Cash vs Charge

I also never have any cash at home, but that's not standard procedure in Europe, and one needs to buy a lot more things while traveling. Cash is preferred by many merchants large and small, so they don't have to pay a percentage to the credit card processor. See also http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money.

As I said above, charging everything above $10 applies while I am traveling in the US. I do not see why I would have more purchases in Italy and this is even more reason to charge.

Believe me, US merchants would much rather have you pay cash than use a credit card. My wife works as a retail clerk in a small business and the owner would be very happy not to pay the percentage to the credit card companies. It is a cost of doing business. Now, if they do not take credit cards (like my barber) that is another story.

Many merchants in Italy accept credit cards only for purchases above a certain amount (usually €20, but it may vary) others don't take cards at all. But otherwise I usually use credit cards whenever I have a chance. Generally I use credit cards for all hotels, restaurants and purchases of a certain amount. Obviously I'm not going to pay with a credit card for a cappuccino or for a couple of postcards.
Many merchants however will give you a 5 to 10% discount if you pay cash. Just ask and you will be surprised how many will. Two high school friends of mine own shops in Florence and they will give you an automatic 10% discount if you don't use the credit card.
Although older Italians generally prefer to use cash, however younger generations use debit /ATM cards and credit cards for purchases just as often as Americans do.

I was in Rome last September for a few days before my Sicily trip, stayed in a well known hotel across from the Vatican, and found both restaurants and even the cell phone company "ORANGE" refusing to take credit cards! The hotel also 'pressured' to pay in cash, offering a discount (not much) for cash. I refused this offer. It seemed very unusual to me, as this was my sixth trip to Italy. I have friends in Sicily, and they thought maybe it was because of taxes (?)

I, also, have never, in 40 years not paid off my credit cards monthly, and in the US I use my skymiles card to pay for everything, including groceries. I expected to pay for small purchases, panini, pizza, taxis, etc with cash, but last year felt 'pressure' to pay for larger purchases in cash. I will advise you to make sure you have cash euro on hand, and make sure your home bank/credit union debit card knows you are in Italy and will be withdrawing money in Italy. You will need more cash there than here in the U.S.

Italy is not the US, and the reason I travel is to experience the differences, even sometimes, the inconvenieinces! If I wanted a US experience, I'd just stay here. I enjoy all my travels, but especially my Italian adventures.

Roberto! Feel free to chime in if you have a response on this, and any reasons you can think of for the demands for cash from the Roman businesses.

If anyone wants to offer me a discount for using cash, I will take it. I already have one hotel reservation for a lower rate based on cash payment. My banks and credit card companies are aware that I will be in Italy for a month.

Cash payments are preferred by merchants primarily because of the swipe fees (interchange fees) that are charged by banks for card transactions. These amount to approx 3% of the purchase price. In addition when a purchase is made by credit card, the merchant does not receive the payment immediately from the bank card. The delayed payment represents a cost to the merchant as well as a cash flow issue. The card transaction costs is one reason why Italian merchants prefer the payment by "bank transfer" (bonifico bancario). Basically a wire transfer. The cost of a domestic wire transfer is zero or at most 50 cents. Most hotels prefer prepayment through bank transfer than credit card.

I found some places do not take credit cards. When we bought the Roma pass they did not accept credit cards. While other places do, the first place we tried did not. In some of the small towns the restaurants also did not accept credit cards. This was when we were driving in Tuscany. So while I do not normally use cash here in North Carolina I have adapted and am ready to pay in cash in Italy. Certainly not a big deal.

We travel in Italy every summer and only use our credit card to pay for hotels. We use cash for everything else. Recently we obtained a Bank of America Travel Rewards credit card, which does not charge any foreign transaction fees. Now beginning on May 1st our Delta SkyMiles American Express will not charge the foreign transaction fees.

We, like others above, use our credit cards to pay for just about everything here in the USA. We spend a lot of time in small towns in Italy visiting family and friends and use cash only, which seems to be, IMHO, the easiest transaction.

Buon viaggio,

Simply put, the 'why' of anything doesn't matter. Things are the way they are.

You go through life with two choices:
. eating what's put in your plate
. going hungry

This discussion made me think. Since both the Italian and US merchants have the same concerns about swipe fees and delayed payments, why do many Italian merchants offer discounts for cash and US merchants very seldom do? I did some research and found that up to about a year ago the credit card - merchant contract did not allow merchants to offer a cash discount. In an out of court anti-trust suit settlement the credit card companies now do allow a cash discount. Still we see very few cash discounts. Most of it is that Americans are used to credit/cash prices being the same and are not looking for a cash discount. The swipe fees are already built into the prices. Additionally, in 10 states it is against the law to charge different prices for cash and credit transactions (Roberto, California is one of those states). My wife's dentist now charges an extra fee (he calls it a convenience fee) if you use a credit card. Many US merchants also have a minimum amount for which they will accept a credit card. Where my wife works it is a $10 minimum.

If offered a cash discount, I will take it. Two of my hotel reservations in Italy are based on a discount for paying with cash and I will ask at the other hotels.

I think Colorado is one of those states where it is illegal to charge for using a credit card (but you can give a discount for cash). Funny, if you pay your Colorado income tax online, the state charges you for using a credit card.

I don't know about the law in California, but for sure several gas stations in California, certainly Valero, charge a lower price for a gallon of gas if you pay cash instead of credit card. It's about 10 cent per gallon difference.
It might be just a practice that other type of merchants don't give discounts for cash transactions.

Best thing to do is just take cash out at an ATM. Credit cards in Europe are not used like in the US.

California does have the law on cash discounts. The oil companies got themselves an exception.

In my experience also I had no problems using credit cards anywhere in Europe.
It is true that older Europeans don't use them as much and rely more on cash transactions, but credit cards are accepted nearly everywhere as long as you don't use the to buy a pack of chewing gum. In Florence I know of no restaurants not accepting cards. But I will not use a card to buy a two euro gelato cone.

I have a feeling that LaRae's point was that Europeans don't tend to use their cards for every possible thing the way (annoyingly) that some Americans do. I don't think the assertion was that credit card use is difficult or fraught with problems in Europe, but that it's kind of a "when in Rome" thing.

I am watching this post carefully. Like you, Bob, in the US we use our credit card for convenience and budgeting. It is nice to have one monthly bill that tracks most (if not all) expenses. (We are not ones who go out to fast food or morning coffee so under $20 purchases are rare - but those are paid in cash.) We typically average between $50-$100 in cash withdraws a month for our family of 5 (school field trips/activities and allowances for the kids are the biggest cash expenses we incur). Everything else goes on the card. We pay it off each cycle and enjoy the convenience and we don't bleed that walking around money that seems to disappear so quickly.

We are a family of 5 traveling for 3 weeks through multiple countries. I can't imagine how much cash euros we would need - as even an afternoon snack or breakfast when multiplied by 5 will add up quickly -we thought enough to justify using the credit card. If RS recommends 50 - 100 euro per day per person as a guideline (our lodgings and transportation will be taken care of) we will be walking around with quite a bit of cash or trying to find a secure ATM daily. Even trying to estimate prior to entering a restaurant or bistro if we will have enough euros for everyone to eat was not on our radar prior to this post. We were not planning on carrying around 500 + euros each day or needing to replenish our cash so frequently, but I guess reading these replies, we need to rethink.

Will establishments have window stickers or signs indicating if they accept visa or mastercard?

We spent 1 week in Sorrento in May 2014. When arranging for guided tours and private transportation to the airport cash was required. 250 euros is the most you can withdraw from ATM machine daily unless you make arrangements with your bank ahead of time. The cash limit was a problem as my sister's wallet was stolen in Florence and my brother-in-law's wallet was stolen at the Sorrento train station so we had to supply cash for 4 people. (RS is very clear about guarding your valuables.) So, 2 lessons were learned from this experience.

I now have been in Italy for 2 1/2 weeks. I usually charge anything above 20 Euros and have had no problems. See my post on needing a pin and chip card. There have been a couple of B&B's that wanted cash but I knew that in advance.

Some banks have limited me to 250 Euro but that was the limit on the Bancomat. My bank will allow $600, about 450 Euro.

Guess I am getting careless. I no longer wear a money belt, except when in transit by public transportation between cities. I carry my cash, one of my credit cards and one of my ATM cards in a Rick Steves wallet in a front pocket and have had no problems. Currently I also have my drivers license in the wallet as we have a car. Our passports are in an inner pocket of my camera bag (you would have to kill me to separate me from that bag). The rest I leave in my room at the B&B. I carry misc maps etc in my rear pocket and have not had any stolen.

I am sorry but that statement -
....250 euros is the most you can withdraw from ATM machine daily unless you make arrangements with your bank ahead of time. .......

is misleading if not somewhat inaccurate. You have two limits for your withdraws - one set by your bank and one set by the ATM owner per transaction. In high traffic tourist area it not uncommon for ATMs in Italy to have a single transaction limit of 250E. But you can do two transactions in the row and get 500E or hit another ATM for another 250E. Generally a ATM attached to a bank during open hours will not have that limitation. Your bank's limitation is a greater problem since there is no way to work around it. Unless it is a new account or you have credit problems, your bank limit should be closer to $500 and often can be increased when traveling. My limit is closer to $2000 and have withdrawn as much as 750E at one time.

I prefer to use cash for most expenses when travelling, except hotels. That way, I'm not concerned that I may lose my credit card to a thief or have the number copied by someone. Since I don't pay ATM fees, it's easy to pull €80 or €100 out as needed, so I'm not carrying around a lot of cash either. I found I was paying less than €10 at a time for snacks, drinks, entrance fees, souvenir magnets (my fridge is covered with them), bus/train tickets, and so on, that added up to €30-50 a day. At home, I rarely spend that much in a week. But I'm not out sightseeing all day every day. And when I am out for a day, I often take snacks and drinks from home and I don't buy souvenirs.

The more off the beaten path you go in Italy, the less likely you are to find credit cards accepted. My rule for Italy expenses is to use the credit card when I can, and cash when I can't.