Visitors to New York will have no problem
exchanging their travellers cheques or buying dollars as it is the Nation’s
banking centre. There are a vast amount of local, regional and major
national banks to choose from, plus some more familiar ones like Barclays
and Royal Bank of Scotland. Banks from Canada, Australia, Turkey and Tokyo
have either a branch or some type of office here.
Most of the banks in New York open weekdays from 9am till 3pm; however some
may vary their hours of business to accommodate the commuters’ special
needs. Nearly all of the banks will cash your traveller’s cheques or
exchange foreign currency for you and ATM machines are widely available in
the lobbies of all banks, allowing you 24 hour access to obtain American
currency. Cash from these machines is usually issued in $20 denominations.
Using the ATM is an easier way to obtain dollars, if you don’t want to take
a lot of traveller’s cheques on your trip. It allows you to tap into your
own bank account and buy currency without the hassle of queuing in a bank.
Use the same precautions when using these cash machines as you would at
home, you never know who is watching you enter your details, best to use
them during daylight hours.
Credit cards, such as Mastercard and Visa are widely accepted all over the
United States and New York is no different. They can also be used in ATM
machines to obtain cash and you can pay for absolutely everything with a
credit card, from grocery shopping to telephone orders for pizza! Credit
cards are a safer alternative to carrying lots of cash around.
Most of the shops, restaurants and hotels in New York will be happy to cash
your Dollar Traveller’s cheques, usually without a fee. On the other hand,
cheques in other currencies, including sterling are not as widely accepted
and this will often mean a trip to one of the banks to cash them, if the
hotel cashier will not exchange them for you. A list of the daily exchange
rates can be found in the New York Times and displayed in bank windows.
Among the longest established foreign exchange brokers, Thomas Cook Currency
Services Inc. and CBC Banking Corporation are probably the best ones to use,
there are others available but you may find that the charges for exchange
are quite expensive.
Addresses:
CBC Banking Corporation
90 Broad Street
New York
Tel: 858-3300
Thomas Cook Currency Services Inc
1590 Broadway
New York
Tel: 265-6063
