Cashing Traveler's Cheques on Mediterranean Cruise

[House_of_Mouse Fan]

I'm planning to take traveler's cheques with me on my Mediterranean cruise this summer as I want to minimize the amount of cash I'm carrying on the way over. I know Guest Services on the ship cashes them, but does anyone know if they cash them for Euros vs. US dollars and is there a daily limit like there is at the WDW resorts?

Thanks in advance!

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

I'm planning to take traveler's cheques with me on my Mediterranean cruise this summer as I want to minimize the amount of cash I'm carrying on the way over. I know Guest Services on the ship cashes them, but does anyone know if they cash them for Euros vs. US dollars and is there a daily limit like there is at the WDW resorts?

Thanks in advance!

Personally I would recommend a credit or debit card or a pre paid currency card, travellers are going out of fashion, major banks in Europe are now refusing to cash them so there dying as a cash transmission service.

Guest services will take them in, you credit them to your stateroom account and then they cash from your stateroom account. There is a daily limit circa $200

The stateroom account is in USA $ so they would prefer USA currency and then exchange in yo local currency at the " company" exchange rate which will be at an increased margin, ( you loose out) and say if you took Eoto T Chqs you will loose twice on the currency exchange.

So overall it's a bad idea, I would suggest pre paid Euro cards that you decide on the exchange rate when you top them up.



DCL says,


Q: Should I bring cash, credit cards or foreign currency?
A: You won't really need cash on the Disney ships, but when you get to port, you'll probably want to have some money with you. In the Bahamas and the Caribbean, U.S. dollars and major credit cards are accepted almost everywhere. For European and Mediterranean cruises, bring traveler's checks to the ports to exchange for local currency. On board our ships, all transactions are in U.S. dollars. You won't need cash while we're at sea because Disney Cruise Line has a convenient "cash-free" system on board the ship. When you arrive at the Walt Disney World Resort or at the Disney Cruise Line terminal at Port Canaveral, your signature will be requested for check-in. At this time you may also present a credit card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover Credit Card, Diners Club International, Japanese Credit Bureau or Disney's Visa Credit Card), which will give you charging privileges at both the Walt Disney World Resort and aboard the ship. Any purchases on the ship, including beverage services, spa, salon services, photography, medical and laundry services, purchases from our retail shops, gratuities and any item or service of a personal nature must be charged to your room. All charges must be settled before your Resort departure and debarkation from the ship by cash, traveler's checks, Disney Dollars or by the credit cards mentioned above.

 

[Gigi22]

Just off the EBTA. I had no problem at all cashing traveller's cheques at Guest Services. My cheques were in US$. I was using the money to pay off our onboard account. We purchased Euros at home. Towards the end of the cruise, had a small amount of US$ left, which I exchanged for Euros. I believe the exchange rate was $1.46 for 1 Euro, which strikes me as high. Also FYI, Guest Services did not have anything smaller than a 5 Euro note.

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

Just off the EBTA. I had no problem at all cashing traveller's cheques at Guest Services. My cheques were in US$. I was using the money to pay off our onboard account. We purchased Euros at home. Towards the end of the cruise, had a small amount of US$ left, which I exchanged for Euros. I believe the exchange rate was $1.46 for 1 Euro, which strikes me as high. Also FYI, Guest Services did not have anything smaller than a 5 Euro note.

DCL use a company exchange rate so you can loose on the conversion. To get Euros from USA the current rate is circa 1.36. So cost ten cents more per euro.

 

[NancyIL]

Personally I would recommend a credit or debit card or a pre paid currency card, travellers are going out of fashion, major banks in Europe are now refusing to cash them so there dying as a cash transmission service.

Guest services will take them in, you credit them to your stateroom account and then they cash from your stateroom account. There is a daily limit circa $200

The stateroom account is in USA $ so they would prefer USA currency and then exchange in yo local currency at the " company" exchange rate which will be at an increased margin, ( you loose out) and say if you took Eoto T Chqs you will loose twice on the currency exchange.

So overall it's a bad idea, I would suggest pre paid Euro cards that you decide on the exchange rate when you top them up.



DCL says,


Q: Should I bring cash, credit cards or foreign currency?
A: You won't really need cash on the Disney ships, but when you get to port, you'll probably want to have some money with you. In the Bahamas and the Caribbean, U.S. dollars and major credit cards are accepted almost everywhere. For European and Mediterranean cruises, bring traveler's checks to the ports to exchange for local currency. On board our ships, all transactions are in U.S. dollars. You won't need cash while we're at sea because Disney Cruise Line has a convenient "cash-free" system on board the ship. When you arrive at the Walt Disney World Resort or at the Disney Cruise Line terminal at Port Canaveral, your signature will be requested for check-in. At this time you may also present a credit card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover Credit Card, Diners Club International, Japanese Credit Bureau or Disney's Visa Credit Card), which will give you charging privileges at both the Walt Disney World Resort and aboard the ship. Any purchases on the ship, including beverage services, spa, salon services, photography, medical and laundry services, purchases from our retail shops, gratuities and any item or service of a personal nature must be charged to your room. All charges must be settled before your Resort departure and debarkation from the ship by cash, traveler's checks, Disney Dollars or by the credit cards mentioned above.

I can't believe DCL is telling people to bring travelers checks to ports in Europe "to exchange for local currency"! Just where do they think people are going to do this? I have had no problem getting currency from ATM machines in Europe.

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

I can't believe DCL is telling people to bring travelers checks to ports in Europe "to exchange for local currency"! Just where do they think people are going to do this? I have had no problem getting currency from ATM machines in Europe.

Yes you are right! That is a cut and paste of thier FAQs and that's what they say...


Travellers cheques however are being phased out quickly now, I know London banks have stopped or are stopping using them now, there very old and replaced with currency cards now.

But they gave got it wrong in a Europe before, the train instructions from London to Dover included errors and also for Rhofpdes to Lindos there times were a bit off. ( I told thrm, they checked and corrected it).

 

[House_of_Mouse Fan]

Thanks for the responses! Looks like I'm going to have to rethink the Traveler's Cheques.

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

Thanks for the responses! Looks like I'm going to have to rethink the Traveler's Cheques.

Yes see if you can get a pre paid a Euro card that works in ATMS as well I have one and will use it for my hotel costs and Euro entrance fees.

 

[tajz90]

When we sail with Disney, we sail with travelers checks, euro and a credit card. The checks are nice for emergencies. The rate onboard isn't the best, but great if you don't want to mess with anything onshore.

 

[llqool]

We are Americans living in Germany. We typically use our American bank's ATM card at local banks to pull out Euro or whatever the local currency might be. We also use our American credit cards at many places, although there are still lots of stores, esp discount chains like Aldi or Lidl, that won't take cards.

The thing to watch out for is foreign transaction fees, which can be around 1%-3%. Our particular bank doesn't charge us foreign transaction fees on our debit/ATM card, and we have a Bank of America Travel Rewards Visa Card -- it has no annual fee, charges no foreign transaction fees, and has a chip in it, which means it works virtually everywhere in Europe.

There are other cards out there (Capital One?) that don't charge the transaction fee. But we have had good luck with the BoA Travel Rewards card. My mom and sister ended up each getting one when they came over to visit.

 

[tvguy]

Only thing to be careful with with U.S. ATM cards in Europe is make sure your pin is no more than 4 digits. The Europeans just aren't set up for longer pins.

http://goeurope.about.com/cs/currency/a/atm_use_europe.htm

DD has been living in the U.K. since September as a foreign exchange student, and has had no issues with her debit card (which does not have a chip), credit card (which also does not have a chip) or Travelers Checks (she took her mad money over in travelers checks).

DW and I are heading over in a week, and we have already gotten Pounds and a few Euros (since we have a stopover in Amsterdam), will take travelers checks, ATM card and 1 Credit Card.

 

[llqool]

There are actually quite a few places (especially when there's an unattended pay site, like a toll or a gas pump or a parking kiosk or a self-checkout line or....) that require the chip. My nephew, who also studied abroad in London last year, ran into it more than we do here in Germany, actually.

A chip is more secure, too. But for me, it was the no foreign transaction fee that won me over on this particular card.

 

[Cousin Orville]

What about the chip and signature cards? Amex just emailed me and told me they were switching me over. Am I going to run into any problems? I'm reluctant as with my travel habits, I've never needed a chip card before after many trips. Granted some vendors don't accept Amex. I also use a Sapphire Chase which has no foreign transaction fees.

 

[tankin]

I travel to Europe a lot. I'd skip travelers cheques. The fees are high and the exchange rate you get for them often stinks.

Instead I use ...
#1 Credit card without an international transaction fee (exch rate will be close to bank rate). Make sure you let your CC know you are traveling

#2 ATM... You'll get the bank rate but you will also get fees from the banks on both ends. You also need to tell your bank you're traveling.

#3 Cash for Cash ... Your exchange rate will stink ....
#4 TC for cash ... Your exchange rate will stink and you'll get nailed will fees on both ends...

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

Get a pre paid Euro currency card, in UK Fair FX is one supplier. I use them in the USA on their pre paid $ card, no transaction fees bar a small one off fee in ATMs and I choose the exchange rate.

 

[House_of_Mouse Fan]

Yes see if you can get a pre paid a Euro card that works in ATMS as well I have one and will use it for my hotel costs and Euro entrance fees.

Thanks again! Do you know if ATMs in Europe (specifically Spain, France and Italy) charge a fee when you use the pre-paid card to withdraw cash? If so, how much is it, e.g. in dollars or %?

Thanks!