Fair Cost And Fair Exchange
1. Never convert currency at an exchange counter, especially at an airport.
2. Use a credit card that doesn’t charge a foreign-transaction fee.
3. To avoid withdrawal fees, use a foreign bank that partners with your home bank.
4. If you want up-to-the minute information about money and travel, check Bankrate.com.
There is a world of foreign-transaction charges. It starts with a flat-percentage transaction fee: 1 percent for Master Card and Visa, 2 percent for Discover, and 2.7 percent for American Express. The bank that issues your credit card can also add it’s own transaction fee - sometimes as high as 3 percent. Even if you haven’t left the country, study your statement.