“The bill, please.”
- Spanish — La cuenta, por favor.
- French — L'addition, s'il vous plaît.
- German — Die Rechnung bitte.
- Italian — Il conto, per favore.
- Polish — Poprosze rachunek.
- Swedish — Notan, tack.
- Portuguese — A conta, por favor!
- Turkish — Hesap lütfen.
American credit cards work throughout Europe (at hotels, larger shops and restaurants, travel agencies, car-rental agencies, and so on); Visa and MasterCard are the most widely accepted. American Express is less common, and the Discover card is unknown in Europe.
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A short and simple Zahlen, bitte! is how you ask to pay the check in German. It translates literally to “Paying, please”. A similar alternative to this is Kann ich zahlen, bitte? Alternatively, you can say Die Rechnung, bitte, meaning “Check please” or Kann ich bitte die Rechnung haben?
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Asking for the check This means you'll have to ask outright for the bill. But the good news is that splitting the bill is easier in Germany than in most places in the world. Just tell the server which items you want to pay for. You'll be given a verbal total just for those items.
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Restaurant tips are more modest in Europe than in America. At restaurants, check the menu to see if service is included; if it isn't, a tip of 5–10 percent is normal. In most places, 10 percent is a big tip. If your bucks talk at home, muzzle them on your travels.
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More than 80% of payments in Germany are made using cash, meaning you'll often need cash to pay for your transactions on your trip. The best way to get euros is to make an ATM withdrawal when you arrive in Germany using a card that doesn't charge an international ATM fee.
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If you prefer dealing in cash, then by all means get some euros out before your trip. But actually, you'll find that debit and credit cards are widely accepted in most European cities. Paying by card can be easier and more convenient, without the potential security risk of carrying cash around you.
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