What’s the best way to pay for things in So. Germany for the best deals? Credit card or hard cold euros?
Also, where’s the best place in Germany to get a good exchange rate for changing US Dollars into Euros?
Also, where’s the best place in Germany to get a good exchange rate for changing US Dollars into Euros?
5 Responses to “What’s the best way to pay for things in So. Germany for the best deals? Credit card or hard cold euros?”
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well I do know many credit card company’s will add an additional fee every time you use a card out of the US, check with your company about this by calling there customer service line that is on the back of your card.
The best way is to pay in cash or have traveller checks with you and exchange them at banks. With credit cards you pay at least 1% fee everytime you pay with them. Plus, in Germany, credit cards are often not accepted for smaller amounts of money….YES, there is often a minimum to spend on cards. And, some credit cards are less accepted than others…most accepted, I dare to say, is Mastercard. The less, I would say is Diners.
I live in Germany. Eurocard marked EC on the card is the very best credit card and will pay for things without a fee. No credit card from the US is good as you will always get hit with a fee and you may get a bad exchange rate as well.
Cash is best. Many smaller pensions, restaurants and such will not accept American credit cards. Some will only accept EC debit cards. Banks will change travellers checks for you - you can buy Euro-denominated travellers checks in the US. I bought some in Davenport, Iowa, so you should be able to get them where you are too, although the bank may ask you to wait a few days. Try to get the travellers checks at a bank you regularly use, AAA or some other organization that you belong to.
Some places won’t take American credit cards, and travelers checks can be a bother, so I always used euros. I used my ATM card to get cash, there was a small fee from my bank, but it was still cheaper than exchanging dollars for euros.
Virtually everyplace we visited accepted our Master Card. The only places that didn’t were places that sold smaller things or food stands. We are charged a 1% fee on all our purchases, but we make 2% back on all purchases, so it’s a wash. Also, the cc companies get better exchange rates than the banks, hotels, or money exchange places. It’s also unsafe to be walking around with large amounts of cash that you could lose or could be stolen.
The best place to ‘exchange’ money is directly from a bank ATM. Call your bank before you leave to let them know you will be travelling and to get details from them. Then, use an ATM attached to an open bank and get money. I say “attached to an open bank” so that if there is any problem, you can immediately walk in to the bank and resolve it.
We pay for everything that we can with a credit card when travelling in Europe. It is generally cheaper (1% is less than the 5-10% some exchange places charge) and safer.