ATM machines in small towns
 

Going to spend a month in Italy and not spending much time in larger cities. Are there ATMs in towns such as Cortona, Radda, Montalcino? Also, does anyone know of good restaurants close to Castel del Piano ( south of Siena )? Thanks very much. <BR>P.

We were in Tuscany in October. I never had any problem finding an ATM. Don't worry about it. Plus, they all take credit cards, so you can always pay the bill.

Correct on the first reply. ATMs are ubiquitous. (Now, I am not promising that every single one works every single time.) If the town is large enough to have a bank, it will have an ATM. Not so correct on the second anwser. Not all, in fact, many restaurants do not take credit cards, especially if off the beaten path.

I totally agree that many restaurants will not take credit cards. You may, actually find reasonable luck - - even in small towns - - getting them to take US dollars in a pinch (I hope my assumption is correct that you are American). <BR> <BR>For a trip of an entire month - - (and all of it in Italy?) you should have ample opportunity to plan ahead. In lots of a thousand dollars or so, you might even do best just changing US dollars at a bank (or post office). <BR> <BR>Best wishes, <BR> <BR>Rex

I too agree about ATMs being ubiquitous. However, if you take greenbacks, be forwarned that some banks will no longer accept the "old style" $100 bills. I saw signs posted about this in 1998 and 1999. Just ask your bank for the new style bills before you go.

Pat, check out:

Pat, check out: <BR>http://www.mastercard.com/atm/ <BR>for mastercard/cirrus and <BR>http://www.visa.com/pd/atm/main.html <BR>for visa/plus. <BR> <BR>These are ATM locators which you can search by country/city/airport. <BR>