Mediterranean bank ATM & debit cards

[Seadog54]

To the cruising/live aboard community, we are a professional couple planning selling up in two years time and cruise the Mediterranean. We currently have a current account and am uncertain of the so called global bankings presence in most of the Med.? A friend's HSBC debit card was refused recently in Germany.That set my mind wondering what were the best accounts and card to carry for back up in the Med. Any advice? We prefer debit cards but have credit cards but would keep for emergencies, and if possible ATM usage which I already know is patchy in some Med. countries.

[NornaBiron]

ATMs are pretty much available everywhere, we've never had a problem accessing our money. In most Greek towns you will find at least one ATM and in almost every Turkish town you'll find a massive selection! We use visa debit cards in the ATMs and occasionally a visa credit card in the supermarket (if they take cards!).

The best advice for using ATMs is to never take the ready converted option, you will almost always get a better exchange rate from your own bank.