Discussions

Is it better to do it here ahead of time in the bank or down in the US through a daily transaction through an ATM ? Are there really any differences in the rates ?

I converted to US here at the bank. Went to Mexico. Needed to pull out some money from the ATM....well the us dollars jammed in the machine. Mickey mouse number to call and they are no help. The transaction said I was only shorted 20 bucks when it was actually 60. Checked the machine and yup 2 20's jammed. Got one out and borrowed some needle nose pliers from a local business and got the other 20 barely. Ended up spending the 20 in the merchants shop as a thank you. Maybe in a different better area I would have better luck but it was all I had at the time.

Usually get a couple hundred US cash here for incidentals. We use a credit card for most purchases and don't worry about which is the better rate (convenience, security).

It's nice to have a bit of U.S. cash with you, but just using your credit or debit card doesn't cost you a fee.  
Also if you stop at a Walmart or any store that offers extra cash option when you use your debit card, you can access it that way.

I take US cash from here to avoid the ATM machine's fees and my bank fees because it's not their machine. Credit card company will also charge a fee to convert.

The bank charges you a fee no matter what so I don’t know what you mean when you say you avoid the atm charges when the bank charges you an exchange rate fee right at the bank teller . What you see posted on a currency exchange site is not the rate you will receive at your bank. I just did it. Site posted 78.59. Bank rate pretty much 1.30.

What they mean is if you use a US atm they will charge you a foreign transaction fee on top of a slightly worse exchange rate then your bank will likely charge.  
 
I would convert your cash here before you go, will be the best rate of the two. You can use a US atm but you will definitely pay a bit more then you would at your bank.

Ms.Daisy said "What they mean is if you use a US atm they will charge you a foreign transaction fee on top of a slightly worse exchange rate then your bank will likely charge.     I would convert your cash here before you go, will be the best rate of the two. You can use a US atm but you will definitely pay a bit more then you would at your bank. "

You could change ten dollars at home, and ten in the US. I think if you would do that, you would be giving different advice, or maybe not.  
 
Edited by tlr, 2018-04-12 08:03:45

only exchange all of our money into American cash BEFORE we go. I happened to hit up our bank at a great time for exchange for our trip in May

All places that exchange money from one currency to another will charge a fee of some sort. For example, with no fee and as of this writing, buying $100 US would cost $125.88. However, after fees are added, it could be $130. Some places will offer a cheaper fee than others. If you're only converting a few hundred dollars, it doesn't matter much. If you are converting thousands of dollars or more, it could pay to shop around.

just make sure the US atm is on the Cirrus network or you will get crushed with service charges, if you dont see the Cirrus logo on the atm move on until you find one, it wont take long there is a lot of them wherever you are in the US.

I always wonder if it’s best to use cash or my credit card. I usually take cash and then use my cc if I didn’t bring enough. I always get the cash here first

I do the same. I exchange some money here before I go, and than use my credit card if I happen to not take enough cash. I Have never really looked into which is a better rate however. As someone else pointed out, unless you are exchanging thousands of dollars, I’m sure it only boils down to a few bucks difference.

tlr said "    Ms.Daisy said "What they mean is if you use a US atm they will charge you a foreign transaction fee on top of a slightly worse exchange rate then your bank will likely charge.     I would convert your cash here before you go, will be the best rate of the two. You can use a US atm but you will definitely pay a bit more then you would at your bank. " You could change ten dollars at home, and ten in the US. I think if you would do that, you would be giving different advice, or maybe not.     Edited by tlr, 2018-04-12 08:03:45"

I have no idea what you are trying to say...  
 
I will try to make it a little easier to understand. When you use a US atm and draw money out of your Canadian bank account they will charge you a foreign transaction fee plus a slightly worse interest rate (usually) then your bank would. And on top of that you might get charged a fee for using the US atm. So you will always pay a little more doing it that way. If its a couple hundred bucks the difference will likely be $5 or $10 extra.  
 
Using a credit card you pay the current interest rate when the transaction posts so it will change every day plus usually a 1% or 1.5%. One thing to be aware of is if you are ever in the states and a you go to pay with a credit card and it gives you the option to pay in Canadian or American always pick US$ never pay in Canadian dollars.

Disney World in Nov. for 12 days and I will be putting everything (food, souvenirs, theme/tour tickets, gas etc. on my credit card....I will be also taking US dollars ($1,000) with me just in case....

If you get US cash at your favourite local bank before you go, you pay the exchange rate as of that day plus the banks fee, usually 1.5% or to 2.5%.  
 
If you pay by credit card, your bank does the same: you pay the exchange rate plus the bank's usual exchange fee, except that you pay the exchange rate in effect at the time you make the transaction. So if CAD has improved since you left, you are ahead. If USD has improved, then you would have been better off buying USD before you left.  
 
Using debit - in addition to the exchange rate at the time, my bank charges a flat $2.00 fee for using debit outside of Canada. And so, it's not very economical to use debit to pay for a $12.95 meal, but not so bad on a $400 purchase.  
 
I've never needed to use an ATM outside of Canada, always liked to have my cash in hand when I leave, one less thing to worry about when you get there.