Help planning BeNeLux trip :)
Feb 11, 2019, 1:49 pm
#31
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: DEL
Posts: 1,057
IME the potential credit card issues in Benelux are that (1) the machines selling train tickets at AMS (and other stations) accept only MasterCard while the ticket windows impose a surcharge and can have very long lines -- this was my experience the last time I tried
NS (Dutch rail) ticket machines definitely take Visa as well as MC, and IIRC online PIN cards work. Signature-only cards definitely do not. NMBS (Belgian rail) ticket machines also take both Visa and MC, and online PIN cards definitely work. Again, signature-only cards definitely do not work.
In both the Dutch and Belgian rail systems, you can also buy domestic tickets on the respective operator's smartphone app. Like any other online purchase, signature-only cards work fine--this is how I buy tickets because I want my UR points.
The Dutch ticket machines used to have a confusing (even more so in the poorly-written English) payment prompt where it wasn't obvious that you needed to hit "other" to use credit and let the machine add a 50c surcharge. I don't know what the prompt looks like now that the surcharges are banned; I use the app or the OV-chipcard.
(2) all of the 24/7 hour gas stations tend to accept only local Visa cards on nights and weekends, including at service stations on the autoroute in Belgium --again this was my most recent experience, and the same is true in France and pretty much throughout Europe, although in some places you might be able to insert cash (a bill of some particular denomination, perhaps 10 or 20 Euro) and get that amount of gas if the picky machine likes your currency.
In Belgium and the Netherlands any of the oil-company branded stations (Total, Shell, Q8, etc) should take any Visa or MC with PIN support (online or offline). There are a few oddball discount stations that are debit-only (i.e. Bancontact/Maestro, so no American debit cards), but you're never far from a "real" gas station. In France, offline PIN is still a thing because evidently it's still 1995 there; online-only cards won't always work in French gas pumps but offline-capable cards like First Tech, SDFCU or USAA will.
This is actually exactly what I did on my last trip to Europe - it worked quite often and really sped things up, just like it does here in the US - IF the functionality is both enabled and actually working. But I suspect that most automats that demand chip+pin don't have NFC. Maybe that's changing, too, though.
Last edited by der_saeufer; Feb 12, 2019 at 1:56 am Reason: formatting
Mar 18, 2019, 12:42 pm
#34
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: ORD, RDU
Programs: UA, AA, Marriott
Posts: 364
Just got back from this trip, thank you all for your help. We ended up staying in Gent, which was nice and quiet, but a great base. Maybe Antwerp would have been better with more to do, but overall we are very happy. To comment on the pin card debate, I only had trouble twice. At gas stations, I only could use my debit card since my credit card doesn't have a pin. The only other place was meter parking in Maastricht, it didn't take my CC or debit pin, so oh well. Thank you all for your help, as always! <3
Mar 25, 2019, 4:23 am
#36
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: DEL
Posts: 1,057
Just got back from this trip, thank you all for your help. We ended up staying in Gent, which was nice and quiet, but a great base. Maybe Antwerp would have been better with more to do, but overall we are very happy. To comment on the pin card debate, I only had trouble twice. At gas stations, I only could use my debit card since my credit card doesn't have a pin. The only other place was meter parking in Maastricht, it didn't take my CC or debit pin, so oh well. Thank you all for your help, as always! <3
For the next person reading this thread, re: the parking meter in Maastricht, those take Maestro only and some Belgian cards don't even work. Don't ask me why, but every time I'm there I end up buying parking for people who have cards and notes but not enough change. There are also several parking apps... that only take payment through iDeal (a Dutch online payment system). Not very friendly for a city that's 5 minutes from Belgium and 10 minutes from Germany, but I'm sure the municipality saves €20 a year by not accepting credit cards.