Currency Exchange

Hello! I'll be arriving in Auckland next week, and just realized that I kinda sorta need to exchange some money. I have a debit and credit card that will work there just fine, but I'm thinking I should carry some cash just to be safe. Should I exchange pre-departure (it's too late to order by mail, but I'll be flying to Auckland via LAX - I'm thinking their Travelex should be able to exchange USD for NZD), or exchange when I arrive in Auckland (I've heard this could be more expensive)? Or would it be cheaper/simpler to just take money out of an ATM when I get to the Auckland airport? Thanks!

Just use your debit card in the first ATM you see. cheaper and simpler.

Let me get this straight, you have just realized you 'kinda sorta' need to chance some money?

Dear oh dear.

Thank you libbyh! That's what I figured, just wanted to double check. Jstutu, just a joke, just realized I waited too late to order through the mail :)

Most banks do currency exchange as well. Although changing US dollars in NZ will be cheaper than trying to buy NZ dollars in the USA IMO.

And when people say more expensive, they often have no idea, because currency exchange has numerous ways of charging :-)

Why order through the mail? Most banks would carry the currency. But the easiest, cheapest way to do this is to use an ATM in NZ.
But check 3 things:
- That your bank has an agreement with a NZ bank. If so, use their ATMs and you will save on fees
- That your bank knows you are going. If not, they may see strange foreign transactions and cancel your card
- That your card will work in foreign ATMs. In a rare number of cases some cards are incompatible.
Also, if you use your credit card as an ATM debt card, this won't work in foreign ATMs, so only take the dedicated ATM withdrawal card.
But, even when doing all this, I always get a couple of hundred before arriving, just in case I land and discover my card won't work, or the ATMs are down. Grab some at the airport on arrival.

Hi

I want to travel in new zealand the next year, and I m intersted by that

thanks

I would not go into any country without a wad of their cash in my pocket. More than once going into places like Australia, US and Chile with a UK/Irish card I have chucked the card into the wailing wall and had it rejected. This occurs because the bank sees it as an irregular activity and then you've got to get on the blower to them and rah rah. I think you are doubly at risk as a seppoe since there are occasionally reports on here of US cards being rejected, sometimes because the US system is such a backward wasteland you don't have Chip and PIN. Advise your bank you are traveling as well.

In short, have some kiwi bucks in your sky rocket before you leave the US would be my advice to avoid the risk of standing in Auckland International without a penny to your name.

I would think it is perfectly sensible that if i landed in a new country, that i would have a little of their local currency, say enough to get me into town.

Say the shuttle, cab or bus fare at least?

I also make my first destination a cash machine to make sure all systems are go. But I'm a neurotic little fecker at the best of times and I've been burned four or five times.

All will charge commission, what I would do is just take cash out in the secure zone of Auckland Airport, prior to immi, in the arrivals hall.
Just put your card into ATM, and pay min fees.
Travelex (for me), charge me an Aud$12 commission, on top of the $ I get.
I now just use ATMs to take funds out.
You know you can buy the Nzd$16 Airbus Express tix online, just need a printer, and you are then able to get to the city, quick smart. The bus driver just scans your QR code on the printed piece of paper, that's it.
Supershuttle, you just show the driver your itinerary, and that's it, if you want to get into the city of Auckland faster.
I now use Airbus, bit slower, but cheaper.
One more thing, have you heard of paypass/paywave, its the bees knees now, in Aust I use it everywhere. Yes, I know you are going to NZ.
I will be trying the paypass/paywave in Jul this year, into Jan next year, and if all goes well, I don't think I will be needing much cash.
Supermarkets are all modern these days, really, why do you need cash? {Pisstake, (but really, do you need cash on landing, its not like NZ is the end of the world!/? is it)}.

Yes you do need cash! Even if only to pay for a taxi or a bus to where you are staying and stop for a coffee.... or worse still have a fine to pay if you've brought anything illegal into the country.

You need cash, I'd suggest a couple of hundred bucks (but you don't need that much) if only because of the occurrence on this and other branches of seppoes talking about how their cards didn't work. And any less of value which occurs from doing it one way rather than another is a pittance.

I'm a AAA member in the states, through which I could buy currency nearly commission free - it just has to be done through the mail because they have to order the currency, they don't have it on hand - so that was the logic there. (The bank I'm a member of is also teeny tiny, no currency exchange on site). It's just because of my terrible habit of procrastination that it's too late to order through AAA or Travelex because my currency wouldn't arrive at home until the day after I'm already in Auckland. I'm not too worried though, I think ATM when I arrive at the airport will be my best bet. If when I arrive at LAX I start to get really nervous, their Travelex should be able to exchange USD for NZD, right?

Already let my bank know a couple weeks ago that I'll be traveling out of the country so no worries there! I took the same cards to Europe and Japan two years ago and encountered no problems (1%-3% foreign service fees applied, but other than that, nothing huge). I just want to carry cash for the same reasons mentioned - in case my card for some reason doesn't work, in case a machine eats it, for little purchases like coffee, etc etc. Plus I usually keep some money buried in my pack, that way if my wallet is stolen I have something extra. Sucks though if someone steals my pack......

And I already booked my Airbus ticket! So convenient! And thank you so much for all the responses, they are so helpful!

Edit- just for clarification, both cards I have are linked to the Plus network. From my understanding Plus-linked ATMs are pretty widely available internationally so I'm thinking (hoping) that everything should go smoothly

DIY tends to be cheaper.
Ok, being pedantic here, lets say, you get to Auckland Airport, go through NZ Immigration, Customs & Biosecurity, assuming you have been fed and watered on the plane.
You want a fruit drink from the vending machine, I have used (ps, Spotty Dog is my other half), my tap Visa debit card at a vendo, just to try and see, while there, and guess what, it accepted my transaction, and there no burn with it.
I have also used the card to pay for hotel minibar transaction, and no problem with that, no burn there either.
Truthfully, unless your card is lost or stolen, there will be no burn.
Take out say, Nzd$200 if you want, no burn there... and as a colleague has said, if your home bank has a liasion with the bank ATM in Auckland's owner, you pay minimum fees.
Work out what you need cash for, (do you really need cash), a lot of places take/accept card transactions.
PS, Asian eateries in NZ give you a big plate, my first huge plate of charkuayteow, in Auckland near Skycity, was Nzd$16, sounds a lot, but with forex, its not much Aud$, and the plate was big.
Other than that, if you want to buy groceries, paypass or paywave it, no burn there!

On a side note, there are some ATMs in international airports, and cities too, that will spit out (proper transaction, not spit out willy nilly), foreign cash.
We have it here in Adelaide city centre, CommBank, and the ANZ has one at Adelaide Airport, that will issue foreign cash.
So, you could check in for the flight earlier, at the US airport, and then go wandering looking inspecting ATMs looking to see if they (ATM) issues Nzd$.
Aust & NZ banks will accept PLUS/Cirrus, it goes by the bank's owner, so your card should be accepted by any ATM around.
One thing to keep in mind, some ATMs do have a set limit of $1000 a day, per card.
And one more thing, (unlikely but still), if you take in more than Nzd$10000 in real cash, you have to declare it on the incoming passenger card.
Ok, that's it from me on this thread.
Enjoy NZ.
I am too closely like my other half.

Did you get my PM?

Kinda sorta?

That's a town in the Czech republic isn't it?

.

This post has been removed because it may not have met our community guidelines.

Bugger! I was trying for the "This comment was removed because it may not have met our community guidelines" notation. How does one manage that?

I had one post removed from the Scandanavian branch, and i am buggered if i know what for, so Groo was it for my bad spelling?

Er.........................Why am i asking you this?

No. Scandinavians do not understand spelling and in an effort to compensate adorn their words with indecypherable inflections, maybe graves, umlauts, cedillas or bumlauts.

Your spelling, however, has shown vast improvement in the past couple of weeks and I congratulate you.

Did you say something derogatory about one of their bicycle riding royal families?

Who was the Private Message aimed at Raki Chook?
I have to go and search the Spotty's filing system to check his email address used for LPTT, and the password/passcode he used.
Visum in lieu of the word visa.

Hahaha you guys are funny. Aussieguarddog thank you so much for your replies, they are very helpful! I really do appreciate it! Raki_man, not sure who you're asking, but if it was directed at me I did not receive one :)

OP, for a very long time, we (colleagues & I) on here, were not able to send private messages to each other.
It was when the BBC was the owner, and had a lot of troubles.
They took private messaging off, now its back.
Raki, Lew & I and a few are the very few colleagues left on here.
Some resigned, some were nobbled, some left (in disgust-never came back), some found other pursuits, some changed jobs, some matured, etc, etc, etc.
Raki was testing systems and methods, we are now able to again send each other private messages without the rest of the world seeing.
Ie, we could set up tyrsts, etc, exchange mobile phone numbers, or other nitty gritty items that rile the rest of the (no fun) colleagues.
AussieGuardDog43 and I are partners in (crime, in life, in sadness, in happiness, in times of distress, etc, etc, etc,), ... so to speak. I call her my other half. Weird/o and crazy, I know.

No Groo, i do not know why my post was zapped, it said simply it was removed because it was deemed that broke 'community guidlines', whatever they are, i did not abuse anybody, name call anybody, i do not know what i have done.

And i suppose somebody dobbed me in to the mods.

But a post that was not zapped called me a 'Jerk' and referred to a 'Hater', that i suppose that the poster saw as myself, as i just questioned the mind set of people from North America see places in Europe it is very clear that i do not hate anybody.

Groo, I think they have changed the message as some where complaining that the previous message sounded as if the poster had said something which needed deleting.

cfortuna - I just use my travel money card or credit card in the first ATM at the airport. Get a good amount which I think I will need, then use my card whereever else.

Yup. Olsem me, MsScanna, and I've never had a problem. Mind you I normally travel with at least two pieces of plastic from separate institutions in case one doesn't work. And I say lots of things that need deleting - and am proud of it.