I went to 10 banks, few hotels, a cupla change offices and even the American Express office.
At the American Express office they said that people have nothing but problems with them.
I had to go to the TAX Office and get a TAX Number in order to cash my Travelers Checks and I won't even know if that works until tomorrow.
Luckly I found out in enough time to get all the way accross town and wade through turkish bureaucracy before the weekend and before having to catch a flight next week.
I feel really bad for the people that are only in town for a few days or over a weekend. They are just screwed and will be with out money.
~D
I have been able to get them cashed at Akbank before (more reliably than other banks), but not consistently. Sometimes you have to wait a week to get your money. The tax number thing is a new development - never heard of that one before.
The first trip I made to Turkey was in 1992. I had a heck of a time getting the bank in Samsun to take them.
It seems they've never heard of Karl Malden before.
It was an eye opener/ I don't use them abroad anymore.
it's a pity, though. AAA lets members get them at no charge.
i had trouble also. there is one place on the tram road near the Blue Mosque that will change them but they have a 7% service charge. A small price to pay when you are frustrated!
I plan to go again in November and will rely on the ATM this time...
Susie
Wells Fargo cards were OK, Bank of America cards not working, best bet sould be Citibank (assumption) since they have branches there.
i first read in some earlier edition of lonely planet, what a hassle TCherks were in Turkey, that saved me alot of hassle, other than one try, i just didnt bother. some people like to diss LP, but there is a lot of general info in them, that will easily save you alot of hassle from finding out the hard way, of course that doesnt mean I confine myself to the limitations of any book, many of my fav places never get mentioned and are off the maps, but i do like to get the practical info before hand, cause its not the kind of stuff that id ever think about bringing up when talking to friends, meaning i usualy ask other kinds of things like know anywhere cool to hang out kind of stuff. ive found atms the easy way to go, yeah im probably paying more for the convience, but i can live with that. I did learn though to always travel with two atm cards, after one 3month stay with only one card that didnt work, that was a drag having to get money wired to me.. no fun realy.
bank of america, citibank, amex, visa, .... even my dinky little credit union card works ... as long as the card is linked to one of the universal systems it should work ... one exception, not all banks work with all systems, that is your only challenge. That means you might have to walk another 50 yards to get to an ATM at a different bank ...
yea, its real easy if the card itself works, but on arrival to Turkey the magnetic strip couldnt be read anymore, it was fine before leaving home. thats why i bring two now, just incase.
Citibank now charges account holders 1.5% for currency conversion on all atm withdrawls. They *do* have branches all over Istanbul, though. HSBC is also another viable option for a multinational bank account.
Most Wells Fargo users I've known have not been able to get their cards approved for overseas purchases if they're out of the country more than one month. "For your security." I would never, ever, have an account with them again. Capital One has given us nightmares - they don't have a working international 800 number any more, and deactivated our account despite numerous calls and never a fraud report on our card.
The best ATM luck I've heard is from credit union folks. Can use cards here for months, no problems, no hassles.
FYI...
in turkey you cash travellers checks at the post office.
Tue, October 31, 2006 - 9:17 PM
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Unsubsc...
Did you do that this year?
Fri, November 10, 2006 - 5:26 PM
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Unsubsc...
Do you remember what PTT branch you did this at? More than one succesfully? That would be very useful to know....
You can change your Amex TL with no hassle at the Akbank branch located on the way along the tram between Eminönü and Sultanahmet. They don't ask for the tax number there, probably because they deal with tourists all the time.
Yet, my own question: have you tried using Amex card there? I did, and each and everytime I had the same problem: they asked me to enter my code... but there's no code Amex cards. Has anybody had this experience, and if so, been able to solve this mystery?
I used Amex cards (both Amex and Optima) to withdraw money from Akbank ATMs, it was a long long time ago, when US bank ATM cards were not all compatible with Turkish bank ATMs, and I had a code.
Check with Amex they should be able to issue a PIN for ATMs.
Sorry, my post was not explicit enough: I mean in shops they ask me to enter a PIN code.
In the meantime I called Amex (for the 3rd time) and I finally got an answer to that question: apparently in certain places/countries, they ask you to enter the visual cryptogram number, 4 digits on the front side of an Amex, as a PIN code. I'm going back to Istanbul next Tuesday, I'll have the chance to test this!
Interesting.
As a merchant (in the US) I have to run cards on my primitive system. That number is called the CVV - it's a 3 digit on the back of most cards, except Amex, which has 4 on the front.
It only shows that you have possesion of the card, and it was not electronic fraud, as you need a visual.
On DEBIT cards, there IS a PIN, that only the owner has access to.
It's strange, cuz anyone running the Amex, would not need the CVV, or if they do, they can enter it themselves. If they ask you for a PIN, it's assumed they don't know it.
Personally i don't like Amex, they are confusing, and have their own way of doing things.
Yasemin
well i did it more all over turkey than in istanbul particularly. i don't remember any particular branch i did it in in istanbul. it might be that only more main branches will be able to cash travellers checks.
Tip for cashing travellers cheques...go to the post office (PTT - yellow signs). On two occasions both in Dalyan and Istanbul I have been able to cash AmEx travellers cheques at the PTT for no commission.
It's just too easy to use the atm's in Turkey. Do call your bank before you leave and ask them to put a note on your account saying you will be in Turkey at that time. We did have one card get shut off because we were not at home when the bank called to tell us there was suspicious activity on our card; someone in Turkey was using it.
Also, our Wachovia account charges 1% (going up to 2% in august) on every transaction PLUS the $3 non-Wachovia atm charge. outrageous. Our credit union account only charged $1 for every transaction.
Yeah, make sure you ask your bank about services charges before you go. When I got back and saw how much it was, I was so mad that I moved my money to another bank. We spend way to much time in Turkey to pay those kind of service charges.
