Holiday money, how much do I need?

[bouncy]

I am going away in a few months for 2 weeks in France. Its a self catering apartment. There will be 3 of us. I just wanted to know how much people take when they go away as need to know how much to take etc etc. I don't want to get caught short and I do not really want to take too much as it will only get spent.
Thanks

When we go away I usually take about 50 Euros in cash then use my debit/credit card. Must admit we found France quite expensive for eating out. Some of the food was cheaper and things like washing powder but best of all you can get a drinkable bottle of wine for about 2 euros. Generally I found the english food in the supermarket quite expensive but the local produce was much cheaper.

We started with £200 (300 euros), used credit card in shops/restaurants as much as poss but still got through another £300 cash over 2 weeks (4 of us).

I think it is useful to have a cash cushion for emergencies. You don't have to spend it! (In one restaurant the card machine wasn't working so we had to pay cash - 110 euros - mind you that was for 10 people, but then again, Spanish restaurants are much cheaper than French I think.)

In Spanish supermarkets/petrol stations they required a passport before they would take a credit card - other places didn't worry. Not sure or if other countries do the same - it has something to do with having to use a PIN no.

Have a nice time anyway!

You can get money out with your normal bank card in most parts of Europe, so if you have an emergency its fairly easy to get more if you need it. Certainly we have done this in France, Spain, Italy and Ireland. HTH.

If you use your card in a banque automatique (hole in the wall) it will be refused if you try to exceed your daily allowance - if your GB limit is £200, then your daily euro limit is approx €285 (at current rate).
A refusal can cause worry, particularly as no reason is shown. Just try again, but for an amount within your limit.
Using a debit card in a hole in the wall gets you quite a good deal - although there is a charge to pay, the conversion itself is done at the trade rate rather than the retail rate used by a bureau de change or bank.

For general spending you'll probably get the best exchange rate of all (i.e. the commercial rate rather than the excahnge rate) if you use a credit card which doesn't charge a loading on the exchange rate if you use it abroad. The Nationwide Visa is reckoned to be the best for this.

The following info is from www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1045411737,70386, (unfortunately links to it don't work because of the commas)

Holiday spending
Trip abroad and it is exchange not interest rates that count. These rates are based on the Visa and MasterCard wholesale rates unleashing bulk buy foreign currency at hugely beneficial terms, but most card providers snaffle the benefits. They ?load? exchange rates adding up to 3%. Plus take cash from an overseas hole in the wall and there?s withdrawal fees e.g. Barclaycard charges 1.5% or £1.50 whichever is higher.

Dramatically cheaper is Nationwide?s Visa card, it?s the only card that doesn?t load, it?s also the cheapest for cash withdrawals, charging either 0.5% or 50p. The interest rate is 14.6% but you could always transfer the balance. Lombard Direct also has no loading however it?s cash withdrawal fees are higher. (both Saga and Liverpool Victoria credit cards don?t load in Europe but do add 1% worldwide