These days some parts of Europe are getting more and more similar to Lagos though. Iirc the discussions upthread were mostly centered around backpacker hostels instead of non dodgy hotels with safes.

Oh man. I went to Lagos. What a ****ing place.

I don't understand what you mean here. Are you saying they don't say that's an attraction or you disagree with me that there are places nearby with better local beers (Pilsener Urquell > Staropramen IMHO) or for better prices?

No they're not that's dumb.

Brilliant beers like Velkopopovicky (my favourite) and Urquell are widely available in Prague (though cheaper outside).

Ok that's true. Actually now my brain is in gear, more what I wanted to say was the drinking of them at the pavement cafes etc was better on the squares and pedestrianised areas of the small towns outside - so the beer-oriented tourist would have been better off elsewhere in the former CSSR.

Anybody have advice on where I should acquire my currency? I can go to my bank here or I can get it there, either at an airport or some other place. I haven't been to Europe since 2012.

Apparently Europe is becoming like Lagos, so you should change your dollars on the black market for 10 times the going rate.

Just get money from ATMs unless your bank charges outrageous fees.

Dont be ridiculous, Im not talking about the dangers of Lagos coming to the EU. Just the inhabitants.

CJD - ATM, preferably one attached to a bank.

When I traveled abroad I opened a Schwab checking account since they reimburse all your ATM fees for any machine.

Anywhere except the airport. ATM is generally the best, it takes about 3% currency conversion fee but you are not stuck with too much random currencies. With euros you can also just ask for quotes back home.

They now call that backcountry hiking

As far as safety in hostels is concerned, I'm going to throw some of my own anecdotal evidence out there. In 10 years of backpacking around and staying in hostels, I have never once had anything of value stolen from me. In hostels I feel comfortable I leave my laptop/kindle/camera on the bed/under the pillow quite frequently. I guess I run good, and I'm not recommending you don't lock up your stuff, but in general hostels are very safe! I'd be more concerned about something happening in the streets, bag snatching, pickpocketing etc.

Where possible it's often the best deal to pay by stuff by visa or mastercard, as you are only losing on the currency conversion. Amex is less frequently accepted.

Chase Sapphire Preferred doesn't have currency conversion fees.

Sorry for another incomprehensible post by me ITT.

With credit cards I mean you are only losing on the exchange rate spread rather than paying a conversion fee (but check your T&C).

Most bank set the exchange rate spread, same way PayPal and Amazon do when you pay in another currency, that’s only different in name from a conversion fee.

Lots of banks also charge a fee in the 1% neighborhood for foreign transactions and then there’s also the ATM fee that goes to the ATM owner. So don’t use an ATM in a strip club or you might be out of $20 just for that. That means most people pay three different fees when using a foreign ATM, but that’s still way cheaper than exchanging currency at the airport or Western Union.

That comment is not only stupid, but also factual incorrect. Have you been to Lagos? It’s one of the fastest growing cities in the world.

Less than 10% of refugees in Europe origin from Nigeria. The vast majority of refugees over the last 10 years came from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan which basically means Europe pays the price for the US playing war whenever/whereever they want to.

So no, cities in Europe don’t look like Lagos. But you can find a large number of people who came there to flee war. Countries like Germany took in over a million of them. Meanwhile a single family from Syria making its way to Kansas or Missouri makes the local news for days. It’s an incredibly sad situation and nothing to joke about. That said, cities in Europe are obviously still magnitudes saver than the US.

Dumb people think you didn't understand what they really meant. It's never that they're just saying dumb things.

There's a Politics forum where people like you can have their racist views dismantled for them.

I assume where you live has credit cards that don't charge you fees and give you better than your bank rates at an ATM, get one of those

Same. Haven't had a single thing stolen from a hostel in the six years I've used them. Of course, I don't leave my valuables out in plain view and use lockers when available.

So long as you do that, you're almost certain not to get anything stolen from you because there are so many other people at the hostel who don't take basic safety precautions that it's easier to steal from them than you.

The only exception I can see to using currency exchange desks is when leaving the country. If you have a bunch of loose koruna and are never going back to CR again, I don't see the disadvantages in using an airport exchange desk.

Yeah I got a laugh out of that comment as well. Don't see any reason to engage though.

10% is still very large portion, considering there are refugees coming from 30+ different countries. Nigeria also isn't in war, so the people coming from there are pretty much all economical migrants, not refugees.

always lol when people suggest for these sorts of lists depressing ****holes miles out of the way like Helsinki and fail to mention London