It is wise to have some euros in your pocket upon arrival in Barcelona.
There is a currency exchange office on 4th and Broadway, under the parking structure, door facing 4th street. In Barcelona, Paris and Amsterdam you will be using Euros to pay. In Prague, the currency is Koruna and in Budapest the currency is Hufs or Forint and is abbreviated as Ft. or HUF.
Below are the currency exchange rates as of today.
Also, unless you have a credit card without any transfer fees, it is best to have cash as your paying method at all restaurants, vendors and stores.
Bank atms will beable to give you cash from your atm card, and it is wise to withdrawl the maximum amount, as there will be transfer fees from the foreign atm and from your bank. These withdrawl amounts do add up.
We will be passing money exchange booths at all times in all cities, but, upon arrival at train stations, if you plan to buy a water, fruit or snacks before we hit a money exchange booth, please get some Korunas (CZK), Forints (HUF) and euros before departing LAX.
Example: I plan to bring one thousand dollars spending.
I am going to go to the Santa Monica store and change 700 into Euros and 150 into Hufs and 150 into Korunas. Then I am going to keep my money in my wallet, which I will put in a zipper pocket, inside my cross body purse which i will never set down (and when sleeping I will put the wallet in my pillow case. (yes I am bringing a down pillow which I can roll up and put inside my duffel bag). As you can see, I will never have to exchange any money, unless I plan to change my leftover euros into Hufs or Czks, and I will stay on budget, not paying any bank transfer fees.
As a traveler, it is very important that you have a plan of action for your money. One year a traveler's atm card was eaten by the machine. He did NOT have a second plan of action, and had to borrow from his friends ( I believe he still owes me money...) Also, one year a traveler never stopped at a money exchange booth, and didn't have money for lunch. Another traveler lost their wallet, and did not have money stashed in a hiding place in suitcase, or access to a bank card.
Please be aware that the fear of "gypsies" is real, and there are many areas in Barcelona where we will forbid you to walk through, as they know where tourists keep their stash. There are also hotel room cleaners who will go through your luggage, so please have locks to put onto your duffel bag zippers when out of the room.
if you have any other questions about traveling with money, please post a comment, so we can help you figure out your personal plan of action for your money.
.
| 1.00 USD | = | 0.703591 EUR |
| 1.00 USD | = | 17.0180 CZK
|
No comments:
Post a Comment