Hi everyone, I was unable to find a thread on this so far. Maybe the answer changes day to day, making this a wait-and-see?

Where is the best place in Zurich to convert cash (USD) to CHF? I'm not
bringing silly amounts, but want to be able to pay the first month's rent etc. I know some places have limits to prevent money laundering - that's fair enough.

Yes, cash is risky, but I figure that not having posted my picture on this forum yet, I won't have too many of you waiting for me at the airport

It might be a bit risky bringing that much cash with you. Why can't you arrange a transfer from your bank to the account of the landlord renting the flat to you? The cost of the transfer might be a bit more than what you would pay if you did a direct currency exchange but you would have at least peace of mind.

I was actually thinking of this myself. To wire from my US bank, I need to do it in person. But, I can't open a Swiss acct. until I am there.
Hmmm... do I just bring a couple thousand in travelers checks? Just once in my life would I like something to be easy.

Are US banks geared up for internet banking? That way you can arrange transfer of funds from anywhere.

If you look at the Similar Threads below, you might find some that a search would've found.

All-in-all, there are no restrictions on bringing cash into the country - and there are many many places to convert it to meaningful and colourful notes.

Don't bring your jar of quarters though

Oh, we are. It's just much more basic than banks in Europe.

Now that I think about it. I may just give a bunch of $ to my parents and have them wire it to me later.

Watch, I'll be slumming it on the streets of Geneva. While my parents steal all my money and runaway to the Carribean. Oh wait, I forgot how much money is in there. They could only drive to Florida for a couple days on that much.

Wow - thanks for the speedy responses!

Yes, I'd trolled through the related threads, and will surely be using www.wechstelstube.ch in the future. At the moment though, the "problem" started because the receiving end (the landlord in Zurich) wouldn't give bank-transfer details. She just wants cash or will make me go through the post office, and for that, she charges extra.

I guess at the moment I'm looking at stumbling into a random bank downtown and paying their charges.

Cheers!

Well, in that case, I would pay her the whole deposit in a bag 1 franc pieces . How does she expect you to pay your monthly rent?? Also in cash?

Hi there, just thought i'd point out that if you work for a bank over here or have a friend who does, they will usually get a much better rate closer to the bid/ask prices, but obviously still not quite on the button. It will also eliminate the fees that may be involved.

HTH,
Brett