American Express

American Express is not very widely accepted anywhere in Europe. VISA and Mastercard are the cards to take.

Yes, the days of going to Amex to collect your mail and get money are long gone. Pam

If you are bringing both types, don't worry about it. Big cities/tourist areas accept AMEX quite a bit. I have a business AMEX and I use it almost everywhere, although I have had some places it wasn't accepted. I also try not to use it in smaller businesses as I know they are paying a huge %. I would try to bring more than one non AMEX card though. I travel a lot and still have issues with a card company rejecting my CC, even after calling them prior to leaving the country. Never had this on AE. I guess they keep my travel patterns on file.

Reid, Are both of your credit cards American Express? I'd suggest bringing one AmEx and either a Visa or MasterCard, as those cards are much more readily accepted in Europe. Which cards will work in the three locations you mentioned may depend on your travel style and what you'll be using the cards for? I don't have an AmEx card, but I've noticed that they tend to be accepted at more "upscale" locations but not as much as smaller Hotels and shops. I assume you're also bringing ATM cards? I'd also suggest bringing a "backup" ATM card, in case of any problems with your primary card (I've had that happen). Note that travel funds must usually be in a chequing account with a four number PIN. Happy travels!

Our primary card is going to be a Visa.... I was just trying to figure out the best one to bring as a back up. I think we are going to go with another Visa... Thanks for everyone's help...RC

My best guess is no more than one in three places that take credit cards would take AmEx (it may be more like one in five). I'd go with a Visa or Mastercard as primary and another Visa or Mastercard as backup.

I agree with Brad. Maybe high end business hotels and restaurants will accept Am Express but the places where average tourists go seldom if ever take AE cards. In fact, about ten years I turned in my AE card being nearly worthless in both Europe and the US.

As stated above, American Express is widely accepted in large cities such as Amsterdam and, I presume, London. I base this on observation, not actual experience, since Visa is my first card. And I do not stay in the high-end places. Small places may not accept AmEx, but they may not accept Visa or MC, either, even when they advertise that they do so. Since I don't want to drain my bank account unexpectedly, I check reader feedback on TripAdviser and booking.com, etc., to weed those places out. American Express comes in especially handy when renting a car because its AmEx Premium offers the best rates for complete auto rental insurance I have found. That is probably not a consideration for the places you are visiting, but American Express is still a good second card, behind Visa.

A friend of mine has a smallish shop which happily accepts the low merchant fees on MC/Visa debit cards and the higher but acceptable merchant fees on MC/Visa credit cards. She won't have any truck with the exorbitant merchant fees of Amex.

American Express is now accepted more widely in the UK, but still only in larger shops and restaurants.

I used the Amex for Car rental in France as it offers additional insurance. There are some other advantages to having the Amex as well. Since it is for back up and emergencies I'd take it.

I think AE is getting more aggressive getting merchants to accept their card in Europe. It stayed at a small family run three-star hotel in Belgium earlier this year and they had big blue & white signs all over the reception desk advertising the cards acceptance. I told the owner how unusual that was and he told me they made him an offer he couldn't refuse:) Having said that they still have a long way to go....MC & Visa are the way to go.

I think you nailed it Michael. I have a friend that works for one of the major credit card companies that said AMEX is targeting every merchant that deals with Americans, wherever they are. He said they have dropped their rates to rival the others in some markets too which is causing the other CCs to do the same. My business 'upscale' hotels usually consist of two star dumps in industrial zones that no self respecting tourist would find themselves and I'm still able to use the AMEX (although not all the time). I haven't been to Ireland in a few years but I do remember having an issue or two using it in the West. As others have said, definitely use it for car rentals.

While I have a Amer Ex card, I've never used it in Europe, only its Travelers' Checks in the past and now as a last reserve, but, as far as the Amer Ex London office goes, it is still there on Haymarket, as it always was,..saw it this summer. Although it's not on your itinerary, the same for Vienna on Kärntnerstraße.

Part of the differences here seem to involve how and when people use credit cards. I use cash from an ATM, using a debit card, for daily expenses such as small shops and restaurants, so it does not matter to me whether or not they acept American Express. The ATMs would have to be down before I would consider paying at these places with a credit card. I prefer to use my Visa card to pay hotels and for the occasional splurge at a restaurant, but I have noticed that many of these accept American Express. I use the AmEx card mostly for transportation costs. Look at your spending habits and then decide on which credit cards to use.

I too will point out, as a couple others have, that the advice that AMEX is not very accepted is beginning to be outdated. AMEX has aggressively marketed their credit card services in Europe and in the US. Over the years, I have seen the growth in acceptance, to the point that on the last couple trips, it was rare not to see the Amex logo next to Visa and MC. Considering credit card use is more likely for Hotels, higher end restaurants, large purchases, and tickets, where cash is not as handy, it would work well as a backup card.

Keep in mind that Amex charges ridiculous foreign transaction fees - I no longer use the card in Europe or on prebooking where currency conversion must be done. Bank-issued Visa or Mastercard may not have these fees attached, depending on the policy of the bank.

In May I spent 2 weeks in Warsaw, Cracow and Prague and then last month I visited for two weeks in Spain - Madrid, Segovia, Sevilla and Barcelona. I used my Amex card as my only CC on these trips. The only thing I didn't use it for was when I made withdrawals from an ATM. I then used my bank issued debit card with a MC logo. Contrary to what folks on this sight seem to believe, Amex is very well accepted in Europe. I do not visit high end 5 star hotels or Michelin rated restaurants. For example my hotel in Madrid cost me 75 euros per night and in Sevilla I paid 70 euros. Both rates included breakfast.