Converting money ?

Littlejen22

DH always orders foreign currency ahead of time from Bank of America, our local branch does not have it so I assume he pays a mailing fee but there is no conversion fee besides the difference between buy and sell rates.  BOA also has some banks overseas (we are next traveling to England) that do not charge ATM fees.  So anyone know if it is cheaper to get it from an ATM or from the bank ahead of time, assuming the dollar did not gain or loss value?

bringjoy2theworld

I'm not sure about Bank of America specifically, but we use the ATMs because you get the exchange rate that day. When you say there is no conversion fee besides the difference between buy and sell rates, that sounds like it could be a significant amount at times.  I may be misunderstanding.  

frlcb

Use the ATM 

cheekywife

frlcb:

Use the ATM 

ditto. this is especially easy in the UK. we definitely had some transaction fees in mainland europe that we didn't have in the UK. 

PunkinButter

If you do use ATM's, your bank may charge fees. Call your cards (credit and atm) and find out if and what the fees are associated with overseas transactions.

JennyBee1018

We currently live in the Middle East, and we use the ATM to withdraw local currency both here and when traveling. Because of the type of checking acount we have, our bank does not charge us to withdrawal foreign currency, and if the ATM charges a fee, it gets refunded.

Look and see what the fee schedule is with BOA. Maybe you can upgrade your account before you go to avoid any charges :-)

MrsLynch0516

We are going to Mexico in May and I just learned that they will no longer accept USD. We have to have pecos. I bank with Chase. I called and they said they can order the money. Need about a weeks notice and if you have an account with them there is no fee. The girl I spoke with said just come in about a week before you need it and they will order the foreign currency and have it for you. Hope this helps!

Wiscisbliss

I always use the ATMs.  

In China it was more challenging because you had to go to a national bank, the smaller banks did not work with American cards.   

bringjoy2theworld

MrsLynch0516:

We are going to Mexico in May and I just learned that they will no longer accept USD. We have to have pecos. I bank with Chase. I called and they said they can order the money. Need about a weeks notice and if you have an account with them there is no fee. The girl I spoke with said just come in about a week before you need it and they will order the foreign currency and have it for you. Hope this helps!

My bank does the same thing, but it is not at the same rate as the daily exchange rate.  

indylady

I've found that the best rate is through our Amex - no transaction fees and we get the daily exchange rate. If you have your local bank order money for you, ask about fees - I bet it's significant.

MCsAngel2

We kept DH's old BofA acct for this purpose. We did get some cash out ahead of our Europe trip, but per their advice, we used Barclay's ATMs in London when we needed more. No withdrawal fees (at least not in May 2010). They and BNP Paribas in France have an agreement with BofA.

stever

frlcb:

Use the ATM