biggestbopper

Got a Citi account for worldwide ATM access at, hopefully, no fee.

Now, checking for France, I find only one ATM listed for France, at the Citi office on the Champs in Paris.

Are there other ATMs in France I can use at no fee with my Citi Debit card? At CDG, perhaps? Does Citi belong to a network in France?

Mountain Trader

Why not contact Citi? The Citibank office that used to be on the Champs Elysees closed a few years ago. I don't know if they left an ATM machine behind.

BTW, I haven't checked them all out but it looked like HSBC has most of the ATMs at CDG.

zrudeboyz

I am not sure if the office closed, but I know they had an ATM working (maybe more than one) at the Champs location last June.

Now I remember though, I walked all the way down to that Citi ATM to avoid a fee and it wasn't working. So, I'm not sure if the office is open, but they had at least one non-working ATM on the Champs Elysees last June (2006).

rfrost

As of 10 days ago, the Citi ATM facility on the Champs had at least 3 ATM's, none of which was able to dispense cash. I had walked down (admittedly, only about 10 minutes out of my way, but it WAS raining hard), and was not a happy camper.
I have a vague recollection that this one's in a different spot than previously, that there used to be one on the same side of the road, but further from l'Etoile, but perhaps that's just a trick of the memory.

francophile

Yes, this has been my experience before; the ATMs on the Champs-Elysées often runs out of cash.

Best to call Citibank to see if they have some sort of arrangement with a local bank where you can withdraw euros without fees.

biggestbopper

Okay, I called Citibank. Was told that (1) I needed to have a "travel supression" put on my account so that my debit use would not be blocked in France. And that they had no list of Citi ATMs in France, but that there were not very many.
Was also told that as of Dec. 2nd Citi had a new policy-no charges for using Citi ATM in France. Before Dec 2 there was a 3% charge on all foreign ATM transactions including Citi ATMS. Now, only for non-Citi ATMs.

Not very useful if we go to the South.

Those Amex Travelers checks are looking better and better. At least I don't have to go to the one Citi office in France to use 'em.

zrudeboyz

You could always just use any ATM (i.e. HSBC) and pay the fee. I have never been hit with a fee by Citi of more than $3 total for a foreign currency withdrawal from a non-Citi ATM.

I think you still get the best rate with ATMs, even if you have to pay a transaction fee.

Landing Gear

No. The office on the Champs Elysées MOVED up the street to the following address:

Citibank International PLC
125 AVENUE DES CHAMPS ELYSEES
75008 PARIS
Tel: 01 53 23 33 60
Fax: 01 47 20 47 46

(This information from the online telephone directory of France Telecom, http://www.pagesjaunes.fr)

As you are looking towards the Arc de Triomphe, it is on the left hand side, about a half a block from the Place de l'Etoile.

Branch wesbite: http://www.citibank.fr/aboutus/4.asp

It was still there when I last used it in September.

Mountain Trader

Glad to know they're back (they did indeed close a few years ago, leaving behind a sign directing customers to another location). How's the service in there? As to the OP's question, was there a working ATM there when you visited?

rfrost

Take a look at my post above.

Landing Gear

I merely passed by the location and saw other people there. I personally did not need any cash at the time.

Mountain Trader

I went by this morning. While the sign in your photo is there, the only thing inside the door are 4 ATMs, 2 for Citibank customers only and 2 generic ATMs. I couldn't tell if the proprietary ones were working but the other 2 were not.

I don't know what else you saw in September. Today the only thing was a sign saying the office had moved to 24 rue Vernet, which is around the back of the builldng. That address also has a Citibank sign, plus others that say that they do no money transactions, "Weath Management" and that they only meet with clients to discuss investements.

I don't stop by there often as that bank, when they did do regular banking, was the worst I have ever dealt with. The signs directing everyone to rue Vernet have been there everytime I've gone by for several years.

milepig

For anyone who already read this response, I was incorrect. This is, I believe, the current status. For ATM withdrawals in Europe from ANY machine - Citbank or not - you have the current conversion rate plus a 1% surcharge. This is from the Citibank website:

If you use your ATM/Debit Card to get cash in the local currency at any ATM—Citibank or non-Citibank—then there is a foreign exchange fee that totals 1% of the transaction, in U.S. dollars. For example, if you withdrew 100 Euros at an ATM in Italy, and the value in USD was $125, then the 1% fee would be $1.25. This exchange fee is also applied when you use your ATM/Debit Card to make purchases overseas.

This is a recent change, hence my confusion. So, apparently you no longer need to seek out a Citibank ATM, can anyone confirm this?

Getting out cash and using it for purchases would seem to be the better way to go, since you'll get hit with a 3% charge on CC purchases.

USAFAN

I can confirm this! Good job^ Now I know why I was charged and how much. 1% is good - I can live with it. Another bank charge me 3% more or less for the same amount.
Used Citi ATM card in Buenos Aires at Bank Galicia and was charged exactly 1%. BTW, at the Citi Bank next door I didn't get money out of the ATM nor at the counter "..we are Citi Bank Argentina .. nothing to do with Citi Bank USA ..."?!? ... same logo, same color all the same ....

Landing Gear

I'm sorry, but unlike the popular "London Show Tours," I did not take the "Paris ATM Tour."

There is a mountain being made out of a molehill here.