I will be staying 5 days/4 nights in Barcelona in January 2009 with my husband and mom. I'm interested in renting an apartment in Barcelona during our stay.
One company (FriendlyRentals.com) requires 25% deposit via credit card with the remainder of the balance and a refundable 200 euro damage deposit to be paid prior to check-in in cash. Is that a customary practice? I feel hesitant carrying that much cash with me.
Any other advice, suggestions, experience, etc. is greatly appreciated!
I rented an apartment in Barcelona and it was a similar deal. I rented from Top Barcelona Apartments. It was a great apartment by the way.
I understand your hesitation about carrying cash. I have found that living in Europe I deal a lot more in cash than I did in the US.
While pickpocketing is more common here, mugging is less common so as long as you use a money belt and don't talk about how much money you have with you I think it will be fine.
This is normal for Spain and much of the rest of Europe in our experience.
Certainly Spain is very cash oriented, most things are paid for in cash and credit cards are much less commonly used.
Just get the cash from an ATM when you arrive.
hi Catherine, i have rented an appartment with friendly rentals in 2006 in barcelona. everything went according to plans, no problems with the deposit, the return of the damage deposit and the apartment. we enjoyed the apartment very much and would rent with them again in a heartbeat. don't forget to go to la boqueria to do you groceries, you will find almost everything you need to cook a very good meal!
BARCELONA. In the short-stay apartments, the payment of the reserve is normal. The normal is between 10-20% which is the business of the commission. In some cases you can contact directly with the owner and can pay in cash upon arrival as there is no business of the commission. As the owner of apartments in Barcelona I advise the following Web www.apartamentbcn.com
thanks
Enjoy your stay in Barcelona
