I'm so glad I saw this video! I'm going to Europe for the first time next month and was totally unaware that ordering foreign currency was a service my bank provided. Thank you for a short and concise video!
Glad it helped. Many people dont use that service to be honest. May want to consider calling your bank just to see if any branches near you already have the currency on hand - euros are really common for banks to have
Planning on going to France next year. When buying tickets online in euros always use a zero foreign transaction debit or credit card if US dollar conversion isn't available correct?
I have a question , do you know where to exchange Denmark danish currency ? I have 3x 1,000 and 2x 500 2x 200 2x 100 2x 50 krone total of 4,700 kroners please thanks I’m in LA, CALI
What if I am going to multiple countries? Do I exchange my US money at the bank and ask for certain amounts for each country? Like $500 for Spain, $800 for Hong Kong for example?
Yes, call your bank to see if any branches have both currencies, or they can order it for you. I wouldn’t go overboard though, both of those cities take credit card at most places (Just make sure it’s a card that has no foreign transaction fees). You might need a little bit if you want street food or are eating at a hole in the wall. I just went to spain for 3 days and ended up not even using a single Euro
If I may butt in, I'll add this comment. DO NOT take $800 in currency to Europe. Especially in Spain, (I've traveled there several times). To tell you the truth I only take at least $250 in currency, which of course, I get my American dollars converted to Euros, through my local bank BEFORE I head out to my trip there. Then, once in Spain, use my credit card. And like any other responsible human, pay it off the next month or make your monthly payment. Whichever way you normally pay your bills. There are a lot of pickpockets in certain cities of Spain (Barcelona especially) and you don't want to get robbed of your money. Hope that helps.
@@rebeccagutierrez1960 agreed. I brought about $300 and barely used any of it to my paris and spain trip. Good point about pickpockets, that’s why I wear my bookbag in the front
Hey! Just went to my personal chase bank to ask foreign currency exchange ... Lady told me for $998.73 dollars i would get $865 EUROS ... She told me there is no charge or fee, i just the rate of exchange as it is today ... $133 dollars is a huge difference. What do you think bro ? ... Keep up the good content. 👍 Thanks.
@@luissantos396 at $998 usd at the current market exchange rate, you should be getting 931 euros. They’re probably making $60-$66 dollars off of you in this scenario. (Conversion is a bit confusing to calculate). So their profit is 5-6% which is fair, I would do it personally
@samswallet I am thinking about getting money at my local Wells Fargo before I fly. Is this a good idea and how much should I carry in my travel bags to the airport?
@@samswallet Colombia for 6 nights. I am thinking $400 dollars from WellsFargo split between my personal item, carry on and clothing. Note: they mostly cash based country. I have Plat card and it was challenge to use AMEX. I dont have sapphire
@@ramblr5900 $400 sounds good. If they’re mostly a cash country then calculate how much you might spend per day, add it all up and throw on an additional 15-20% on top for unexpected expenses
What about using atms from major banks? I was just in Germany and sparkasse seemed to have low fees, I didn’t use a Deutsche Bank but I’d assume it’s the same and apparently Santander doesn’t charge fees if you have a visa debit card
It’s not just the fees you have to look it, it’s the conversion rate. You have to compare what they offer compared to the current exchange rates on google. If it’s off by a wide margin I would look elsewhere. Some large banks do rip you off but it’s a case by case basis. Example: A market exchange rate on google for 100 usd is 93 euros. If you try to exchange 100 usd from an atm and they only offer 75 euros, thats a pretty bad deal
Shoot, I forgot to mention that in this video - I do have the Schwab debit card that refunds you all atm fees, basically any random atm is your bank. It’s a great card but I wouldn’t use it in Europe, you still get ripped off by the conversion rate even by large well established banks and it’s atm in Europe
This is the first time I’ve ever heard anyone recommend getting your money at a US Bank before travel? What about your daily cash that you need while you’re there? I’m gonna be there for longer than six weeks and I wouldn’t want to carry that much cash with me. I’ve always been told to go to the post office Once I get there.
@@ka8byrdie your local bank generally offers the best rate. If it’s a major city, just use your credit card and select local currency when you pay - that why you wont need a ton of cash. I was in Spain and France for a week and I took out 700-800 euros and for a week’s stay I used less than 100 euros
@@ka8byrdie you have to check the conversion rate whenever you do an exchange to see if its fair, use google fr the market value that day. Banks generally take 6-7% which is usually the lowest, unless you’re going to Japan
I’m completely new at traveling internationally only been out of the country one time. Next time I went overseas I was going to try using PayPal PayPal has a currency conversion. My plan was to convert money into foreign currency. Take my debit card that PayPal gives me and use the ATM over there. I don’t know how smart that is. What’s your thoughts?
Which country & city are you going to? I personally think you should just exchange it now with your bank, especially since the dollar is strong against other currencies. But if you go that route please do the math with google to see if it’s a fair exchange. Even with an atm with minimal fees, its possible to be ripped off by up to 25% due to the conversion
@@samswallet i’m going to Dumaguete Philippines Right now, according to the stock market, Philippine pesos with $1 to 56 Philippine pesos PayPal gave me 54 But I don’t know when I get to the Philippines with the ATM cost is going to be I exchange it through my bank When I went the first time they gave me 49
Well for me my local bank charge me $32 that includes delivery fee even to pick up at there branch even though i avoid the atm at international countries due to the fact the atm machine wont despense the right amount of money or non at all.
i dont have chase, also maybe the exchange rate different from online? for example $472 usd for $8.050 mexican pesos so my bank charge $504 usd (including delivery) for $8.050 mexican pesos so $25 usd exchange fee and $7 usd delivery? (my bank would do free if i exchange more then $1000 usd)
@@DiegoEspinal-q1d The exchange rate changes each day but that doesn’t seem like a bad rate according to google. (Pretty close to market value). My bank’s rate was 6-7% higher but no delivery fee. Some branches even had euros already but they were further away from my house. It’s not a bad exchange compared to your other options, keep in mind many cities takes credit card though so you might not need as much as you think
That’s great! Did you check the conversion on both currencies and compare it to the market exchange rate on google? Every single atm I used when I was travel young screwed me on the conversion rate in Europe (this is not including the atm fees)
I'm so glad I saw this video! I'm going to Europe for the first time next month and was totally unaware that ordering foreign currency was a service my bank provided. Thank you for a short and concise video!
Glad it helped. Many people dont use that service to be honest. May want to consider calling your bank just to see if any branches near you already have the currency on hand - euros are really common for banks to have
How many dollars did you take with you?
Amazing bro .. thanks ! Going to europe for the first time and doing my research. 😊
No worries, have a good trip
Thank you!
This video is very helpful
My pleasure!
Excellent video - thank you !
My pleasure!
Planning on going to France next year. When buying tickets online in euros always use a zero foreign transaction debit or credit card if US dollar conversion isn't available correct?
A credit card with no foreign transaction fees yes (there should never be a reason to use a debit card, zero purchase protection, no points either)
I have a question , do you know where to exchange Denmark danish currency ? I have 3x 1,000 and 2x 500 2x 200 2x 100 2x 50 krone total of 4,700 kroners please thanks I’m in LA, CALI
Try your local bank, chase or bank of America should have them. Might need to have they order it
@@samswallet thanks will do
Very informative. Thank you.
👍
What if I am going to multiple countries? Do I exchange my US money at the bank and ask for certain amounts for each country? Like $500 for Spain, $800 for Hong Kong for example?
Yes, call your bank to see if any branches have both currencies, or they can order it for you. I wouldn’t go overboard though, both of those cities take credit card at most places (Just make sure it’s a card that has no foreign transaction fees). You might need a little bit if you want street food or are eating at a hole in the wall. I just went to spain for 3 days and ended up not even using a single Euro
If I may butt in, I'll add this comment. DO NOT take $800 in currency to Europe. Especially in Spain, (I've traveled there several times). To tell you the truth I only take at least $250 in currency, which of course, I get my American dollars converted to Euros, through my local bank BEFORE I head out to my trip there. Then, once in Spain, use my credit card. And like any other responsible human, pay it off the next month or make your monthly payment. Whichever way you normally pay your bills. There are a lot of pickpockets in certain cities of Spain (Barcelona especially) and you don't want to get robbed of your money. Hope that helps.
@@rebeccagutierrez1960 agreed. I brought about $300 and barely used any of it to my paris and spain trip. Good point about pickpockets, that’s why I wear my bookbag in the front
Hey! Just went to my personal chase bank to ask foreign currency exchange ... Lady told me for $998.73 dollars i would get $865 EUROS ... She told me there is no charge or fee, i just the rate of exchange as it is today ... $133 dollars is a huge difference. What do you think bro ? ... Keep up the good content. 👍 Thanks.
@@luissantos396 at $998 usd at the current market exchange rate, you should be getting 931 euros. They’re probably making $60-$66 dollars off of you in this scenario. (Conversion is a bit confusing to calculate). So their profit is 5-6% which is fair, I would do it personally
@samswallet I am thinking about getting money at my local Wells Fargo before I fly. Is this a good idea and how much should I carry in my travel bags to the airport?
Where are you traveling to and for how long? How much are you planning to take out
@@samswallet Colombia for 6 nights. I am thinking $400 dollars from WellsFargo split between my personal item, carry on and clothing. Note: they mostly cash based country. I have Plat card and it was challenge to use AMEX. I dont have sapphire
@@ramblr5900 $400 sounds good. If they’re mostly a cash country then calculate how much you might spend per day, add it all up and throw on an additional 15-20% on top for unexpected expenses
What about using atms from major banks? I was just in Germany and sparkasse seemed to have low fees, I didn’t use a Deutsche Bank but I’d assume it’s the same and apparently Santander doesn’t charge fees if you have a visa debit card
It’s not just the fees you have to look it, it’s the conversion rate. You have to compare what they offer compared to the current exchange rates on google. If it’s off by a wide margin I would look elsewhere. Some large banks do rip you off but it’s a case by case basis.
Example: A market exchange rate on google for 100 usd is 93 euros. If you try to exchange 100 usd from an atm and they only offer 75 euros, thats a pretty bad deal
Amazing video, thank you
My pleasure, thanks!
Very useful! Can you make a video about using a no-fee debit card, like the Charles Schwab of Fidelity checking, to withdraw money from ATM?
Shoot, I forgot to mention that in this video - I do have the Schwab debit card that refunds you all atm fees, basically any random atm is your bank. It’s a great card but I wouldn’t use it in Europe, you still get ripped off by the conversion rate even by large well established banks and it’s atm in Europe
This is the first time I’ve ever heard anyone recommend getting your money at a US Bank before travel? What about your daily cash that you need while you’re there? I’m gonna be there for longer than six weeks and I wouldn’t want to carry that much cash with me. I’ve always been told to go to the post office Once I get there.
@@ka8byrdie your local bank generally offers the best rate. If it’s a major city, just use your credit card and select local currency when you pay - that why you wont need a ton of cash. I was in Spain and France for a week and I took out 700-800 euros and for a week’s stay I used less than 100 euros
@@ka8byrdie you have to check the conversion rate whenever you do an exchange to see if its fair, use google fr the market value that day. Banks generally take 6-7% which is usually the lowest, unless you’re going to Japan
I'm going to spain in October, i need to know how you pulled that off! Lol, because I'll be there for 2 weeks 😅@samswallet
I’m completely new at traveling internationally only been out of the country one time.
Next time I went overseas
I was going to try using PayPal
PayPal has a currency conversion. My plan was to convert money into foreign currency. Take my debit card that PayPal gives me and use the ATM over there. I don’t know how smart that is. What’s your thoughts?
Which country & city are you going to? I personally think you should just exchange it now with your bank, especially since the dollar is strong against other currencies. But if you go that route please do the math with google to see if it’s a fair exchange. Even with an atm with minimal fees, its possible to be ripped off by up to 25% due to the conversion
@@samswallet i’m going to Dumaguete Philippines
Right now, according to the stock market, Philippine pesos with $1 to 56 Philippine pesos
PayPal gave me 54
But I don’t know when I get to the Philippines with the ATM cost is going to be
I exchange it through my bank When I went the first time they gave me 49
@@AdamG20 you gotta do the math but generally your local bank offers the best exchange rate. In the us, they take about 6%-7%
Well for me my local bank charge me $32 that includes delivery fee even to pick up at there branch even though i avoid the atm at international countries due to the fact the atm machine wont despense the right amount of money or non at all.
That is ridiculous. Go with Chase bank, it’s free
i dont have chase, also maybe the exchange rate different from online? for example $472 usd for $8.050 mexican pesos so my bank charge $504 usd (including delivery) for $8.050 mexican pesos so $25 usd exchange fee and $7 usd delivery? (my bank would do free if i exchange more then $1000 usd)
@@DiegoEspinal-q1d The exchange rate changes each day but that doesn’t seem like a bad rate according to google. (Pretty close to market value). My bank’s rate was 6-7% higher but no delivery fee. Some branches even had euros already but they were further away from my house. It’s not a bad exchange compared to your other options, keep in mind many cities takes credit card though so you might not need as much as you think
@@samswallet thank you very much
@@samswallet I just exchanged $1500 euros at my local Chase bank and they charged me $1765.05...what a rip off!!!
In my case my local bank charged 25%
Is best to change at destination at a place outside tourisf area
Wow that is insane, never heard of that. Yes that would be a good idea, definitely far away from the airport
I used an ATM using a card with no foreign transaction fees and no ATM fees and they only took about 1%.
That’s great! Did you check the conversion on both currencies and compare it to the market exchange rate on google? Every single atm I used when I was travel young screwed me on the conversion rate in Europe (this is not including the atm fees)
Still insane lost 6-8% for just exchange
Yeah. Everyone’s gotta make money I guess
I just check it ,it cost 8% fee per transaction per 2k usd,that 200 usd fee per transaction WTF
I have your shirt. 100% cotton nice lol
Nice
I thought this channel had like a million followers.. the quality of the video though😳 Short and clear!🤌
@@eva_eva3803 thank you! Much love