PIN Chip cards vs US magnetic strips

Credit Cards.

I have traveled primarily in German speaking countries (Germany, Austria) and in the Czech Republic. I have never had a problem using a credit card in Europe, but I have only used a credit card an average of once per trip for the last 5-10 years. When I have used a credit card, it has been mostly in German Rail ticket automats (which do take strip cards), but I did use it once on my last trip in a major department store in Germany.

I have heard of people having problems in France, at automated toll boots and at filling stations, but as long as you don't use a car, it doesn't appear you have many problems in France.

Some people have also reported that ticket automats and ticket counters in the Netherlands don't take magnetic cards.

There doesn't seem to be a problem with using a magnetic strip card at bank automats. So, get cash from automats and pay in cash.

For the most part it's nothing to stress about. All ATMs will accept magnetic strip cards. Any merchant that deals with tourists on a regular basis will also accept them as well. Gas pumps and ticket machines are problematic.

Which countries are you going to? The one place you can definitely experience problems is the Netherlands. Hotels there will accept magnetic stripe cards, but almost all stores will not, and neither will Dutch Rail. Furthermore, some stores (notably grocery stores) will not even accept chip and PIN credit cards. So, you will need cash, more than you might in some other places. The Dutch ATM's work fine with American ATM cards, so use those to get cash.

We will be visiting Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and France (Paris specifically). Our main concern were being able to use the ATMs if we needed more cash. Everyone has been been very helpful so far. We appreciate the info.

I do wonder in these discussions how well cards with no mag stripe are accepted in the USA. They aren't common but there are some cards of this type issued in Europe, which I guess will only increase.

"...I do wonder in these discussions how well cards with no mag stripe are accepted in the USA...."

Even with a magnetic strip you might have a hard time. Lots of merchants and machines in the US use zip-code verification these days. If you don't have a US postal code connected to your account the merchant can't finalize the transaction. Most all gas pumps have this, the ticket machines at Big Apple area train/subway stations use it, and when I visited DC a few years back the gift shops at all the Smithsonians used it.

You will be able to use ATMs with no problem, even in the smallest towns in Switzerland. If you are in a touristy area you should have no problem using your magnetic strip cards except at some smaller businesses or in towns where tourists don't frequent. We found that people will look at the magnetic card like it's some sort of oddity or antique and make some sort of comment about how old fashioned it is! Most restaurants use hand held, remote swipe machines that take credit cards at tableside. These take both magnetic and chip & pin cards. Places that sell primarily to locals, such as grocery stores like COOP, typically take only chip & pin. Gas stations don't take magnetic swipe at the pump, except at a few stations we found, but you can go inside to the clerk and they can swipe it there. AGIP is the big chain of gas stations around Switzerland and you'll have no problem. Ticket machines are problematic but it's easy enough to go to the ticket window at train and gondola stations. Your bank is wrong...vendors don't HAVE to take magnetic strip cards, especially when Europe has essentially eliminated them because they are not very secure. We are really behind in this country!

Using any old Zip code works a lot of the time but not always.

RE Mag strip cards: I have not had problems with mag strip swipe credit cards in Europe and was even able to buy train tickets in Norway at a ticket machine. Fortunately a real person was stationed at the automatic ticket machine to help foreigners like me. The Norwegian ticket machine took chip & pin cards OR mag strip credit cards provided that you entered your card's PIN to validate the purchase. Lesson learned is know your credit card PIN.

RE Foreigners using US automatic gas pumps. Here in Oregon the Beaver State we are not allowed to pump our own gas, so not a problem in Oregun. Where the gas pumps with credit card activation require ZIP codes, the option is to go to the staffed desk and provide whatever identification they need. With the exception of card-lock (commercial) fueling station, here in the Western US gas stations are staffed if anything, to sell you bottled water at a per gallon price higher than the fuel.

Hi,

With your magnetic stripe US credit card, which we all have, you won't have any problems at ATMs in Germany and France. I never did; as pointed out above, it's in Holland and France where the US magnetic stripe credit card will not work at ticket machines at train stations. The SNCF machines in France have a little note you telling you just that. But buying tickets from a staffed ticket counter, no problems.... the card is accepted, not so in Holland.

In Germany where I found the US credit card did not work was at a S-Bahn ticket machine in Munich. I tried once, didn't work, rather than try again, I gave up and used cash instead.

As others have stated, the problem is more often with automated ticket machines, gas pumps, street bike rentals, etc, especially in France, and also with train tickets purchased in the Netherlands, even at the windows. The problem is not with cash withdrawals from ATMs, using a Visa/MC-branded debit card, and not with any hotel that accepts credit cards. See also http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money.

Not to change the subject, but just making sure you know that using a credit card at an ATM will cost you a hefty finance charge as a "cash advance" from the credit card issuer. Using a debit card at an ATM may incur a small fee from your bank, the ATM bank, or both, but nothing comparable. Bring your bank debit card to get cash from ATMs, your credit card for major purchases if you want. For both, call the issuer before you leave to let them know your plans so they don't cancel when they see a foreign transaction.

In my experience swipe credit cards are generally accepted unless perhaps you're in a small town or business off the beaten path. As others have said, the automated ticket, toll, and gas pump machines may not accept them, but you can always pay a person. (They're not going to give away their gas, are they?)

Not to change the subject again, but the sooner our banks and merchants "evolve" to chip-and-PIN the fewer Target-type mass ripoff scandals we'll see. Hopefully we will evolve to Europe's level of civilization on this score (if not on others). ; )

I am glad I read Dick's post before I started typing as I was going to say that same things. In going to Europe 11 of the last 12 years for a month (and leave again this coming Friday) we take two DEBIT cards from different financial institutions to get cash from ATM machines and we take two CREDIT CARDS also from different financial institutions just in case one of those cards does not work.
That has happened only once by a bank mistake with whom we no longer do business. In all of those years we seldom use a credit card, certainly not to get cash from an ATM machine. We try to pay cash for almost all of our expenses, exceptions being a rug from Turkey and a lengthy hotel stay when we could not find an acceptable B&B. One of my credit cards just went "chip and pin" so I will most likely try it at least once to see that it works OK and it has no transaction fees (but, watch out for those inducements when comparing their exchange rates). In all of our previous trips to Europe, we have never had a problem when we did use a credit card with a magnetic strip. Enjoy your trip.

I just wanted to thank everyone for their advice. You have all been very helpful. I feel better knowing my cards will work in Europe should I need them. I'm glad I found this site and forum. Thanks for the well wishes, too.

Jeff

To generalize, I would say it is usually not a problem but can be inconvenient. In the countries we've traveled on this trip (Iceland, UK, Belgium, Germany and Denmark), the only place we have not been able to use a card were automated ticket machines on trains/city transit. Most merchants took our cards without issue, except maybe needing to tell them it's a magnetic strip so they could run it as a credit card without a PIN. Some asked for ID, so I had to show them my license or passport. Iceland was a bit unique in that we never even took out cash because literally everywhere - even a hot dog stand - had a credit card swiper that easily took both chip and swipe cards.