Hi guys,
What are acceptable methods of payment in Europe for each of the following:
Hostels
Meals
Transport (buses, trains)
Attractions
Are the major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) as accepted as each other in Europe?
Ideally, I want to carry as little cash as possible in as few currencies as possible, putting as many expenses as possible on my Visa and American Express card.
Thanks for your help,
Perth Dude
Reply to this Visa and Mastercard are widely accepted. American Express is accepted in the Nordic countries, but most often not in Mediterranean countries.
Euro is not in use in some of the western european countries, for example UK, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland.
Reply to this Hello Perth 😊
Visa and Mastercard should be acceptable in most places in Germany where I live. Most people who live here pay with their bank cards because it is the cheapest way to pay but paying with credit cards should certainly be possible.
In Ireland where I come from, paying with credit card is possible in most places too.
Mel
Reply to this You may have to pay more commission when you use your credit card though.....
Reply to this It is hidden somewhere in the fine print, but almost all credit cards have a hidden charge (somewhere in the exchange rate?) that is applied when you use your credit card outside your home country.
One way to avoid this is to take out cash from an ATM and use it instead (yes there is a charge there as well!)
Reply to this The transaction fees are not a worry for me, my main concern is being able to put the majority of my expenses (in the region of AU$10000) onto credit cards.
Majority of these expenses will be hostels, food and transport.
Do most hostels take credit cards?
Reply to this I'm not sure on this, but do companies who you pay on your credit card also have to pay a surcharge? They do in some places. Check on this because it might mean that some businesses won't accept them.
Reply to this hey there, personally I'm refraining from using credit cards overseas as much as possible - there are HUGE transaction fees from most banks in Australia. What I'm doing with my finances is using a National Australia Bank (NAB) Gold Card - for just $10 a month i can use my NAB cards anywhere in the world without paying any transaction fees as possible. you can use it either as a Visa debit card or as an ATM card, and withdraw cash from anywhere in the world in the local currency (also without paying any fees at all).
it does cost $10 a month but it's a lot better than the $100's of dollars you'd be paying in transaction fees otherwise....
Reply to this I have a BankWest debit Mastercard, is that the same thing as what you've got?
Reply to this It's the same set up but I imagine BankWest would still charge you fees....look on their website or go to a local branch
Reply to this Hi all
For what it is worth. We have travelled throughout Europe many times and found that the easiest way to pay for things was to use a bank machine to withdraw a from 200-400 euros at a time (and you will find bank machines in the most isolated mountain villages!) to pay for small items and to use a charge card for larger items.
Perth dude you mention that you want to carry as little cash as possible. Have you considered Euro travellers cheques?
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