Claire

I'm having trouble with the search function today, so I will apologize if this topic has already been discussed. <BR> <BR>My mother told me that she wouldn't send any postcards from Europe because they were so expensive. (It seems ridiculous to me NOT to spend a few bucks on postage when you've already spent that much money for the trip.) <BR> <BR>Is postage really THAT expensive from England, France, and Italy back to the US? <BR> <BR>What is the bext way to get postcard rate stamps? Are the post offices esay to find, or are they sold at local stores (like they are in oturist areas here?)

Peg

Stamps are easy to come by in a post office or tabac in France and Italy and not that expensive. It's finding the time to sit down and write 30 cards that is hard, but I make myself do it!! People really appreciate receiving them.(We all love to get mail!)

Nancy

I don't ever remember the cost of sending post cards to be a factor. If you are sending them to the USA, you get an additional stamp to put on the card. And the shops selling post cards generally have stamps as well. Do address labels before you leave home to save time and save bringing your address book. Sitting in a park or on a train trip is a great time to jot a few notes to your friends back home. And they really appreciate the gesture!

Bob Brown

Hi Claire. Finding post offices in Europe is no big deal. In France stamps may be bought at Tabak stores. <BR>True, the cost to send a post card to the USA is a little more expensive than sending a post card in the States, but for gosh sakes, when you compare the cost of sending 10 post cards against the cost of the total trip you are talking about a miniscule amount of money, something like .2% or $6.00 out of $3,000. <BR>I think someone needs a better excuse for not sending post cards. <BR> <BR>I don't remember how much it costs to send a post card from Europe to the States for the simple fact that it was such a small amount that I just paid, stuck on the stamps, and dropped the cards in the box. I checked one of my guide books and it says that in France the cost of a post card to the USA is 4 francs and 40 centimes. That comes out to about 55 cents at today's rate of exchange. <BR>If I can afford to go to Paris and Vienna, I sure as heck can afford to buy 10 post card stamps!! <BR>

cmt

I think from Italy the cost of sending a lightweight letter or card to the USA by priority airmail is about $.75 (in USA dollars). In both Italy and France the cost is the same whether you send a postcard or a light letter. A postal clerk in France advised me that it's better to stick the card in an envelope because sometimes the postcards are treated as unimportant. Postage is less to other European countries from italy or France. On my last tow trips to Italy, I never set foot in a post office. I always found little shops that sold stamps. In Provence and the Dordogne, France, during the last two years, I remember finding P.O.s open. Either way, a stamp is a stamp. But once in a while the tobacco store may not know of a RECENT postage increase, and if you put too little postage, your card may be carried by swimmer instead of by air. <BR> <BR>Last year most of my postcards from Sicily arrived in the USA in about 5 or 6 days, but one mailed from the same box at the same time with same postage took about two months. Last month I sent cards to the USA from a fairly remote part of Basilicata, Italy. One arrived in NJ in two days; the others took only a few days longer. I guess the Italian mail system is no longer the second slowest in the world (after Tibet). My parents never did get my postcards mailed from Rome in 1973!

notexpensive

Stamps, France to US, are 4.40 f (about .60)

Anne

I saw on some travel show that if you mail postcards from the Eiffel Tower they get a special frank of the stamp showing it was mailed from there. <BR>I certainly plan on sending cards and will try that.

Kavey

If your mum simply doesnt want to spend time out of her holiday writing postcards then that is a perfectly valid choice. <BR> <BR>I only sent 6 rather than my usual 26 from the safari last month because I wanted to spend every moment seeing and experiencing the location, and it wasnt a holiday where we sat in cafes watching the world go by (that being when I usually write postcards). <BR> <BR>Postage has never struck me as expensive from Europe to US (I do send some postcards that way though most of course come home to UK). <BR> <BR>If cost is a factor I wouldnt worry overly about paying more and posting in an envelope. <BR> <BR>To save time, if that is actually what the issue is, she could do what I do. <BR> <BR>I print all my addresses out onto a sheet or two of sticky envelope labels and then can just peel and stick these onto the postcards when I want to send them. <BR> <BR>I dont write an essay, sometimes literally just "Hope you are well, see you soon, Love Pete and Kavey". <BR> <BR>In my experience, people love to receive a card to know you thought of them on holiday and just because getting real physical mail from friends in this day of emails and phone calls is such a pleasure. <BR> <BR>Just my 2 pennies worth. <BR> <BR>Kavey

Ed

Time to appreciate the US Postal Service! <BR> <BR>Gripe we may about our mail service. It's as good or better than most any i the world, and less expensive, by far, than most. Typically postage is between 50% and 100% higher elsewhere. I'll continue to gripe from time to time about 34 cent stamps and the rest ... <BR> <BR>but the plain fact is, the USPS does very well for us by comparison. <BR> <BR>But, Claire, do tell your Mom that at a cost of much less than a buck each, she can really afford the cost of mailing postcards. She may not have time; the cards may arrive after she does ... but cost is hardly an excuse. <BR> <BR>twenj

Linda

Claire, as to whether or not it is easy to find stamps: Check with your hotel. They usually have stamps and will mail your cards for you or have a mail drop. All my hotels have. Couldn't be easier, and you don't have to go out of your way. I agree, although it is more expensive than the US to mail postcards--though I'm not sure it is more expensive than to mail internationally--the good feeling you give to your loved ones is well worth the relatively miniscule cost.

StCirq

Claire: <BR> <BR>In France, go to the post office and buy a packet of international envelopes. Put the postcards in them and mail them - it's cheaper than the 4.40F if you're really trying to save money.