Euro coins
I'd like to have enough Euro coins to buy tickets at the vending machines for the metro, RER, and tollways, as soon as I get off the plane.
My bank, Wells Fargo, will not furnish coins. Is there any
source for these at another bank ?
Gary
Georgetown 2/8/12
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Not that I know of. We generally have a few from a prior trip, or I buy a small bottle of juice or water to break a 20 and get some coins.
Get a piece of pastry or a candy bar or sommat when you land. Lots of places will sell'em.
Surely you won't need change for all of metro, RER and tollways the day you land?
It won't take long to build up a collection.
can I get a roll of euros at a European bank? I always mean to do this but never do.
Some of the larger Volksbank branches in Germany have machines that will dispense rolls of €1 and €2 coins. I've never used them, so I'm not sure if it's like a change machine or ATM.
Many of the ticketing machines will take 5, 10 and/or 20 Euro notes and give you change. You'll be fine coming without coins if you have as small as a 20, then do as the others suggested and buy a bottle of water or something to break it.
Gary - If you are looking to buy a ticket for the RER, there is a change machine near the ticket kiosk. The change machine will accept 10 & 20 euro notes.
I get some money from an ATM, then buy a small item in a newstand to get change before leaving the airport.
Banks do have a minimum Euro bill they will exchange, both to Euros and back to Dollars. I'm not sure what it is because I never exchange money.
Does anyone else ever get tired of lugging a ton of coins around Europe? Same thing for Canada or anyplace else using coins. It always seems like it takes just a few hours and you suddenly have 32 pounds of coins. And, yes, that is a stack of coins in my front pocket...thank you. I just end up throwing them in my daybag. Half the time, I forget I have them in there, but they actually add up to a lot of money quickly. I always have to remember to check the daybag for money when buying something.
BTW, I agree with simply buying a snack or other small item after using the ATM but before leaving the airport in order to get your coins/change from a larger bill.
You have another alternative, too!
You may buy your RER tickets at the CDG TI desks.
The (human) will take Euro bills.
I've been lucky, no line there when I arrive.
I love the coins the 2 euros are my favorite.
Thanks to all for your replies.
I didn't mind the coins, but then I'm one who loves the US dollar coins - I even wish we had a $5 or 5 euro coin!
Just another thought........ask around. If you have friends or coworkers who have traveled, many of them may have small stashes of coins from their recent trips and you can buy their extras. I keep a plastic baggie of my euro coins and a second baggie of British pounds and pence alongside my passport.
When my wife and I announced our engagement (with honeymoon to England) her coworkers threw us a party and one of the gifts they gave us was a sachet of English coins collected by the office from their desk drawers, etc. We arrived in London with over 15GBP in our pockets thanks to their generosity.
I just use leftover euros from previous trips, but some
people like my wife are willing to pay a few extra dollars
for a sense of peace before arriving. If you fit that
description, you can buy $100 in euros at your local
AAA here but expect to pay a hefty fee.
Arn,
I've found the best place to get Euro over here before going is at Wells Fargo. I once checked the rate daily for about 9 months and they consistently averaged 5% over the Interbank rate. At the time, AAA got theirs from Travelex at about 7½% over. If you have a WF near you there's no extra charge, but for small amounts, they do charge for shipping.
But, of course, no exchange operation here will give you coins. Every ATM I've ever used in Germany/Austria has given me the first €100 in small bills (5s, 10s, and 20s), the rest in 50s, so I have some small bills to start. Also, the Bahn and most local automats take bills up to €20, at least.
Caution: the automat gives change only in coins, so if you use a 20 for a €4 ticket, you'll get 16 Euro in coins.
Michael,
I, too, have had problems with accumulating too many coins. It's not so much the individual weight; the 1 and 2 Euro don't weigh that much more than a quarter. The problem is I accumulate so many. I think it is because we recognize the notes better than the coins, so we are always using bills and getting coins in change.
I now make a conscious effort to use coins whenever possilbe. To quickly identify the coins, I look at the edges. The €1 and €2 coins are large with milled edges while the 50 cent coin is about the same size with many large notches on the edge.
I'm with Michael,
It's good to have some coins (especially for bathroom stops) but the one and two euro coins, along with the others, can fill up your pocket in a hurry.
"To quickly identify the coins, I look at the edges. The €1 and €2 coins are large with milled edges while the 50 cent coin is about the same size with many large notches on the edge."
Who are you, Helen Keller? To quickly identify the coins, I look for the large number 1 on the €1 coin and the large number 2 on the €2 coin. The half euro coin has five-zero written on it, telling me it's different than the other coins. :P
James, you win post of the year for making me laugh so much.
"To quickly identify the coins, I look for the large number 1 ..."
You're familiar with the coins so you probably don't accumulate a big hand full. Looking for the numbers is what I used to do, and why it was so difficult to identify them and why I kept getting a whole hand full. With a hand full of coins, they lie on top of each other, and I can't see the numbers. Then I found it's not hard to take a hand full and tip them on their sides and look at all the edges.
To see what the coins look like, both the faces and edges, see here.
Gary, my AAA sells "Tip Packs" in euro denominations. It includes small bills and coins. They do have a less favorable exchange rate, but if you're wanting peace of mind, this is a good option.
Also, you might consider saving a few coins and small bills upon your return - you can use them yourself, or help out someone else in your situation. A co-worker and I have exchanged euro coins a number of times.
Have you checked with Travelex to see if they carry coins? If you are in Georgetown-DC then Dulles airport will have a currency exchange booth that may have coins, or maybe one of the European embassies could tell you where you might locate euro coins? Our experience, like others mentioned, was to pay for something inexpensive with a 20€ bill shortly after arriving and receive change in coins--so it was not a problem to arrive without coins.