If I go to the window at a train station in Germany to pay for my ticket do they take credit cards? I know some of the machines only take credit cards with a chip in them but I still might have to use my credit card to pay for my travel.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
Last October (2007) I bought a rail ticket at an automat in Würzburg. It only took credit cards, not cash, so I had no choice. My credit card does not have a chip, but I worked. I did not try to my card at a window, but my gut feeling is that they are more likely to take a non-chip card than is a machine.
Bottom line, in Germany, pay cash. If you can't afford to pay for the trip, don't go. At least get a loan and use it to pay cash. Bank loans have much better interest rates than credit cards. Putting your trip on a credit card is the worst possible way to go.
Posted by
OP
Northern, Italy
208 posts
I will have the means to pay off my credit card in full at the end of my trip. I did not choose the timing of this trip so I am just trying to get the most out of the time I have there with the funds I will have at the moment.
Posted by
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2779 posts
We don't (yet) have the extra chips on our credit cards which is why every automat will accept your non-chip card. If you walk up a ticket desk they'll add a service charge of €10 or so per ticket so buying at the machine makes more sense. The machines only take debit and credit cards, no cash.
Posted by
OP
Northern, Italy
208 posts
Thank you Andreas. I see this is not going to be a problem then. I will use the machines. I don't have a problem with that.