I just came back from a business trip to Italy. When I reached for my credit card the woman at the villa looked at me with digust, it seems that they don't wish to pay the 4% surcharge assessed by the credit card company. Is this common practice?

hi
the look of disgust isn't common practice.

some small establishments have a no credit cards policy, but they are usually explicit about this up front (or should be)
Business travelers are especially prone to using credit cards, so your preference for using the card is understandable. Was there any discussion about methods of payment when you arrived (that is, did they run your card through the machine for a guarantee when you checked in)?

No, my company's travel arrangements and at no time did anyone say no credit. I understand now it should have been a red flag since they didn't swipe my card upon check-in. I eventually did pay in cash, but had to go to 3 machines before my card was accepted.

I would you suggest you mention this to your travel office. For a hotel accepting business travelers not to take a credit card is simply unacceptable.

(For a B&B it's understandable - but I don;t like the look of digust. She would have taken my card or given me an explanation - in wiriting - for her reasons why not - to forward to the travel office.)

I too just returned from a trip to Italy and encountered a credit card problem...the bar we ate at did not accept credit cards and we did not have enough cash on hand. Long story short, we were able to pay the bill.

More interesting though was a conversation we had with an ownwer of a laundromat in Cinque Terre. He was telling us that Italians do not like or use credit cards. It is all cash. They pay for their homes with cash, no mortgages.

However, they have had to accept credit cards because the tourists use them extenisvely.

I am surprised though that your villa stay wanted cash. All the hotels I have stayed in take credit without question.

Italy is more cash-oriented society, like Austria, Switzerland and Germany. Spain, UK and Ireland are like US in card acceptance, followed closely by France, Portugal and Benelux countries. Scandinavia is also good for cards. Eastern Europe on the whole lag behind in card use, except in large cities and places popular with foreign tourists.

>the bar we ate at did not accept credit cards<

That does not surpise me at all. There are plenty of cafes, fast food,snack bar type places and even some small restaurants in Chicago that are cash only!

On my trip to Toronto, Canada, the small hotel's owner was checking me in. She asked (seriously!) to please go to the nearest ATM to get cash. I only had to remind her place is listed in the AAA book as accepting credit cards. It was in 1998.

Hi N,

>I eventually did pay in cash, but had to go to 3 machines before my card was accepted.<

The next time someone tries this on you ask for a 5% discount for cash.

Thanks Ira.