Can anyone tell me if credit cards can be used to purchase train tickets in train stations? If not, how about travelers' checks? <BR> Thanks.

Sorry. I should have said I was talking about train stations in Rome, Florence, Venice, Lucca, Siena.

I used my credit card to purchase a ticket in Rome. Did not make use of the trains in the other cities, so can't say for sure. Sorry

We have bought tickets everywhere in Europe using our Visa Card. We just returned from Budapest and Prague and were in doubt about their stations. No problem for they took Visa. We were told that all the stations in Europe take credit cards and the only station so far that needed cash was in Istanbul,Turkey. We also found that the fares were all lower than those quoted by Raileurope though their schedules were correct.

I just got back from Europe. We used a credit card for purchasing train tickets and just about everything else.

Does it have to be a Visa credit card or can you use Master Card at the train stations? Is it best to get train passes in the States before I go to Switzerland and Italy or can I just purchase them there for the same price or less? What about lines there? Thanks

Regarding credit cards in general, I'm looking in to getting one for my trip to Euro. Whats the difference between MasterCard and Visa? Is one more widely accepted than the other or what?

Melanie <BR>Visa and Mastercard are two competing worldwide payment networks who between them have the bulk of credit/debit/cash card market. There is virtually no difference between the two nowadays. In the past many banks and financial institutions signed up with one or the other but not both (impossible?), but today virtually all banks have signed up with both. Similarly, if the merchant's bank was Visa-affiliated, only Visa card could be used unless they made a separate agreement to take Mastercard as well. IIRC, Visa started off as the off-shoot of Bank of America (one of the first Visa cards was Bankamericard), while Mastercard was also American in origin (can't remember which bank). Some European banks formed Eurocard, which later came under Mastercard umbrella. There used to be a difference in the way currency conversion was done. If you had a Visa card issued outside of US, it was first converted to US$ at Visa International and then to your home currency, thus incurring a worse rate (usually) than with Mastercard where there was only one direct conversion. Today both claim to charge interbank rate less 1%. Wherever you see a Visa symbol, you can almost always use Mastercard as well, and vice versa.

All credit cards (MasterCard and Visa) have a 1% surcharge they extend to the individual companies that use them But some companies charge an extra surcharge for themselves that they pass on to you. Sometimes the extra surcharge can amount to as much as 3% extra. So when you shop for a card, check with the companies you are interested in and ask if they charge extra for foreign transactions.

Norman, <BR>Had no trouble using VISA card in Florence, Venice or Milan train station. <BR>Cheers, <BR>Kathy

Returned earlier this week from Italy. Used my VISA card to purchase train tickets at large (Milano) & small (La Spezia) stations. <BR> <BR>You may want to call your credit card company to let them know that you'll be traveling in Europe (where/when), so there won't be any difficulty with approval on your transactions. <BR> <BR>Carol -- in Italy, it's just as easy & price is less if you're purchasing point-to-point tickets while over there (versus purchasing tickets here thru travel agent or on-line). As you may encounter long lines at the train stations, I usually prefer to purchase my tickets a day or two ahead OR you can also buy train tickets thru travel agency or AMEX office in Italy. Don't believe there's any add'l surcharge over there.

Thanks for the responses!

Thanks for all the info on credit cards. SOunds like Master card and travelers checks will be just fine. I'll check with MC to see their internat'l surcharge....thanks for that tip. Leaving in 4 days....can't wait!!!