Travelex Currency Services Inc.

I had 115 Euros that I wanted to exchange for US dollars and decided to go to this Travelex exchange at the Stanford shopping center, which I have used in the past with no problems. The receipt for the exchange that I received stated that they BUY euros at 1.034 US dollar, so I expected to receive about $ 119. In fact I received US$ 111 less their service charge, so $ 103. On reflection afterwards I was sure that a mistake had been made so I checked the Travelex website and contacted their customer service department.
The Travelex website states that 1 US dollar is worth .7805 Euros, so it will cost you 78 Euros to buy US$ 100. The XE website has this rate at .8732. Either way clearly the Euro is worth about more than a dollar. When I complained the customer service rep explained that in fact each Euro was worth .9663 US dollar or 4% less than the dollar. How is this possible? Their website only includes the sell rate, but by the XE rate of 1.145 US dollar I would have received $ 131. 68; if they used the inverse of the rate that Travelex sells Euros on their website I would have gotten US$ 147. The $ 119 that I would have gotten if they had exchanged at 1.034 was already quite a bit less than that, but I received $ 111 instead less their service charge.
According to the customer service agent Travelex used the rate .9663 to buy my Euros, which yielded $ 111.13. Thus there is a difference then of about $ 36 between what I would have received based on the inverse of the rate on their website and what I got, not to mention the $ 7.95 service charge. I don’t expect the rates to be as good as on the XE converter or the buy and sell rates to be the same at a store like Travelex but this spread is unacceptably large.
I have exchanged currency in many countries and have never felt as ripped off as I did by this company. I was sure that this must have been a mathematical error, but customer service assures me that it was no mistake. That being the case I will not use this company’s services again.

The guy who works there seems nice enough and they’ve always exchanged my money, who knows how competitive the rate is, but given a lack of competition, whatever.
My issue with them is the Travelex Multi-​Currency Cash Passport. In November of 2015 I loaded one on the web site with $ 1000 USD and converted it to Euros (823 Euros — turns out not a great rate, but whatever) for the wife’s trip to France. She went to France, ended up not using the card and returned.
I returned to the Travelex to cash out the card of my $ 1000 and ended up with $ 767??? The guy at the store didn’t have any answers for me and told me to call the 800 number.
Two ridiculous phone calls later with amazing hold times and them telling me I’d been given different amounts than I had been given I wrote a complaint letter via the web site.
Several weeks later I received a response that said a lot of nothing, other than they’ll offer me $ 65 to go away.
How in the world does it cost me $ 223 to turn $ 1000 into Euros and back into USD? That’s all I did!
Never again. Cash Passport is BOGUS.

Had a negative experience when I went back to Travelex to exchange my Indian Rupees back to US dollars. Glenn told me that the exchange rate changed and that for my $ 250 worth of Indian Rupees he could give me around $ 175. Seems like a rip off. Really disappointed, especially since the first experience was so pain free, but this left a bad taste in my mouth and I will now take my currently somewhere else to get exchanged.

The service was fine, but the exchange rate is ridiculous. Very disappointed that we didn’t do more investigating before converting 2000 euros and being charged $ 300 for it. I understand a business needs to profit, but that is stealing.
Bottom line — I just learned that, at least with euros, I can do the exchange at Bank of America. And I can order euros online with BofA to pick up at my local branch. Do not waist your hard earned money with this place. Talk to your bank first.

Their service is fine. However their rates are terrible. Purchased RNB for my daughter’s trip, without checking the rate. Was very happy when they explained they would purchase back leftover cash. My daughter returned with about 80% of the cash. When I went to exchange the money back, I found that I received about half the cash that I used to purchase the RNB in the first place.
I checked the rate. Today’s exchange rate is 6.318. They bought back the cash at 7.553. 10 days earlier, the sold the cash at 5.396. That is a significant spread. In the future, I will look for a better option.

Called and spoke with a very helpful professional who gave me valuable advice regarding conversion rates — even though I will not be able to use their services. The call was picked up right away, and transferred immediately to this helpful guy. Very appreciated.

The sign and website say this place closes at 6, but I got there at 5:50 and the guy turned me away (rudely). And now that I see all the other bad reviews, I won’t be trying again during «business hours» (whenever that is – apparently not 10 – 6, as advertised).

I have used the Palo Alto Travelex exchange without a bit of problem for many years. On Saturday when looking for the phone number to see when they would close, I was surprised with the many negative reviews that have been posted lately (May & June 2014)…most awarding 1 star. It almost caused me to try another service. Instead I decided to call to find out if they had the currency I needed. They did. I showed up asking for 600 Euro and $ 50 dollars worth of Turkey lirasi. No problem! The clerk had the money and was polite. He counted out the money slowly and methodically so that I could see. It wasn’t like he was shuffling a pack of cards at Reno. He was also helpful in explaining about the return of left over currency.
I believe that he is from India, and so you may need to concentrate carefully in order to understand his pronunciation. Since he understands a conventional California accent, the problem is more mine than his.
I then asked him about the negative Unilocal reviews. He said the people who are angry at something are more likely to write than people who are satisfied. That’s true in my experience as well. I then told him that I would write one to try to reestablish a better balance. Good service deserves that.

I have experienced great service here in the past. Not today though. There was only one person working at the window, and I’m not sure he knew what he was doing. Lots of customers were waiting for a long time. At least I eventually completed my transaction. The people before me left empty handed!

I called Wednesday last week and was told the currency I wanted was in stock, and in the amount I wanted ($ 600). The associate said it would be held for me till Monday of the week following when I could visit Stanford Mall.
Yesterday I went to the office and waited — and waited — while the associate (not the one I spoke with previously) went back and forth to various registers to find the currency I’d inquired about. Thirty minutes later he apologetically told me that probably at the time I’d phoned their office they did have the currency, but now they had only about $ 100 or so. He said the person on the phone had neglected to properly document and reserve my order.
Since my flight is just ahead I am now without any advance exchange of currency, an unwelcome stressor when travel is already burdensome. It astounds me that an office that is in the BUSINESS of exchanging currencies has proved utterly unprofessional and inefficient — «You had ONE job»

Rude! I called to inquire about the fees charged when you exchange money. The man who answered the phone replied «I don’t know about the fees. You have to come in. I’m with a customer.» Considering that he works there, he should know the fees for exchanging currency. Helping a customer is no excuse to be rude to another potential customer. I’ll be exchanging my money at CXI, who told me about all of their fees upfront and over the phone.

Saw the reviews but thought. .. well. .. it’s just a phone call…
Glad I called beforehand. The reviewer who called them «total dimwits» hit the nail on the head. They had trouble answering the most basic of questions and seemed to almost be discouraging me from attempting to do business with them.
It’s really amazing how slow the capitalistic model can correct for such places. I’d have thought they’d be out of business a long time ago.

After promising to convert any unused Swiss and Euro currency back to US dollars after my trip, i returned to the store to do just that. I was informed that they don’t convert coins… and I had more than $ 50 in coins to convert.
I explained that their representative had told me that they would convert ALL unused currency and her response was, «well she was a bad employee and she doesn’t work here anymore.»
I also called Edward the manager, who hasn’t bothered to return my calls. All in all, a terrible place of business. I would not use them again.

I received very good service when I purchased New Zealand dollars at this Travelex today.
I called ahead to make sure they had this currency in stock, and to find out how to find this small business in the Stanford Shopping Center. (Park near the front of the Macy’s men’s store, and then go through the Ralph Lauren entrance and past several other stores.)
Nicole was very helpful, professional, and friendly.

Update…
Tried to get Belize Dollars here. Agent at first didn’t know what I meant. Then informed me they didn’t carry that currency.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE PLACE?!

DISHONEST, LAZY, INCOMPETENT, MISLEADING LOSERS!
.and how do I really feel? I ordered three types of currency for my employer on Tuesday, spoke to «Alex», who assured me it would arrive on Friday. I confirmed on Thursday, just in case they might have screwed something up. They again confirmed that everything would arrive on time. At 2 pm (note: too late to order elsewhere) on Friday, I get a call from this office stating that they did not in fact receive one of the three that I ordered. I lodged a complaint with the main office, and spoke to «Lance» who assured me that he would try to round something up and call me shortly. No call. No suprise. I went to pick up what money they had and I swear to God the idiot behind the counter could barely count the cash. Incidentally, they would have known yesterday that they wouldn’t be able to receive the cash today, and could have told me this when I called in to confirm had they bothered to check. They have no apparent motivation to perform the job properly, even with significant notice.

Total dimwits. I went to cash a check in canadian currency.
First, I had to explain why I needed the currency changed. Hmmm… What business are they in? And do many stores in Palo Alto accept Canadian dollars?
Second, they did not know if they could cash it. Yes, you read that right. What is their core competency?
Third, they quoted me $ 6.95. Then they had to make 20 minutes worth of phone calls to figure out what form to use. Then they told me it would take five to six weeks. Then they gave me the form. Then they told me it would cost $ 30. Thank you for wasting my time, which happens to be valuable to me in good old US dollars.
AVOID AVOID AVOID at all costs.

I agree with Daniel. This branch (and company in general) is pretty shady. I want to get let’s say $ 20 exchanged because the rate is better overseas. They try and tell me I should exchange more. Don’t listen to their lies! Only exchange what you absolutely need, especially if the rate of exchange is better in the country you’re traveling too.

Beware the Palo Alto travelex branch. The agent there lied to me about the day’s exchange rate (and hence how bad their rate was — admittedly my fault for not knowing the rate going in) and then charged me a transaction fee after telling me that he wouldn’t. To the company’s credit, they agreed to refund the excess charges, but I’d be careful using the Palo Alto branch.