ATMs in Ibiza

T

tonybologna

New Member
My gf and I will be going to Ibiza last week of June. I check American's Express Foreign Currency Travelers Checks and their exchange rate to the Euro is terrible- at least 1.40 where it is 1.27 at the bank right now. PLus they charge processing fee and shipping fee. Is there a global bank (like HSBC, etc) where I could use my ATM card from here in the U.S. and withdraw Euros (thus getting the most favorable exchange rate without fees)?
 
hi toni,

to be honest i am not sure. i know when i go to england i get shafted. anyone else any first hand knowledge?
 
i found the best way to get euro's is the most risky. Last year i took english cash with me and changed that. you dont get any fees changing cash so your money goes that little bit further. Not sure if that is answering your question though. The ATM machines also charge every time you use it
 
Why take Euros with you from the States? Take your debit card (if it's got visa, mastercard, cirrus/maestro, etc) or credit card and just pull euros from the ATMs in Ibiza.
 
Morbyd said:
Why take Euros with you from the States? Take your debit card (if it's got visa, mastercard, cirrus/maestro, etc) or credit card and just pull euros from the ATMs in Ibiza.
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doing this you get a small charge from the spanish bank and possibly a charge from your bank. if you take travellers cheques you often pay a fee when you buy them, get a poor exchange rate and then a fee for changing.

using a debit card is cheapest in the long run.
 
GazDaBomb said:
taking cash is the best bet, just not the safest.
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Why is cash the best bet? I beg to differ.

I never take cash when I travel, anywhere. The first thing I do when I get off the plane is to use my debit card at a bank machine in the airport to get some local currency. I usually draw a couple days of cash at a time. I also leave a second card in the hotel room.
- no worries about getting robbed or losing money
- if I lose my wallet, I've got the spare card in the hotel (the one time this didn't work was when my wife found the spare card and decided to put it back in my wallet, right before I had it stolen!)

Paying a couple of dollars transaction fee for the banks is not a big deal. You'll pay just as much if not more to exchange currency.

If you draw money from a bank machine 5 times over a 10 day holiday, that's $10-20. Not a big deal for the convenience and safety (and still, probably less than you'd lose in currency exchanges).
 
you dont pay anything for changing cash. im not saying this is what they should do, im just saying that we found our money went that litle bit further taking cash with you. keep it all in your safe.
 
i always use my debit card on hols now

i feel safer having to just worry about my car rather than leaving t.cheques or cash in the safe

usually take some euros over for the first day until i can pinpoint the nearest atm
 
GazDaBomb said:
you dont pay anything for changing cash. im not saying this is what they should do, im just saying that we found our money went that litle bit further taking cash with you. keep it all in your safe.
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You DO pay for changing cash. You will never find a cash exchange that does not charge you, one way or the other. Either there is a commission, or you'll see the exchange rates slightly differentiated.

For example, if the actual rate is $1 to 1.25 euros, you'll be given 1.20 euros per dollar and have to pay 1.30 euros to buy $1. That differentiation is where banks and exchanges make their money. :roll:
 
The only thing is if the ATM eats your card. But I've yet to have that happen.

The best way I find is to get enough €'s (cash) to last a week before I go and then withdraw an amount to cover the next week when i run out.

Also on purchasing expensive items (over £50) i use my credit card.
 
The only thing is if the ATM eats your card. But I've yet to have that happen.

The best way I find is to get enough €'s (cash) to last a week before I go and then withdraw an amount to cover the next week when i run out.

Also on purchasing expensive items (over £50) i use my credit card.
 
My wife and I have been using ATMs at BBVA during the past few weeks and there is something that you should all be aware of.

Sometimes the machine will tell you that it can't dispense cash because of a technical difficulty. You get a slip from the machine saying that action has been cancelled however the money is still taken out of your account. You then have to go through the slow process of getting the money back from your bank in the UK.
 
CasperSlides said:
Sometimes the machine will tell you that it can't dispense cash because of a technical difficulty. You get a slip from the machine saying that action has been cancelled however the money is still taken out of your account. You then have to go through the slow process of getting the money back from your bank in the UK.
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I've had machines in Ibiza (and elsewhere) return the technical fault resonse but that's usually when a) there's not enough cash in the machine or b) there's communication problems between the bank and the Visa or MC/EuroCard systems.

Are you sure money is actually being debited from your account, or is a "hold" being put on the amount (as is usually done pending a transaction)? Holds will usually remove themselves after a given period of time, though you can speed that process up by calling the bank.
 
No the money has definitely gone. My wife is seven hundred pounds out of pocket whilst I had four hundred go missing. My card is an Abbey and they refunded it immediatly "pending an investigation". My wife is with Nationwide and she has had to go through the whole fraud reporting process bexcause Nationwide won't accept that it is an error.

Having said that I have drawn money out from ATMs in just about every continent in the world and have never had a problem before this.
 
my debit card is PLUS
does anyone know if PLUS is accepted on ibiza ??

I guess it is.. its one of the most common.. anyway can someone guarantee me
 
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