Roissy Bus & ATM Questions
 

Hi,

Does anyone know if the Roissy bus in Paris take credit card or do I have to pay the fare in cash?

What about the taxi in the Paris, do they take credit cards?

Also, how is the exchange rate for the ATM machine in the CDG airport, is the fee worse and higher than the other ATM machines located in central Paris?

"<i>Also, how is the exchange rate for the ATM machine in the CDG airport, is the fee worse and higher than the other ATM machines located in central Paris?</i>"

ATM machines don't set the exchange rate -- Your own bank does that. . . . . . (you will withdraw € and there is no "exchange" going on. It is when that withdrawal is presented to your card's issuer that the rate is determined)

And bank ATMs in France don't charge fees. Your own bank may charge a fee for using an ATM from a different bank. Most do, some do not. Some, such as BofA, don't charge a fee if you use a partner bank's ATM. In France that would be BNP Paribas.

<i>ATM machines don't set the exchange rate -- Your own bank does that</i>

I believe a more accurate characterization of the process would be:

1. The exchange rates are determined by the open market for currency exchange. The result at any given time is pegged as the mid-market rate.

2. The currency transaction itself is made by a broker network such as Pulse or Cirrus which typically charge 1% commission for this service.

3. Your bank does nothing really, but it may charge you a fee anyway. On ATM transactions some banks charge nothing, some charge a percentage, some charge fixed fees, and some charge both a fixed fee and a percentage .

I prefer a bank that charges nothing so when I make an ATM withdrawal in France, it costs me 1% which I consider nominal.

Thanks everyone on the replies regarding the ATMs.

Does anyone know whether Roissy bus and taxi in Paris take credit cards?

Roissy Bus has ticket machines, but it's likely your American cc won't work in them, so I'd plan to pay in cash. You can't just hand the actual driver a credit card, as far as I know - it would hold everyone up forever.

Les Taxis Bleus take credit cards; I don't know about the others.

Some taxis take credit cards, but they don't all. If you are thinking of a long trip (like from the airport), I imagine you can ask the guy in charge of the taxi queue to get you a taxi that will take credit cards.

Exactly -- the taxis that do take cards have the appropriate logos on them, so there is no ambiguity.