Hotel refund in cash: cons?
 

I had to change a hotel reservation on Santorini from 4 nights to 2. This was already prepaid with a credit card. The hotel wants to refund the difference in cash once I get there rather than back to my credit card. I don't think we'll spend it all before we leave, so I'll need to convert it back to dollars. Where can I get the best exchange rate? How much more unfavorable will this be compared to a refund to my credit card (which doesn't charge extra fees)?

I would prefer a refund to my credit card, but the hotel is small and known to give upgrades, so I don't want to push the issue. Anybody know why they would want to refund in cash? Do credit card companies charge them to process refunds? Or do they just want to keep my money longer?

Thanks!

That's very odd because the hotel must pay a commission to your credit card company on the amount you charged. If they refund the card, then presumably they will recover the commission on the amount refunded. (can anyone confirm?)

If you do come home with extra cash, the € is used in so many countries you could keep them for your next trip. If you won't be going back to Europe anytime soon, maybe you could sell them to someone else who is going to. On a few occasions I have approached a friend upon their return from Europe and offered to buy their €s at the market exchange rate. This benefits both parties.

maybe this is another case of the dynamic currency conversion?

That's possible if the OP was charged in US$.

No...I was charged in euros.

Thanks for the suggestions!