The most important rule: pay in local currency
At card terminals and ATMs you're often asked whether you want to pay in your home currency or the local currency. Always choose the local currency. If you choose your home currency, the merchant or ATM operator converts at its own, usually much worse rate – this is called dynamic currency conversion.
Paying by card
- Foreign transaction fee: many cards charge around 1–2% for payments in a foreign currency. Some cards don't – worth it for frequent travellers.
- Take two cards: ideally from different networks, e.g. Visa or Mastercard and American Express. If one fails, you have a backup.
- Credit card rather than debit card for hotels and rental cars: a deposit is often blocked, which debit cards can't always handle.
- Apple Pay works in many countries just like at home.
Cash
- Carry some cash for taxis, markets, tips or countries where cards are less common.
- Withdrawing at an ATM is usually cheaper than exchange bureaus. Watch out for the ATM operator's fee – it's shown beforehand.
- Withdraw less often but a bit more if there's a fee per withdrawal.
In the eurozone
In euro countries you pay without foreign transaction fees if your card is in euros. ATM withdrawals may still cost a fee, depending on bank and machine.
How Voynera helps
In the arrival briefing Voynera shows the currency and the current rate to the euro. Three days before a trip to a country without the euro, the app reminds you about cash.
As of November 2026 · without guarantee