<p>I’ve heard that travelers checks are totally out of date.</p>
<p>I know that a Visa card can be used in many places, but what about cash? Will a Cirrus-network debit card work in a European ATM? Or can you do cash withdrawal at a European ATM using a Cirrus-network Visa?</p>
<p>Or what? I am totally confused on this and can’t seem to find an answer. There must be an easy way!</p>
<p>D has spent a couple of summers in Europe. We got her a Visa cash card through AAA, which she was able to use at ATMs in both England and France. I imagine the same might be true of a regular Visa card as well.</p>
<p>I am also trying to figure the best way to give my child money for Europe. She is only 13 so does not have access to a debit card.
I am thinking some travelers cheques that she could change for cash. Most of her trip is covered by her relative who is taking her on the trip. She is responsible for some money for the likes of gelato and candy and possibly some shopping.</p>
<p>DDs never had any trouble getting cash in Europe on their Bank of America Visa credit/debit cards. Fees were high, though. </p>
<p>Try calling you bank and asking them what the availability is and what the fees will be.</p>
<p>My kid used his Citibank ATM/debit card in Russia, China, all through eastern and western Europe and in England and Scotland. Before you go see what banks have relationships with your bank so you can avoid exorbitant fees.</p>
<p>Last year we had no trouble accessing our B of A account via ATMs in France and Germany.</p>
<p>I’ve had NO problem using my debit card for local currency at ATMs in a few different countries (Germany, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia). The one thing to look for is that the ATM includes the networks the debit card is associated with, such as Cirrus, Star, Plus…whatever.</p>
<p>I also used the AAA cash card. That may be a good alternative for a youngster. AAA just re-did their cash card arrangements and I think the fees are a bit better. Nice because it’s preloaded with a set amount, can be monitored on line by a parent at home and can be added on to if need be. I only used it to get currency, never for purchases. I’d get a decent amount of cash at one time to keep the transaction fees down.</p>
<p>Never had a problem making purchases with my VISA and the exchange and fees were always reasonable.</p>
<p>We carry very little cash when we go to Europe. We use our credit cards for everything. We always take cash out once to get to the airport through their ATM machines.</p>
<p>Bank of America/Visa ATM card worked just fine in Europe–extremely convenient–I would think just about any large bank’s cards will work with ATMs at banks overseas. Certainly the Cirrus network does.</p>
<p>can['t you open up a joint account with D and get her a card? my H talked our bank into giving my D, 14 at the time, an ATM card attached to the joint account so she would have it when she traveled.</p>
<p>We use a debit card. You get the bank exchange rate rather than the tourist exchange rate so even with the fees it is a much better rate than travelers checks.</p>
<p>When my daughter went to Europe on a trip when she was 17 I just got a card in my name and gave it to her to use. My name was on her account so that worked fine.</p>
<p>It depends on the bank. Some banks won’t give out a card to anyone under 18.</p>
<p>We purchased currency (GBP) and foreign travelers cheques at our local American Express travel agency.</p>
<p>Oldfort, time to get a new bank. Both of our sons had debit cards when they were minors, on a “youth” account on our bank which had WashMom and me on the account. </p>
<p>As for Europe, even easier than worrying about which ATM network the machine is part of, just get one that is a Visa debit card. I used mine (eight years ago) in Germany, Belgium, the UK, France, and Spain without any issues. I don’t know about Mastercard debit cards, but I would be surprised if there were any issues with those, either.</p>
<p>Getting cash through ATMs is pretty easy, but you might give your bank/credit card company a heads up about your travel plans before you go as ATM withdrawals from suddenly somewhere in Europe might raise a fraud red flag with your bank/credit card company and cause some hassle.</p>
<p>Yes ours was a visa debit card ans was used in England, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and France with no problems.</p>
<p>Our bank does have the under 18 no debit card rule but I just got a card in my name.</p>
<p>Make sure the pin is a 4 number pin. Some (apparently) come with 6 digit PINs and those will not work in Europe.</p>
<p>NO problem with the regular ATM card from my bank on recent trips to Paris, London and Provence. Only heads-up – have a backup plan in case your card gets eaten by a machine!</p>
<p>I second the comment about the 4 digit PIN. My ATM card wouldn’t work in Europe until I got it replaced.</p>
<p>We sent D off to London when she was 16 to visit a former neighbor, and the day before she left we detected suspicious activity on her ATM card. Turned out to be legit, but in the meantime the bank canceled the card. We bought her some travelers’ checks as a stopgap and had the bank send the new card to the London address. Turned out to be very inconvenient and actually somewhat difficult to cash the travelers’ checks, so she was relieved when the new card came. Our friends of course took care of her, but she liked being in control of her own spending money.</p>
<p>I agree that it’s also convenient to have some currency on hand before you go–say $100 worth of euros, or pounds, depending upon your destination. Also agree that it makes sense to charge large purchases/expenses. The combination of a starter amount of foreign currency, use of local bank ATMs with our debit card, and charging larger purchases has worked well both for the adults in our family and for our children. (They both had checking accounts and were over 18 the first time they were abroad alone, so the question of minimum age for which the bank would issue a debit card didn’t arise.)</p>
<p>Debit cards rule. I thought it was a hoot to find a bank in Japan, Scotland, or Berlin, type in the PIN I chose in Chicago when I was 18 years old and get back foreign money.</p>