nor have too much left over from either the original $ or tapping the ATM from either country when he returns home.

Any suggestions for how he should best accomplish this? And, if he SHOULD happen to come home with left-over Pounds or Euros, would it be better for him to try to swap with travel-mates to end up with it in bills vs coins (for cashing-in at any foreign exchange desks?).

We're all neophytes at this, and could use any helpful suggestions more seasoned travellers on this Forum might have to offer.....................

Thanks in advance for any help!


And keep your eyes glued to this Forum - - I may be offerring to trade Euros/Pounds for US Dollars to fellow Forum members in the not-too-distant future!


- - Dave

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i>And, if he SHOULD happen to come home with left-over Pounds or Euros, would it be better for him to try to swap with travel-mates to end up with it in bills vs coins (for cashing-in at any foreign exchange desks?). >>

From what I have read (no personal experience, though), it is much easier to exchange bills.

newbiecollector

I have lived in both countries and many more so here ya go.......... hope it helps,

Any currency he has left you he/you can exchange at home.............the rate will be about the same.

You can NOT exchange coins for coins or any thing else..........all countries I have been in.

I say, if you both dont want some modern local coins, he should just use up what he has the last day or so........


Thats what I still do and Im an old feller

johnsim03

Hi Dave:

I just spent 20+ years in Europe. First of all, double whatever you think the spending needs will be in dollars.
The cost of living is very high in Europe compared to the United States... Very high! This has mostly to do with
the exchange rate, but it has been that way, anyway, for many years...

Secondly, ATMs which give good exchange rates are all over the place. Nowadays, someone could take
no cash whatsoever and have no problems at all. You are looking for VISA/MASTERCARD with Cirrus
ATM Network on it. You have to watch out - as some ATMs/Banks charge $1 per transaction - I think VISA does
this. AND, not all merchants take VISA, unlike here. Almost every town in Europe will have multiple
ATMs that he can use - the trick is to find the one with the least amount of fee (some of them charge
up to 3 - 5 Euros per transaction). So, my best advice would be to try and use the card for almost
everything, and to be careful when getting cash from the ATM - the machines have signs with the fees, or
it will tell you this when you go to make a transaction.

Estimate everything, and then double that estimate. It is rough to deal in dollars in Europe right now!

Hope this helped a bit.

John

newbiecollector

Best exchange rate in dollars to almost ALL currencies right now.......for the last 10 plus years.

But, as john sais things are a lot more expensive in Europe, especially when your new and don't know how to "do it good" with out paying tourist prices.

If you fella has a good head on hime just say..........."Think abouthe dollar cost"...........be fore you buy.


Right now the dollar is lower to the pound than in nearly 25 years.................


And I recomend, that if he needs more cash.......................use the card but go INSIDE a big bank. They will help him a lot and he will be mush safer. I have done that 1000's of times in many places

DBSTrader2

Thank you all for your responses so far!

The debit card he will be using is a VISA Debit card associated with our local AAA. From what they tell me, merchants in Europe almost universally tack on a 3% transaction fee if he uses the card as a credit/debit card to purchase items, and up to a $3 per transaction to use an ATM to get local currency.

Obviously, I want him to use the debit card for any big purchases rather than cash, and want him to limit how many times he hits the ATM for currency (take 1 larger amount out vs several smaller amts several times at $3 each).

From what it sounds like, if he gets too much out before it's time to leave each country, he should just keep it in bills as best he can & I will exchange them at a major bank, etc when he comes home. Or maybe the program will give kids an opportunity after Leaving one country to exchange their money at the airport or bank once they get established in the other one........

As far as counting on expenses being "double" what you expect, I'm glad we've already paid for the trip, which covers stuff like hotels, tours/admissions/excursions, main meals, transportation, etc. From what they tell us, they really only need money for snacks and gift/souvenir purchases. But I'm sure those will be more than he expects, anyway.......


I'm starting to drum into him the conversion rate so he remembers to think "Every Pound = $2 US, and every Euro = $1.60+ US" so he gets used to what things REALLY will cost him when he goes to buy stuff........


So thanks so far, and please keep those suggestions coming!!


- - Dave

farthing

I'll echo the high cost of items in Europe vs the US that the others have stated.

Every so often I like to check on the "fast food cost of living" to get an easily understood handle on the difference in prices. Earlier this month in Switzerland a Quarter-pounder w/cheese and a medium soft drink (no fries) at McDonalds cost me $12.

pendragon1998

Search around on http://www.clarkhoward.com and you'll find some more useful info. I've heard him talk about this exact situation, although since I don't travel, I paid little attention.

newbiecollector

I have lived in Europe for over 30 years and travel to a lot of countries.

I almost exclusively use a Visa card. I have never, not once, had any additional cost tacked on to the bill because of Visa.