exchange US for Canada dollars

[poison ivy]

We exchanged at our local TD Bank here which was only available for account holders. They charged a processing fee but it was well worth the convenience of having a couple hundred Canadian $ in our pocket the moment we arrived in Toronto for our connection to Vancouver. It worked out great for us. Covered the car service; bike rental; tips; quick service food and dinner.

We arrived on a Sunday and didn't want to have to take time out to track down a local bank in Vancouver.

 

[mmouse37]

if you end up using a credit card, 1) make sure to call your card issuer first to let them know you'll be traveling, otherwise they may place a lock on it to prevent fraud ("is this person really in canada???") and 2) ensure there is no foreign transaction fee if you use it outside of the u.s. usually it's around 3% of your purchase.

This is what we did on the EBTA. Let our CC company know we would be away and what ports we would be in. But, our friends did the same thing and were still locked out of their CC at our first port and onboard. They had to talk to their CC company from the ship and straighten it out.

We had no problem and I did not exchange any money at all in any ports and just used by global credit card which has no foreign transaction fees. Used it for meals, cabs, stores, sightseeing, etc. I know this thread is for Canada but I used my credit card in both ports in Norway and all through Copenhagen. In Norway and Copenhagen you MUST have a credit card that has a chip or you must have a pin code for your credit card. That is the only ones they accept.

MJ

 

[MillauFr]

I never use cash when I am in Canada. Sure you can get cash at an ATM but then you are stuck with it. I just use my credit card. It is much easier and simpler. No need to worry about cash.

 

[xlxo]

• Extra foreign cash can go to restaurant and hotel tips on your final days.
• Extra coins means a visit to a vending machine for water, soda's or various other bevvies.

 

[hrhdhd]

I haven't yet had a problem using my chipless credit card in Europe. In general, merchants want your money. If you're using a machine without an attendant available (e.g., gas pump, train ticket kiosk), you may need a chip, but I haven't had that experience myself. Cards can be swiped at the terminal and you just sign for the purchase like we do in the U.S.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

Something to keep in mind also sometimes the credit card/ debit card machines will read a check card as being a credit card, if it has the logo of a credit card company on it. It may be treated like a credit card. Also sometimes no name ATMs have trouble with foreign card if you do want to use an ATM using one that is branded for a bank is a better option as they should recognize all card and networks (the US uses a different banking network then Canada).

 

[mevelandry]

I remember when Canadian had an advantage. I worked in a bank in Bremerton, WA in late 70's early 80's. We got a lot of Canadian, coming and going.

When we started going to WDW in 2011, there was a 8-10 cents gap (in favor of US). This year, it's been 25-30 cents.