Originally Posted by othermike27

Well, my limited experience says you'll wind up with some €100 and €50 notes from whatever ATM you hit, and that many merchants will look unhappy if you wave a €50 or even a €20 at them. As others suggested, most seem to prefer a payment that requires the least amount of change from them. I try to arrange my purchases with this in mind where possible, and to go out of my way to break larger bills at hotel desks or other places on the tourist main stem that are more accommodating.

A good tip (from Rick Steves' guidebooks) is to draw an "odd" amount, forcing the ATM to give you at least a few small bills. For example, my bank lets me draw a maximum of $500 per day per card. Also, most ATMs seem to want to dispense amounts that are multiples of €20. So, if the exchange rate is €1 = $1.35, I can draw 500/1.35 ~ €370 at a time. Round down to nearest 20-multiple (or up, depending on the bank's leniency with the exchange rate), and ask the ATM for €360. You'll at least get €60 in smaller notes to work with until you get back to your hotel.

Or, since you are in Paris, just eat at nice restaurants, which should help you work down any surplus of large notes you might have. I recommend the Cafe de la Paix, right across from Opera Garnier. You can dine sumptuously, imagine yourself hobnobbing with the famous great thinkers and literary persons who used to frequent the cafe, and keep an eye out for the phantom across the street. And you may be sure that your stack of €100's will soon be reduced to a more manageable size, n'est-ce pas?

Originally Posted by dgcom

Strange article. Are they really criminalize having cash in Germany?
Is this a true statement?

What is considered "large" amount?

Oh, and this is so stupid:

Criminals would know about this before some officials will do...