American Banks and best places for exchange rate.

[guapochino]

Hey all..

will be in cali next week. very excited...... !

what is the best place to get exchange rate???? i heard the ATM at the banks give a better rate than if i exchange in cash.

what american banks are in cali??? Is there a HSBC?? Citibank???

what banks do you all use for atm withdrawal???? Did anyone have any problems withdrawing money from the atm?

when i was in Medellin, i had problems withdrawing money at banco colombia.
I bank with wells fargo....


thanks...

[Jim]

ATMs give the best exchange rate throughout the world. It is also easier and safer to carry an ATM card that cash. There are far more ATM machines than places than change money.

You don't need American banks in Colombia. Almost every bank with an ATM machine will give you the amount in pesos that you need. Machines you can use are everywhere.

If your credit card is PLUS or CIRRUS, no problem.

Enjoy your trip.

Good advice Jim, I was trying to make a purchase through a Canadian company over the phone recently. The guy said, "Discover does not work in Canada." I was surprized but, I can't remember using Discover overseas. Does it work in Colombia, Philippines, etc.?

[Cubafro]

GC
I know there is city bank at least in Medellin and in Cali also..but as it was said to you by Jim the ATM's are very good..I did use Bancolombia when doing withdrawals and once Citybank

Cuba

[Jim]

No. Discover works ONLY in the US. This is very important to know. MC and Visa are accepted anywhere that takes CCs but more places are cash only in the third world than in the US.

VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PEOPLE WHO TRAVEL TO FOREIGN LANDS AND USE CREDIT CARDS.

Most credit cards charge a 3% foreign transaction fee. A few have as low as 1%. Capital One charges NO FTF and it also gives 1% cash back.

[JMitch1959]

I always feel better having a couple debit cards, and a couple credit cards.

The debit cards don't always work. For example, I don't think I was able to use Bank Colombia ATM's last time in Cali. My card has the Cirrus symbol, but finding the atm that will take any given card for me has been at times hit and miss. There are fortunately a lot of atm's in Cali, and once you find a banks atm that works you're set. I have a debit card that reimburses me for the charges of using a atm. I think they charge me about $3 every time I withdraw money in Colombia; it may be more, I'm not sure. Anyway, this particular bank reimburses those fees. Of course they don't pay me any interest on my checking account so they still make out like bandits on me, but at least I get to stick it to them on those ATM fees, every now and again.

Don't use your credit card at ATM's except for emergencies; they typically gouge you for about 20% of your withdrawal I believe.

It's a great feeling to have a fistfull of money when travelling. The sound of an ATM spitting out pesos to me is like it must feel when someone wins while playing a one armed bandit in the casino.

A fear of mine is to be flat broke, and in a foreign country. My first stop in Cali is an ATM machine. There are a few in the airport for anyone coming or going from Cali in need of withdrawing the local currency at favorable exchange rates. At the airport there are two or three atm's, so if one doesn't work for you, the other one hopefully will.

[guapochino]

thanks for all your help......

yeah ill contact my bank prior to my trip.

i just hate the hassle of going to the bank and talking to a teller and getting money out. you have to fill paperwork out and it takes about 20 mins to get it done.

[Ciza29]

If you banked with Citibank in the US and you use the citibank atm in Colombia, you get the atm rate but no fee. If you use your Wells Fargo Atm card at any bank in colombia you will get the atm rate, but you will be charged a fee by your bank.

There are limits on how much you can withdrawal each day.

Citibanks are plentiful in Bogota, but only a couple in Cali and Medellin.

I would only bring enough money to get me to an atm. The exchange rates are worse outside of an atm.

[Flaco]

The best Exchange rate in Colombia is for cash on the black market. The Black market in many poor countires is typically found on the edge of a town square or on a well known side street. In Colombia it is less prevalent. I was able to locate 2 locations in Medellin via my Spanish teacher, but considered it risky and not worth the extra pesos.

Even ATM's can be dangerous. There are many stories of people being followed and robbed and just recently on the news, reports of mini cameras recording pin numbers and crooks stealing the card info via the swipe recorder. It is safest to use the ATMs in malls or stores with lots of security.

I opened up a US citibank account hoping to have discount Atm exhanges and had no luck. The Colombian teller appoligized informing me that citibank US and Colombia are 2 different entities. Maybe I just had the wrong type of checking account, as I still see more posts of people having opposite experiences.

Charles Schwab Bank does have accounts that reimburse ATM charges, and are commission free unlike many other banks. Exchanges can be made and checked online within 24 hours to see that they are at the current rates. It works at most ATMs, but not Bank Colombia. I have several different accounts with schwab and not all have these privileges, so best to call if interested or Call your own bank or credit union and see if they can offer similar services. The less branches a big bank has, the more they can afford to compensate their custumers with cheaper services.

[aviator68]

My brokerage account at fidelity.com gives me 1% atm withdrawals.
Any other fees refunded. joe