Discover Card/Diners Club International

Never heard of the Discover card being accepted anywhere in the UK, Diners Club is pretty much unknown as well.

Diners Club is a very niche product in the UK and hardly marketed at all. However, it is accepted by a number of retailers even if they don't clearly indicate it in the shops such as Sainsbury's.

There is a list at http://www.dinersclub.co.uk/en/Services/AcceptedLocations.aspx

However it is not something really to rely on as your main card.

I've actually seem Diners Club emblems on some Prets and most of those horriblest motorway places - - the ones with a lot of red in the signs.

We recommend bringing a Visa or MasterCard, as well as an ATM/debit card with one of those logos. Knowing your PIN for each card will never hurt. See also http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money.

We use the Discover Card at home a lot. When I called Discover they said that it is basically called Diners Club Internationally, that said we used it in Canada with out any problems. But in Western Europe had not seen it. But we just got back from England and we were surprised it was used in some places. So I would take it along because they do not charge a fee for use. But also use a Visa or Mastercard primarily.

We use the Discover Card at home a lot. When I called Discover they said that it is basically called Diners Club Internationally, that said we used it in Canada with out any problems. But in Western Europe had not seen it. But we just got back from England and we were surprised it was used in some places. So I would take it along because they do not charge a fee for use. But also use a Visa or Mastercard primarily.

We use the Discover Card at home a lot. When I called Discover they said that it is basically called Diners Club Internationally, that said we used it in Canada with out any problems. But in Western Europe had not seen it. But we just got back from England and we were surprised it was used in some places. So I would take it along because they do not charge a fee for use. But also use a Visa or Mastercard primarily.

We use the Discover Card at home a lot. When I called Discover they said that it is basically called Diners Club Internationally, that said we used it in Canada with out any problems. But in Western Europe had not seen it. But we just got back from England and we were surprised it was used in some places. So I would take it along because they do not charge a fee for use. But also use a Visa or Mastercard primarily.

Acceptance of Discover (along with various other cards from other parts of the world) has only just started in the U.K. I have seen that Marks & Spencer advertise that they accept Discover, but suspect that most other outlets wouldn't bother to advertise the fact. Most places use the same machine for all cards, and rely on the machine to confirm that the card has been accepted. However, you may find that some places are wary of cards they have not seen before, and they may refuse to accept them because the commission charged may be higher. That is the problem with the acceptance of American Express.

You may also find card readers which only accept the chip & pin cards which are now the standard in most developed countries except the United States. There are usually ways around that, and most hotels, restaurants, etc, especially in London, will handle that without even commenting.

The only place in London and York that would not take our credit card because it was not chip and pin was trying to top off the Oyster card at the machine at Victoria station. But they have maned booths and they did it for us without any problems.

Apropos probably of nothing, Diners Club were the big holdouts against issuing chip and PIN for cards in the UK, but they had to give in eventually a few years back.