Credit cards are accepted in almost every large shop and restaurants.

But you will find that many smaller shops, Mc Donalds and some other fast food chains, sale locations ( e.g. large shop puts up a sale in the subway area ) - all these places do not accept credit cards.

Having to make a credit card

myself - Visa and Master Card cards are most popular here.

But as far as I could see - all cards are accepted.

I wouldn't worry about that.

In grocery shops and convenience stores

they just swipe, all other places uses either a PIN or your signature.

They'll ask which you prefer, although very-very often only in Japanese

but they'll try to make an effort and explain using hands :)

Japan is NOT a primarily a "cash-society", it's just that it costs a lot of money to make a contract with the credit-card company and every transition will cost ~3% for fees, so smaller businesses just don't want to do it.

Additional tip: keep a 10 000 yen bill with you ( around 100$ )

, you will not easily find a place to spend it, because expensive places will have credit-card support and places where you'll need cash won't cost you that much.

Card acceptance in major cities is generally good.

All department stores (like Yodobashi) will take credit cards and most small shops will take them as well, no issues here.

I still suggest keeping cash on you as you could get surprised.

I had no issues using my MasterCard, I do not know about the others.

In my experience, the stripe is used much more.

The credit card acceptance is generally bad compared to other major cities in North America, Europe, South Korea, and Australia.

It is slightly worse than in Hong Kong and Singapore, but I don't think it makes a much difference here.

As to the brand of cards, the order of prevalence is Visa, MasterCard, JCB/Amex (both in partnership), Diners, and UnionPay.

However, the prevalence gap between MasterCard and JCB/Amex is quite large.

So if you are concerned, carry either Visa or MasterCard (Visa is more widely used only slightly).

UnionPay is rarely used here, but with the rise of the number of tourists from China, some department stores started to accept it.

More and more stores are making a transition to EMV due to the potential scamming but there are still many places that use the stripe only.

I don't know if there are any places that only accept EMV in my experience, so it is unlikely that you get denied by handing in a card without EMV chip.

Also, most stores don't require you to enter PIN, especially for a small amount of purchase.

The threshold is somewhere around 5,000 ~ 10,000 JPY.

But it depends on each store, I think.

Also, if you don't know or forget your PIN, they will kindly accept a signature.

If you are not sure what kind of stores accept it or not, here is a general standard : Accept : department stores, large electronic shops (e.g. Yodobashi, Bic Camera), +3 star or above hotels, restaurants that cost 3,000 JPY or above per person, starbucks, leading convenience stores (7-11, Lawson), large supermarkets Rarely accept : cheap, chained-cafe (except Starbucks), McDonalds, fast foods, cheap restaurants (mostly not chained), cheap local food shops Never accept : small hospitals, a post office, transportation card (e.g. Suica, except those that are issued as a credit card, which foreign travelers should see it near impossible to create as a tourist) Also, some restaurants and cafes only accept a card if you pay enough, around 2,000 ~ 3,000 JPY.

Acceptance Places expects foreigners paying a large amount are more likely to accept credit cards, such as: Ticket office (but not vending machines) in major railway stations, e.g. JR West "Green Window".

Convenience stores, e.g. FamilyMart , LAWSON , 7-11 . Department stores.

Amusement parks, e.g. Universal Studio Japan

(USJ in Osaka).

Taxis in major cities / urban areas.

However, you still need cash for having ramen, entering parks and temples, riding buses and for a lot of things.

Make sure always have a good amount of cash with you.

Cards accepted JCB ( Japan Credit Bureau)

MasterCard VISA American Express Other cards such as Diners Club and China UnionPay are accepted, but not as widely accepted as the aboves.

For instance, ticket office of JR West and bag drop counters of Peach Aviatvion does not accept China UnionPay.

Using credit card in Japan

Usually stripe, some new terminals use EMVs.

For some places like convenience stores, no signature is required for purchase under ¥10,000.Yet, I did not find any terminals accepts VISA payWave or MasterCard Contactless.

Good answers already, but just to add my 2 yen: To withdraw money, the best ATMs are at Japan Post offices.

Convenience stores ATMs do not always accept withdrawals, Japan Post ATMs always do, according to my experience.

Japan Post offices are open less often, though.

Some places take a fee for credit card (see my picture below).

It is quite rare though.

Wikivoyage has a list of banks and ATMs showing what cards they accept and how much they charge in fees (yes some are free).

I had no major problems with MasterCard for larger purchases in department stores, although lots of smaller places would not accept anything other than cash.

Visa only works to get cash at 7-11, I've found no other place that accepts it.

Question: I know that Japan is primarily a cash society but I've heard that they've become more accepting of credit cards lately. Question is 3 parts:   How common is credit card acceptance in major cities?   What cards are more accepted?  When they are accepted, do they use the stripe or do they use EMV and pin?

Acceptance of Credit Cards in Japan

Almost any large store or restaurant will accept cards, but smaller shops, cafes, small hospitals, post offices and some other places do not.Many places only accept the stripe only, but more and more are transitioning to EMV. For this reason, it is worth carrying enough cash with you. To get cash, the best ATMs are at Japan post offices.

Credit cards are not as widely accepted in Japan as in Europe and North America, therefore it is recommended to carry some cash. Credit card acceptance is better in major cities and also in large stores. Small shops, public transport and entrance to parks and temples, on the other hand, must be paid in cash. Mastercard and Visa are the most widely accepted cards. ithdrawing cash with a credit card is easiest at Japan Post offices and 7-11 stores.

Credit cards are usually accepted in Japan in larger stores and acceptance in major cities is good.

Credit card acceptance is bad compared to Europe and North America. More stores moving to EMV but swipe still widespread. Major cards are accepted especially Mastercard and Visa.

It is important to carry some cash as small stores and restaurants, transport and entrance to temples and parks only accept cash.

Japan Post offices and 7-11 seem to be the best places to withdraw cash with a credit card.


I work in the industry and therefore feel qualified to answer this question.

For cards bearing a chip; if you need to use a PIN in your home country, then you will be required to use a PIN overseas.

The preferred method of authorisation is embedded into the chip in your card.

All terminals that comply to the EMV standard will request a PIN to authenticate the transaction if the card is configured as 'Chip & PIN'.

If your card is configured for 'Chip & Signature', then a PIN will not be required.

The only exceptions are in the US (and a limited number of other countries) where a proportion of retailers have still not implemented EMV terminals at their Point of Sale.

In these cases, EMV chip & PIN cardholders are required to swipe and sign, and more often than not, are requested to show photo ID.

If your card does not have a chip, then no PIN will be required anywhere worldwide.

However, you may find that your card is simply not accepted or that the terminal or machine is unable to process it.

One note for Germany in particular, credit cards are not as widely accepted as in other European countries.

Debit cards can be used almost everywhere, but you may want to plan on carrying enough cash to cover in case you find yourself in a place where you cannot use credit cards.

As mentioned in the comments to the question - vending machines in the countries you are planning to visit, as well as public transport ticketing machines will only accept EMV chip and pin cards and frequently, only EMV debit cards are accepted.

In some cases, a ticket machine may be the only way to purchase a ticket and you may need to ask the assistance of a local to buy a ticket on your behalf.

I have used a US debit card in Czech Republic couple of years ago.

I had to enter PIN to withdraw from ATM, but for paying in shops, a signature was required instead.

I believe this is related to the fact that the card didn't have a chip (like my Czech debit card does), only a magnetic strip.

The other kind of cards I have experience with are Czech debit cards.

With new ones, they not only have a chip, but are also contactless, which means you don't have to enter PIN (or write signature) if you're paying less than 500 CZK.

It depends on your card capabilities.

If it is EMV compliant with a chip then it may happen very probably across all Europe.

I wouldn't recommend only having a magstripe & signature card in Europe as, in some places, the card reader won't accept magstripe or the magstripe reader is covered.

Chip and Signature will work in a lot of places that accept the card.

Keep in mind, though, that in some countries VISA and MasterCard acceptance is poor and AmEx even worse.

In the Netherlands, for example, Maestro and V-Pay are dominant (a European standard) or, in Germany, some places only accept the national standard girocard.

Although slowly it's changing, if you shop in the big chains, you probably won't have a problem.

And, as others said, some credit card readers may require a PIN to work.

The German Railway, for example, recently changed its ticket machines to prompt for a PIN, as customers have raised security concerns.

In some countries contactless payments are getting more and more popular (Especially in eastern Europe, where in some countries it's an exception not to be able to pay contactless, but sometimes also in Germany, UK etc.).

This means you can easily get along with Apple- and AndroidPay.

You may consider setting it up for your card and use your Phone for payments whenever you see the contactless logo to avoid complications.

Assuming you are American, your credit card (and maybe your ATM/Debit card) will either be a chip & signature card or and older-style swipe and signature card.

For ATM cash withdrawals, your ATM card + PIN will almost certainly work fine.

You may be able to use a credit card for cash advances this way as well; contact your credit card company for the PIN.

Note that fees for withdrawals with your ATM card will be substantially lower than for with your credit card.

This is your most reliable means of payment (many merchants do not accept credit cards), so I HIGHLY recommend you keep some cash handy at all times.

For chip+signature cards, you will be able to pay just fine for merchants with manned terminals, with no PIN required.

Sometimes merchants will not know they need to ask for your signature, but I've never had a problem with the charge going through anyway.

You will NOT be able to pay at automated kiosks, such as many autoroute toll booths in Austria and train/mass transit ticket machines.

You MUST have cash on hand to pay at these machines.

For swipe and signature cards, you will likely be successful at higher end or more touristic restaurants and also at most hotels, but I wouldn't count on the card being usable most other places.

Source:

American living in Europe and using both US and Euro cards extensively in Austria and Germany.

Question: We are headed to Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic in a couple of weeks and heard we may be required to use a PIN along with our credit cards. Is this true?  I don't even know what my PIN is!

Will we be required to use a PIN associated with our credit cards in Central Europe?

If you need to use a PIN in your home country, this will also apply abroad, but it will not be required if it is configured for 'Chip & Signature'. While vending machines and automated kiosks will require a pin, many shops that accept cards will allow you to sign. However, this is not always true though, so it may be worth organising payment with your smartphone and cash withdrawals with an ATM card + PIN, or contacting your credit card company for the PIN. Be aware that many countries have poor acceptance of Visa, MasterCard and especially AmEx.

Using a swipe and signature or chip and signature credit card may be a problem in Europe where chip and PIN cards are the norm and debit cards tend to be preferred to credit cards. Many outlets do not have the hardware to process swipe and signature paments, especially where payment is made through vending machines. Withdrawing cash from ATMs should not be a problem, however.

Credit card acceptance is poor in some countries in Europe, where debit cards are preferred. Chip and PIN most common, problems may be encountered with swipe + signature cards as the terminals cannot accept them. Contactless payment is becoming more popular so Google and Apple pay can be used at these terminals. Cards should be fine for cash withdrawals at ATM.

Debit cards are the norm, especially in Germany. Vending machines and other outlets where payment is automated will not accept swipe and signature cards.


In Latvia there is a category of people called " noncitizens " - those people lived in Latvia when it got independence, but they weren't Latvian origin so they did not get Latvian citizenship automatically, and got this status instead.

Those people use a passport (it is indeed a true passport) issued by Latvia, but they are not considered citizens of Latvia.

This also affects the list of countries they could enter visa-free - for example, they're not allowed to US under ESTA, but they can enter Russia without visa if born before 1992 (Latvian citizens need visa).

Also in the USA if you're a permanent resident, you can obtain the "travel document".

It is not a passport (unlike the document mentioned above), but could be used for traveling.

This document would be issued by the USA, but for someone who is not US citizen or national.

This is an odd example, but nationality law is full of odd cases.

All US Citizens are considered US Nationals, but it is possible to be a US National without being a US Citizen .

This situation applies to some people from American Samoa (and Swains Island , with its population of 17 coconut harvesters), residents of the Northern Mariana Islands who have elected to be non-citizen nationals, and children of existing non-citizen nationals who pass on their nationality (subject to special requirements).

Very few people fall into this category (especially as some American Samoans will still obtain citizenship at birth through Jus sanguinis, and others will naturalize), and the State Department didn't want to spend money printing up special paperwork for them, so people who fall into this atypical classification are issued US Passport books that bear the annotation : "THE BEARER IS A UNITED STATES NATIONAL AND NOT A UNITED STATES CITIZEN."

As the Department has received few requests, there is no justification for the creation of a non-citizen national certificate.

Designing a separate document that includes anti-fraud mechanisms was seen as an inefficient expenditure of resources.

Therefore, the Department determined that those who would be eligible to apply for such a certificate may instead apply for a United States passport that would delineate and certify their status as a national but not a citizen of the United States.

This status occasionally causes problems , as non-citizen nationals may not be able to hold government jobs, vote, or run for office, at least not without obtaining citizenship, which requires the fee, test, background check, etc...

Yes.

For example, people born in American Samoa are not US Citizens under jus soli (although they would be citizens if a parent was a US Citizen), but they would travel on a USA passport.

This anomaly is a leftover of American colonialism.

American Samoans are US nationals but not citizens .

Unlike, say, someone from Puerto Rico, even if resident in one of the 50 states, they would not be eligible to vote.

(This situation once held for Puerto Rico and the other territories taken in the Spanish-American War.)

Source

I suspect other countries have similar situations.

There are a few odd cases, some of which have been mentioned, but I think the main use case for that are actually refugee travel documents (based on the 1951 convention or otherwise) and 1954 convention travel documents for stateless people.

Technically they are sometimes called “travel documents” instead of “passport” but they look like passports, are used like passports and you would need to fill in this form if you had one.

Now, by definition, stateless people don't have a citizenship and refugees cannot avail themselves of the protection of their country of citizenship (and in particular they cannot apply for a passport, even if they are still citizens)

so in both cases the travel document is issued by the state where they reside, which is not their country of citizenship.

The remnants of British colonialism left behind a number of complex citizenship situations, including special types of passports issued to non-citizens, such as the British National (Overseas) passport .

Wikimedia Commons:

Hoising (Note the lack of the words "European Union" on the cover, as such passports do not grant EU citizenship rights)

These passports do not grant the right of abode in the UK.

While millions of these passports were issued after the handover, far fewer are in use today, as cheaper Hong Kong SAR passports are often more advantageous.

According to this Freedom of Information request , there are also a number of passports outstanding for British Overseas Territories Citizens, British Overseas Citizens, British Subjects, and British Protected Persons.

All hold some form of British nationality , but not British citizenship, and special rules apply to where and how these passports are accepted.

Such situations could lead one to complete your booking form by specifying the UK as their country of passport, but another country as their country of citizenship.

In 1979, six American diplomats were sheltered by Canadian officials after escaping the storming of the US Embassy in Tehran, as dramatized in the film Argo .

The effort to sneak them out of the country was coordinated by the CIA and the Canadian government and required Canadian passports so the Americans could pose as part of a Canadian film crew.

Canada's Cabinet met in secret and approved an Order in Council authorizing Canadian passports ( under fictitious names ) to be issued to the six Americans, as Canadian law would ordinarily prohibit such documents.

The diplomats were able to board a flight out of Iran and were reunited with their families.

So yes, it is possible, but this particular route (or any other where a country's government authorizes the special issuance of a passport contrary to normal laws) will require extraordinary circumstances indeed.

When I was working in a hostel in Spain, a few times I checked in people with passports from where they were living instead of from their country of citizenship.

There was always something like "non-citizen" printed on it.

For example, Travel Documents near the bottom of http://www.dha.gov.za/index.php/travel-documents2

Question: So I was looking at a travel site where when you make a booking, it asks for both your country of citizenship AND country of passport.  I have dual citizenship, and thus am eligible for both passports.  So I  could  I suppose put South Africa for the citizenship and New Zealand for the passport field if I'm feeling like it, but it seems pointless to have the two fields like that.    Then I wondered - is it possible to get a passport without having citizenship of that country?

Passport without citizenship of that country?

American Samoans are US nationals and can carry a US passport, but they are not necessarily citizens. Some people have passports from where they are living rather than their country of citizenship.

There are people who hold a passport without being a citizen of a country, for example American Samoans.


Well, most often you can't choose.

Often you need the train to get from one city to another

and then the bus to get to your final destination that might be a small village.

Even though private bus companies try to get into the market, the trains between cities are at the moment still way more frequent and reliable.

In particular for you first two journeys, to Montreaux and Lucerne, I would take the train.

As far as I know, there is not even a bus connection available, and even if there would be one, it wouldn't be faster than the direct train that takes 1 hour to Montreaux, respectively three hours to Lucerne, without the need of changing trains.

Check out sbb.ch for up to date time tables.

In any case, think about buying a half fare card .

You pay 150 CHF and then every ticket that you buy within a year

costs only half its original price.

Last year I was also checking Swiss bus tickets online but couldn't find anything better.

Switzerland has a very pristine rail network and maybe that is a reason Swiss government just focuses on rail network rather than buses.

I visited Switzerland last year and bought Swiss individual super saver tickets and found really cheaper as a tourist.

Here is the link for that website: http://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/supersaver-tickets.html

And you have just mentioned that you have currently moved to Switzerland and

you have a longer stay there.

The half-fare travel card is the best option for your travel within Switzerland.

you could get all the required information from this website: http://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/railpasses/half-fare-travelcard.html

Also the route just mentioned Geneva-Montreux-Lucern is really worth to travel through Train.

It is a spectacular scenery specially from Montreux to Lucern

There is also a website where you can find buses fares and connections in Switzerland: https://www.postauto.ch/en

You can't take a bus between major towns/cities in Switzerland, as buses are not allowed to compete with the train system.

In der Schweiz dürfen Fernbusse Passagiere nur über die Grenze, aber nicht innerhalb der Schweiz von einem

Ort zum anderen transportieren.

which translates to In Switzerland, long-distance buses can only transport passengers over the border, but not from one place to another within Switzerland

The Post Auto buses supplement and extend the train network, but don't act as competition to the existing train routes.

International bus routes starting in Switzerland exist, and are an option for visiting cities in neighbouring countries, but by law you can't get off the bus until you cross the border.

If you are open to other options, consider car sharing.

It doesn't have to be your car.

You can look up on any version of blablacar (linked to the UK one for english) and find really cheap rides to big cities of Switzerland.

If you don't find a ride to where you want to go, you can rent a car and then get some other passengers to share the ride and split the cost.

While car renting in Switzerland is quite expensive, since you live in Geneva you can rent the car from neighbouring France, which is considerably cheaper.

Keep in mind there is a constant stream of new people in Geneva and everyone wants to travel for cheap, so it's easy to find fellow passengers.

Just post in the facebok groups of the area.

In addition to the existing advice (especially about the half-fare travelcard), if you're going to really use public transport a lot (for at least 4 months), you may also want to see whether it's worth it to get the GA (Generalabonnement) travelcard .

If you have the half-fare travelcard, it's also possible to get the 1-day travelpass .

Note that it's quite common for municipalities to offer those 1-day travelpasses for a discounted price to their residents, but they are available in limited quantities and only for the local residents.

( see here for Geneva )

As for Geneva bus system (TPG)- if you use the bus to go to work at least 3 times a week - get a monthly abonnement for 70 CHF.

I work as a freelancer, so I don't commune anywhere - for me just getting a full fare for 3 chf from time to time is better.

For train system:there are also supersaver tickets http://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/supersaver-tickets.html - discounted tickets but time and date are fixed, also they are non-refundable.

You might also benefit from Carte journaliere (full day pass for all means of transport in whole Switzerland for 42 CHF) http://www.ville-geneve.ch/demarches-administratives/mobilite/carte-journaliere-cff/ (purchase in advance)

Count

what works for you better - sometimes just paying full price is cheaper than getting an abonnement.

I have very good memories of using one of the Swiss rail websites , but I can not find anything on long distance buses, Rome2Rio does not give them, google does not give them.

Buses in Switzerland do the short distances from the railway station towns to the villages, sure.

But I can not find long distance buses online.

So the answer to your guestion is: Trains are likely the cheapest option for long distance travel where you do not want to use a car, as buses do not connect places far apart.

When booking early, do check flights and travels via other countries.

Which train and how much it costs you can find on any of the rail sites that give prices for Switzerland.

Most of Swiss residents who use public transport have the half price card ("halbtax") that reduces the price as much as twice.

It is valid in all trains and most of the buses.

As you have the living address in Switzerland, I would strongly recommend to obtain such a card first thing to do.

It may look expensive but will pay itself in a first few journeys.

Also, when using the city transportation system, be aware that tickets are valid in all zones indicated on the ticket, regardless of the travelling direction or anything the like.

These systems cover a huge areas (for instance, Zurich system also covers all Winterthur and good piece of land around).

You can buy 24 hour ticket for all zones and spend all day on the way in any direction.

Question: My husband and I recently moved to Geneva. We both will be working and sometime travelling within Switzerland for sightseeing on weekends. We will be mostly visiting different parts but for only two nights at a time, so obviously we don't need a Swiss Pass. Our first plan is to visit Montreux and Lucerne.    What is the cheaper option, bus or train?

Train and bus costs in Switzerland

Trains are way more frequent and reliable than buses in Switzerland, and intercity national buses are not permitted in the country. You could consider buying a supersaver ticket, Carte journaliere (full day pass for all means of transport in whole Switzerland for 42 CHF) or half-fare travelcard, and you can compare prices on any of the rail sites. Another option is to try car sharing, e.g. with blablacar.

Travelling by train is definitely the preferred means of transport between cities in Switzerland and several type of card are available for travellers, for example the half-fare card. Buses are not available between cities as they are not allowed to compete with the train system. Alternative options include flying and car sharing.

Train is definitely the major means of transport between cities in Switzerland.  The system is very good and all schedules and prices are available on railway websites.

Bus routes are not allowed to compete with the train system so there are no connectionc between major cities. There are international bus routes starting in Switzerland.

There are a number of special cards for travellers, including the half-fare card.

There are other option for travelling in Switzerland including flying and car sharing.


I live in Denmark (Copenhagen), and I can go weeks without using cash these days.

What I have is a 'Dankort' (national debit card system), so the experience doesn't necessarily transfer directly to foreign cards -- but the vast majority of places that accept

it also take at least Visa and MasterCard.

You'd need cash for bus tickets if you buy from the driver, but that's the only thing that comes to mind offhand.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/16947/hmakholm left over Monica

Credit and debit cards are extremely widely accepted in Sweden and Denmark.

Almost every vendor of anything accepts them - from big stores and hotels to small restaurants to convenience stores.

I once spent an entire week in Sweden and Denmark without once buying or spending any local currency.

My last action was to buy a small bottle of water at Copenhagen airport, and the seller waved away my apologies for using a card for such a small amount, as if to say I was apologizing for nothing.

You will probably need a chip and pin card.

One very important thing to note about credit card use in Denmark is that it no longer is common to have your card's magnetic strip read and then sign a receipt.

All (at least almost all) terminals in stores and hotels and hand held terminals in restaurants and even taxis expect that the card has a chip and that you know your pin code.

As for public transportation you can buy tickets at train stations with a credit card, but not in buses.

Though the bus driver has some change, don't expect the driver to be able to give change back for 100 kroner notes.

If you plan on travelling by bus, get hold of some 20 kroner coins.

Bus tickets in Denmark are area and time limited, so you can't buy a return ticket.

Only when travelling longer distances can you buy return tickets for trains

(you have to travel across regional boundaries).

I spent a week in Copenhagen this year, and I didn't use any cash at all.

I bought transport tickets from vending machines, and paid everything with my Canadian credit card.

We spent 3 weeks in Denmark and barely used any cash.

It would be easily possible not to use any at all, given that most hotels, restaurants and shops accept credit cards.

Sure, there will be a few that take cash only but nothing you cannot avoid during your stay.

We pretty much only used cash for street food and some parking.

I live in Aalborg and from my personal experience: I honestly can't remember when I last used cash.

Most stores, shops, and even hot dog stands accepts most kinds of credit cards.

Most commonly accepted cards are Visa, MasterCard, and DanCard, on rare occasions you will find a shop that doesn't accept MasterCard.

(note that since I only have experience with MasterCard I can't say if same happens with the other cards)

If however, you find a place that doesn't accept the card you use, there would most likely be a bank nearby or an ATM machine that would accept your card.

I'm from Norway where cash is about to become obsolete.

Even the strawberry seller in a booth in the field accepts credit card or mobile payments where I live.

I travel frequently to Denmark and never use cash, only visa/MC.

One thing that used to be common in Scandinavia is the use of debit-cards, this was due to "social" laws and regulations that said that no one living in these countries should ever need to buy food on credit.

This has changed over the past years and credit cards and mobile payments is widely used.

However American Express and Diners are not widely accepted same way over here as over there..

From the other answers, things have apparently changed, but here is my experience: 10 years ago in Ålborg, most grocery stores would not accept my card (MasterCard), because it was not a "Dankort".

I had to withdraw cash regularly.

I have lived for a year in Aalborg and the only places in which I had to pay with cash were buses and certain bars (bars usually only accept Danish credit cards).

I could use my Visa in all supermarkets and stores, no matter the amount.

Question: In the next days I'll spend a working period (few weeks) in Denmark (Aalborg).  I would like to know if credit cards are frequently used in Denmark, are them more or less accepted everywhere in Aalborg? Or instead, do I need local currency (cash) to buy in some places?

Are credit cards prevalent in Denmark?

Cards are common for purchases of all kinds, and it is rare for a foreigner to need cash apart from in some bars that only accept Danish cards, and on buses. However, it is becoming much less common to use cards with a magnetic strip and signature.

Credit card use is widespread in Denmark and most people use cash very infrequently. However, a chip and PIN credit or debit card is required. In fact, bus tickets on the bus, parking and street food seem to be the only things you cannot buy using a credit card.

The use of credit cards is extremely widespread in Denmark. They can be used almost everywhere and cash is actually used very little. A chip and Pin card is required, however.

The only things you cannot pay for in Denmark with a credit card are bus tickets on the bus, street food and parking.


TL;DR:

as of 2016, it was Russian; its dominance is drastically decreasing nowadays; a foreigner who wants to speak on the streets of Kyiv should consider historical, political, and cultural aspects for their choice of language.

Long story.

Russian was the most comprehensible language simply because almost all Ukrainian speakers are bilingual, unlike the Russian speakers.

Calculation Method : if you simply take a group of people and count languages they are able to speak, you will notice that: Nearly 100% of those who speak Ukrainian would also have a good grasp of Russian.

So every Ukrainian speaker would count for both Ukrainian + Russian columns of your survey.

A good amount of the above also count for other languages, e.g., Ukrainian+Russian+Hebrew or Ukrainian+Russian+Crimean Tatar .

While far from 100% of Russian speakers would count to other languages.

"Russian speaker" quite often means "Russian-only speaker" .

Dare to claim that I have never seen a single "Ukrainian-only speaker".

Tendency : Russian dominance is drastically decreasing since the moment of Russian invasion to Ukraine's Crimea and Donets'k/Luhans'k regions.

Even the older people (like myself) who, during the times of forced russification, were grown in a Russian-speaking environment, now attempt to speak Ukrainian in their families.

There is no opposite process.

Age : The younger the more leaning toward Ukrainian.

As a foreigner, what language should I choose to speak in Kyiv?" — since this is Travel.

SE, the OP may be also interested how a traveler chooses the language to use in Ukraine.

I would recommend to read Which languages to brush up on for Ukraine trip?

question and its answers.

This answer summarizes it very well:

If your goal is to make an impression on locals I would definitely go with Ukrainian .

At the moment, Russian language is associated with Russian invasion even though a lot of people still speak Russian.

For me speaking Russian in Ukraine is like going to WWII occupied France (1) and trying to speak German with French people .

I am not telling that you will get in trouble with Russian, but you could be more considerate to the local population.

Source: I'm a citizen of Ukraine, born in Kyiv.

(1) For clarity and best accuracy, consider partially-occupied France in the period between 10 May – 25 June 1940 or France just after its liberation in 1944.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/26641/bb says Curb russian Trolls

Both Ukrainian and Russian are commonly spoken in the city;approximately 75% of Kiev's population

responded "Ukrainian" to the2001 census question on their native language, roughly 25% responded"Russian".

According to a 2006 survey, Ukrainian is used at homeby 23% of Kievans, 52% use Russian and 24% switch between both.

Inthe 2003 sociological survey, when the question 'What language do youuse in everyday life?' was asked, 52% said 'mostly Russian', 32% 'bothRussian and Ukrainian in equal measure', 14% 'mostly Ukrainian', and4.3% 'exclusively Ukrainian'.

Quoted verbatim from Wikipedia .

Source 1:

What languages are spoken in Ukraine?

- Ukraine Magazine.

Source 2: Kiev:

The City, Its Inhabitants, Challenges for Today and the Future - Zerkalo Nedeli.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/41775/Revetahw says Reinstate Monica

Someone told me most people mainly use Russian in everyday life and at home (which is what's relevant to this question), and Ukrainian in official contexts.

Is this accurate?

This is fully accurate.

Being in Kiev it is extremely rare to hear Ukrainian speech, even though a lot of the signs are in the official language.

If you speak Russian it should be extremely easy to communicate.

Source: traveling to Kiev a few times this year.

In Kiev and many other regions use of Ukrainian has been increasing and instruction in most schools is in Ukrainian.

The percentage of people speaking Ukrainian "on the street" is about 30% in Kiev, 40-80% in Zhytomyr, Vinnytsya, Khmelnytskyy, Chernivtsi, Mukacheve, and Uzhhorod, 5-10% in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Odessa, 1-5% in Crimea, Donetsk, and Lugansk, and 80-98% in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Khmelnytskyy, and Lutsk (these are just approximations).

Rural areas have a significantly higher concentration of Ukrainian speakers and speakers of "Surzhyk" (Ukrainian mixed with Russian), however, the most literary Ukrainian is spoken by educated individuals in the cities.

Source: http://www.tryukraine.com/info/languages.shtml

Last update Feb 2016

If you're a Russian-speaker, you might have a hard time telling when someone's speaking Ukrainian.

I listened to "Strelkov's" news conference after the shootdown of the luckless MH17 airliner and couldn't immediately work out why someone was repeating what "Strelkov" had just said.

Then the penny dropped: he was "translating" into Russian, even though none of the words changed.

My experience in late 2017 as someone who speaks neither language: learn the basic words/phrases in both.

Start with Ukrainian and let the other person reply in their preferred language.

No one was ever offended by my choice of language.

Like people everywhere, they are happy if you make an effort in either language.

Question: I'm aware that there are both native Ukrainian and Russian speakers among Ukrainians, with the west being more Ukrainian-speaking and the east/south more Russian-speaking.  What about Kiev today? I suppose the vast majority is bilingual as in most of the country, but what is the main everyday language in the city?  Someone told me most people mainly use Russian in everyday life and at home (which is what's relevant to this question), and Ukrainian in official contexts. Is this accurate?

What is the main spoken language in Kiev: Ukrainian or Russian?

Russian is more common and over 52% use it most of the time, but Ukranian is becoming more common and is used in schools and official settings. To make a good impression, Ukranian might be the better of the two, but it would be good to learn some basic words/phrases in both.

If you speak Russian, it is very easy to communicate in the Ukraine. However, if you want to impress the locals, maybe learn Ukrainian. Most people in Ukraine are bilingual and they seem to choose which langauge to speak depending on the context. Ukrainian is increasingly used in schools and by much of the rural population.

Learn Ukrainian if you want to impress the locals. Learn a few basic words in both languages.

The majority of people in Kiev are bilingual, they speak Russian and Ukrainian.

Use of Ukrainian is increasing and it especially widespread in rural areas. It seems people chose the langauge they use depending on the context.

It is very easy to communicate if you speak Russian.


The simple answer is, no, this won't be allowed in any normal hotel-hotel.

Very simply, use holidayrentals.co.uk or airBnB.com to rent a "gite" instead.

You'll save more money and it will be far more suitable for what you want.

You can instantly find examples of what you want, https://www.homeaway.co.uk/p78239

You mention a TWO WEEK stay so, indeed

, it is very likely you would want to get a holiday rental, not stay at a hotel.

Note that in most world regions now, there's a category of "apartment hotels" (sometimes "suite hotels" or "long stay hotels" or "business hotels" or "aparthotels" or "apart-hotels") that indeed have kitchens, example http://glasgow.frasershospitality.com/en/gallery.html (go to the third photo!)

and this can blend through to just renting a "serviced apartment",

so: http://www.premiersuitesglasgow.eu which of course have kitchens, priced for corporations though.

You are basically the perfect customer for holidayrentals.co.uk or airBnB.com.

TIP - book EARLY as the small owners of holiday apartments, sell out weekends and short stays you know?

So it's hard to book two whole weeks, in some cases.

TIP - for two weeks you can definitely pay less!

Just politely email and say "how much as you asking for a two week stay?"

Good luck!

It's not just a matter of "high-power electric equipment", but of smell and dirt too:

cooking is not an activity easy for the enviromnent, especially when with "environment" we mean "a room the size of two beds and a wardrobe".

And although some hotels could allow for it, why not simply searching for an apartment?

Either on AirBnB or just on a booking site like Booking.com, you'll find lot of places with a stove included and you are allowed to cook whatever cross your mind.

Or, you can find (but they are a bit rare) hotels with a floor kitchen and a common space to stay and eat.

I once found one in Barcelona and it was really really good.

While I'm not familiar with the situation in Scotland specifically, it sounds like what you'd want is an extended stay hotel -- the ones I've stayed at within the US will tend to have in-room kitchens with at least a stovetop (no oven), a full-sized refrigerator, and at least a small set of pots and pans and cooking utensils.

For a room to be usable for cooking it has to fulfill 3 important criteria: Availability of sufficient power source (eg a powerful socket).

Moisture-resistant furniture and ventilation to remove the moisture that is released when cooking.

Sufficient fireproofing, that is not having easily flammable things like beds too close to a cooking station.

It's pretty obvious that typical hotel room fails at least points 2 & 3.

The closest thing would be a bathroom, but I guess you wouldn't like to cook next to a toilet.

That's 2x "no" and one "maybe"

- if you can find a socket which allows such power draw.

Which results in no, you can't cook in a hotel room .

TL;DR

Don't in a hotel, use a hostel for cooking In the UK, there is only one type of socket commonly found, the 13A 230V, which is rated at just over 3kW.

(International type G, but no-one calls them that.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_electricity_by_country ).

It is possible that the up-stream breaker (normally 32A) is not rated to allow all its sockets to draw 13A, as the hotel will expect them mainly to be used for charging devices.

However, as they are likely to provide clothes irons for guests use, the socket will be able take at least 1kW.

The main problem you are likely have is that almost all hotel rooms have smoke detectors; The hotel management are likely to take a very dim view of triggering it.

Stick to instant meals that can be made with hot water, there will be a small electric kettle in the room.

However, If you DO want to cook when on your holidays, you can book into a youth hostel.

They welcome guests of all ages, some have private rooms (dorms are more common), and there is a communal kitchen for you to use.

Some restrict how many days you can stay at a time; you may need to split your holiday over 2 hostels.

For all hostels: http://www.hostels.com/england or http://www.hostelworld.com/

and there are probably other search sites for them.

The largest association; you'll need to join either in the UK, or at home.

(England and Wales) https://www.syha.org.uk/

(Scotland).

If the room has a stove and/or an oven then yes, you can cook in it.

They won't install a stove if it wasn't meant to be used.

As others have said, most hotel rooms do not have kitchenettes.

The closest I've seen in the US is Extended Stay hotels that have microwave, a fridge and a two heater stove but no oven.

You can not cook food in most hotel rooms, many will even object to bringing externally bought food and drink to your room.

This makes sense when you remember that a significant part of a hotels business is about catering for you.

Some hotels will have a small number of self catering rooms but these tend to be for longer tenancies and you must book them explicitly.

It sounds like what you want is not a hotel, but what is usually known as an aparthotel.

You can also look for 'self catering' accommodation.

Question: We are looking for a hotel for a two weeks stay. We would like to cook our own meals on an electric stove (with no fire). Is it usually permitted to use such high-power electric equipment in a hotel room?  (In case this is relevant, we are going to stay in Glasgow, Scotland).

Cooking inside a hotel room

Most normal hotels will not allow this, and may even object to bringing food from outside the hotel. However, you could try some youth hostels with common cooking facilities, extended stay hotels and aparthotels with kitchen areas, Airbnb, Holidayrentals or other self catering accommodation.

Cooking is not permitted in hotel rooms unless they are fitte with a cooker. Only instant meals are permissible. Travellers wishing to cook for themselves should prefer apartment rentals, hostels, long-stay hotels or aprthotels, all of which have cooking facilities.

You cannot cook in most hotel rooms, unless there is a kitchen in the room. Instant meals made with hot water are OK.

Apartment rentals, hostels, long-stay hotels and aparthotels are all options that allow guest to cook their own meals.


I have spent a couple of short vacations in Las Vegas, touring the area during the day, having dinner and people watching in the evening.

I have never encountered a requirement to gamble.

What you will face is an extremely sophisticated system for encouraging gambling, and encouraging losing more money than you intend.

You will not get from your room to a restaurant without being exposed to multiple opportunities to gamble.

Once in the restaurant, Keno runners will be there in case you want to place a bet.

Sit at a bar, and there will be computer poker screens set in the bar top.

There are no time cues in casino spaces, so people tend to stay longer than they intend.

Personally, I just don't gamble in Las Vegas.

An alternative that works if you do want to gamble is to set aside a definite amount of money you can afford to lose, and stop gambling once that is gone.

There is no obligation to gamble and the audit/reconciliation of guests would be a nightmare if there were.

Gamble as little as you want or nothing at all.

High rollers on "comps" may have different arrangements but these are worked out in advance.

As a standard guest you have nothing to worry about.

I was not in Las Vegas in itself, but in Reno a long time ago which is also a gambling city.

Hotels are, as you already indicated, very cheap.

While you have absolutely no obligation to gamble and you will not be even bothered if you are not interested, gambling cities and hotels have a strong commitment that you should gamble and increase the recklessness and giddiness of their customers.

So I point out what you have to expect.

Vouchers for free gambling (not much money, only as a bait to startgambling).

Vouchers for free services like drinks and food; if you look out to findwhere it is served, you find that the casino is centralized and youcannot avoid looking at it.

You are invited to drink alcohol and dance,both things which are known that they are "opening up" customers.

You will be bombarded with what I would call "light and sound shower".

Blinkenlights and fanfares (I have won).

Luxuries (real and imitated) to show thatmoney is spent and that giving money does not matter ( Don't be a party pooper or cheapskate ).

Many artists are working in this area, not only magicians like Siegfried & Roy, performing stunts.

The reason is not only entertainment, dangerous (real or illusion) situations increases our adrenaline level and makes us prone to reckless decisions.

The working personnel is looking like freshly gathered from a model show.

Interestingly not only women, but also eye candy for the LGBT community.

I think I do not need to point out that it does not increase rational, intelligent behavior.

There is no commitment at all to do so, though there will be plenty of cues encouraging you to do it.

Put bluntly, they don't need to chase skeptics like you when they have a steady stream of retirees waiting to deposit their social security checks directly into the nearest machine.

They don't need to court you for a few dollars of your money when someone else will willingly give away the entirety of theirs.

Just don't expect anything to work in your favor.

One thing to be wary of is hotel personnel approaching you and leading you to think you're entitled to free/discount credits/tickets as a benefit of staying at the hotel, but after some prying it devolves into a commitment to attend timeshare presentations.

Over the years I've spent a few nights in Las Vegas hotels.

There has never been the slightest pressure to gamble, just plenty of incentives.

There used to also be quite a bit of promotional activity directed at locals, over the years I'm up ~$50 on the casinos because of this.

I would accept the match play chips, play until they were gone and walk away.

Gambling doesn't hold the slightest interest to me so they're not going to lure me in.

Since the introduction of the loyalty cards, though, this has almost totally disappeared.

These days all I see are coupon books that offer discounts on the various restaurants etc within the casino.

I don't think I've seen a match play chip in the last decade.

Question: I am travelling to Las Vegas for work and want to spend an extra few days there at my own expense.   I am surprised at the cost of hotels on the Las Vegas strip. I suppose that most are subsidised by gamblers spending time in the hotel casino. However, I am not a big gambler and although I will probably gamble something, it would be far below the norm.  In general, is there a commitment to gamble or is it just an expectation that most people will?

Hotels on the Las Vegas strip: is there a commitment to gamble?

There is no obligation to gamble and this would be a nightmare to enforce if there were, but there is a very sophisticated system in place to encourage you to gamble. Set aside an amount that you can afford to lose, or don't gamble at all.

Guests are not obliged to gamble in Las vegas, hwoever, they will face many incentives and encouragement to do so. For thos who wish to gamble a little, it is recommended to set a spending limit. However, it is fine to not gamble at all.

There is no obligation to gamble in Las Vegas but plenty of incentives and encouragement to do so.

Guests can gamble as little as they want, or not at all. Setting yourself a limit for spending is recommended if you wish to gamble.


For medium term flat rentals (1-2 months) you could look to Airbnb which works in about any place by now.

Probably cheaper would be if you can find a private place as a temporary short-term rental ( Zwischenmiete in German) at WG-gesucht which is typically young people renting out their places while away for internships/vacations/... Now be aware that you are on the German housing market so some knowledge of German will come in handy even if Berlin is a fairly international place.

Do insist on seeing the place at least via Skype, signing a contract (in German likely) and be careful about scams.

An alternative to Airbnb: tripping.com ; they aggregate search results from a lot of vacation rentals websites.

Disclaimer: not affiliated in any way to that site, just happened to use it a few times in similar situations as the OP's, with good results (cheaper than Airbnb for comparable listings)

I've lived in House of Nations Studentenapartments Berlin for a short time.

The quality of the housing is just average, but you avoid the possible hassles with finding and renting a room from a private individual on WG-Gesucht (which is otherwise a good choice, and typically cheaper) and you can do more or less everything in English.

Check also CentralHome – First Choice Berlin .

I have rented a few times in Berlin and other German cities through REM

e.

V., Ring Europäischer Mitwohnzentralen .

It was always the case of someone going overseas for a few months/years and looking for someone to cover their rent while they were gone.

I found the people there to be friendly, helpful and efficient.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/3390/Mawg says reinstate Monica

Regarding Berlin in particular, it is often illegal to turn an apartment with long-term rental (housing) into one with vacation rental (tourism).

As a rough approximation, it would be a violation of zoning laws (Zweckentfremdungsverbot).

Politics and law enforcement have been slow to catch up with the massive growth of online portals, but they are starting to do so now.

The legal problems will be for the landlord, not for you, but I would not rely on the likes of AirBnB until that is settled.

Also, you will have to register with the municipal authorities as a resident (after arrival), that may be difficult without a proper rental contract.

In all likelihood the Bürgeramt will only process your registration after you have left, but you have to go through the motions anyway.

"I understand that your question is about renting an apartment, but why don’t you ask somebody to “borrow you the keys” from his apartment?!

Last summer I visited Spain with my friends, one of them had found a good apartment for us in Barcelona for free.

We lived there for about a month and were very thankful to the owner for his fearlessness and trust;)

I learned that my friend had found a new service of home exchange or house-swap, easy to register and use, and we stayed for free due to this awesome service.

Thus I recommend to find a family that can leave their flat for you here

I hope it will be useful.

Good luck"

Question: Next summer I will be attending a two-month course in Berlin with my friend. We are looking for a small flat (studio/one bedroom) at a reasonable price (ideally  in the Mitte district).   Where can I look for it or who may I contact?

Flat renting in Berlin for medium-term period

You can find medium-term flat rentals on Airbnb or WG-gesucht, which is often apartments rented by young people while away for internships/vacations. Tripping.com also aggregates search results from many vacation rental websites. CentralHome – First Choice Berlin is also worth checking.

Airbnb appears to be the best option for a medium term rental in Berlin. Other options include CentralHome - First Choice Berlin and House of Nations Studentapartments.

Airbnb and short-term rentals seem to be the options for a two-month stay in Berlin.

House of Nations Studentapartments and CentralHome-First Choice Berlin are alternatives to Airbnb.


Flights JQ747/JQ748 are to/from Launceston Airport , which does not have aerobridges : Facilities at Launceston airport do not include aerobridges to board or disembark aircraft.

All access onto the aircraft is via aircraft stairs or mechanical lifting equipment (Personal Assistance Device) operated by the airlines.

I would strongly advise you to contact the airline and notify them that you will likely need assistance, and arrive early for check in so you can ensure they're ready.

On the Sydney side, Jetstar flights typically do use aerobridges, but these are some bus-only gates as well.

The airline will be able to advise you regarding this as well.

As for a generic way to find out, I suppose you could always look at the airport in the satellite view on Google Maps , but even if the airport has gates does not guarantee that your flight will use them.

So, again, contacting the airline is by far your best bet.

There is no way to guarantee either.

Aircraft parking assignments are planned in advance, but subject to change without prior notice due to various reasons, such as the previous flight using the gate being delayed.

You can decrease the risk of a bus gate (stairs) by choosing flights that come and go during the daytime, early evening, as they do their best to park turn around flights at the gate for more efficient loading and unloading.

Flights that arrive late or depart very early may use aircraft that park overnight, which would be more likely to use a bus gate to keep jet bridges open for turn arounds.

But if the flight uses a bus gate or stairs, then all airlines and airports have means to board passengers with mobility issues, ranging from simply carrying a specially designed wheelchair up the stairs, to using a lift truck to move the passenger and wheelchair up to one of the service doors.

It is not the flight/plane themselves that could be the problem, but the airport.

If your friend's family member needs extra help to board the plane, then they should ask the airport/airline directly for assistance.

(As soon as possible) For example, I assume they will go to Launceston airport in Tasmania.

They have a "disability/accessibility plan" that supports different disability (wheelchairs and other ) https://www.launcestonairport.com.au/accessibility

I assume Sydney Airport has the same kind of assistance.

Either jet-bridges if boarding from the airport, or ramps (or elevators)

if boarding from the tarmac.

As far as I am aware there is no generic way to discover this information.

See the discussion at Ryanair

Using Jetbridges, Where? about this topic where a Ryanair crewmember was unsure whether they use it at BUD or not as it was not his/her route and also someone pointed out sometimes it's just "depends" and that easyJet some places uses both .

Trying to address your need rather than answer your question directly: Visit the airport's website.

Figure out the best telephone number to call regarding service for passengers with disabilities/

special needs (it might just be some single center service number of course).

Call and tell them about your friend's physical trouble, and ask them how can it be arranged for him not to be inconvenienced/suffer any pain.

Suggest options such as: Ensuring an air-bridge; offering to take him out via an elevator down to the tarmac, then using a mobile lifter to the airplane's entrance; or whatever arrangement they suggest that I might not have though of (ramps?

being carried on a chair?).

I'd say that's the best you can do in your situation.

If the airport is small it may not have bridges and thus you know it will be stairs.

Otherwise you can't know as it can be situational:

"They don't have a gate for us, we are going to use stairs."

It's happened to me twice at major (admittedly foreign) airports.

And since I wrote this I've had to use stairs twice at major US airports.

Seattle has some "gates" that are always actually stairs.

Question: A colleague has a family member who struggles with the stairs, and wouldn't be able to climb (injury).   They've spotted a trip to Tasmania on Jetstar from Sydney, but are wondering if the planes have stairs or an  air-bridge/jet-bridge .  The flights are JQ747 and JQ748, but I'd prefer a more generic way of finding out this information?

How to tell if your flight has an air-bridge or stairs?

There is no generic way of finding out in airports where both are used, and the airport can change gates without prior notice. Launceston Airport does not have aerobridges and Sydney has both aerobridges and bus-only gates, but all airports will have ways of accommodating disabled persons, and you can contact them ahead of time to notify them.

It is genrally not possible to know how your flight will be boarded in advance, i.e., using an aerobridge or stairs. If a passenger has moblity issues, it is recommended thy contact the ailrine which will provide boarding assistance in any case.

There is no generic way to know if a flight will be boarded via aerobridge or stairs. Small airports may not have aerobridges and large airports may board some flights via stairs.

It is best to contact the airline if you have a mobility problem and they will arrange to provide assistance wtahtever the method of boarding.


Flying from a major destination, like Bangkok, to a remote location, like the Marshall Islands, is not something that works easily punched into a flight search website.

You really need to research the trip from back to front.

Who flies to the Marshall Islands and from where.

Once you sort this out, figure out which are the bigger airports with the most flight options (Guam, Honolulu).

Then look at flight schedules and prices from these airports to Marshall Islands.

Now you know when to arrive, so start looking for flights from Bangkok to Guam or Honolulu that arrive in time to make your connections and keep the wallet happy.

The Marshalls are tiny and remote, and consequently flight connections (specifically, to Majuro , the only airport of any size) are extremely limited .

Getting there from Bangkok will involve at least two hops.

The only two airports with longer-distance connections to Majuro are Guam (GUM) and Honolulu (HNL).

Your least bad option will thus likely involve flying to Tokyo or maybe Seoul (both well connected on LCCs like Air Asia), then continuing via GUM/HNL; Rome2Rio claims to have Tokyo-Majuro flights for as little as $900.

United flies 3 times a week non-stop from Honolulu<->Majuro.

That's about $1500,- round trip.

BKK

<-> HNL round trip will run you about $1000 (ANA in January) and as little as $750 if you are willing to deal with crappy routing on Korean.

So you should be able to do this for $2500 or less, but you need to buy two separate tickets and make sure you select the non-stop dates for the HNL<->MAJ legs.

Tip: great website for "who flies where when": www.flightconnections.com.

Just click on the destination and all scheduled routes pop up.

TL;DR About $2000, and Brisbane!

The two sites best for working out your options are Flightconnections.com which shows you a map of nonstop routes FlightMapper.net which gives you a list of direct flights In this particular case, looking at the Majuro connection list from FlightMapper we see that there is a direct flight to Nauru, and checking the flight number for that clues us in that Nauru Airlines has bookable Brisbane-Majuro flights.

That sets our stopover at Brisbane, which makes further research trivial, Thai has nonstop daily flights for starters.

Since this was an interesting problem, as I live in Bangkok too and visiting Bikini Atoll is on the bucket list along with every other World Heritage Site

, I wrote this process up with complete pictures here,

FlightMapper Flight Finding: $5521 to $2052 stop by and check it out!

There is a island hopper flying between Guam and Honolulu 3 times per week (in each direction).

This flight stops in the Marshall Islands and a few other places (Chuuk, Pohnpei etc).

I went to Pohnpei last year on this flight and it is a rather straightforward flight, the airplane is actually a Boeing 737 (would have expected something smaller).

Flight numbers UA154 and UA155 if my memory serves me right.

One very important thing to be aware of is that although you might not have any plans of leaving the airport at Guam, you need a visa/ESTA for the US!

You also need to pick up your luggage and check it in again, which also means that you have to follow US regulations and treat the trip as if your final destination was the US.

When it comes to prices and flight times there really are no ways of getting around this.

As for booking the flights I did it through a travel agent since we took this flight as a part of an around the world trip.

However, I would consider doing the same even if you are justing going to the Marshall Islands, simply because it is such a rare flight to book and having an experienced travel agent that can find the best combination with other flights and assist if anything goes wrong is very good to have.

It is going to be a costly trip anyway, so spending that little extra is something I view as a good investment.

As to where to book the layover you are really limited by when the island hopper flights are going.

Most likely you have to make this layover in Guam whether you want to or not.

The airport is open 24/7, so you can sleep on the floor if you want or book a hotel in the city.

Although the airport is open all the time the check-in counters are not, so make sure to check when you can drop off your luggage.

We decided to do it before they closed in the evening, went down to the city (taxies are available, possible to walk around 4 km if you really want to save a few $) and came back close to midnight to sleep in the terminal.

Question: I'm planning a trip to the Marshall Islands from Bangkok. My usually travel sites like Skyscanner and KAYAK are not helpful, showing flights either $5,000+ or unavailable.    Does anyone know what my best option would be?    Where should I book the layover?

Cheapest/Quickest option for flight to Marshall Islands from Bangkok?

You need to research possible connections for the trip on a site like www.flightconnections.com. The best solution would probably be to fly from Tokyo, Seoul of Honolulu, which are all much better connected and cheaper.

To find flights to remote locations a special website can be used, www.flightconnectionc.com is one. Flights to the Marshall Islands from Bangkok go either via Tokyo and Guam or Honolulu.

Finding remote flights requires a special website: www.flightconnections.com works well. The first thing to do is find who flies to your destination and work backwards.

Options from Bangkok to the Marshall Islands include going via Tokyo and Guam or Honolulu.


There is a large variety of options for travel from Newark Airport to Manhattan.

I have assumed you're travelling to the Port Authority Bus Terminal (as per the bounty), a short walk from Times Square.

I have listed them below in decreasing order of both convenience and price .

Take a direct taxi - $55 plus tip , tolls ($8-10), baggage fees and a $5 rush-hour fee.

Count on ~$70-$80 all in.

A shared van service, for example Supershuttle .

They pick you and a bunch of other passengers up and drop you each off at your own destination.

$23 each way Take the Newark Airport Express bus .

Departs directly outside each terminal on level 1. $16 one-way, or $28 round trip.

This goes straight to the aforementioned Port Authority Bus Terminal

The NJ Transit Train .

Follow signs to the AirTrain on arrival and buy a ticket to Penn station.

There is one change of train, from the airport monorail to a "proper" train.

$13 each way.

This lands you at New York Penn Station which is a 10-minute walk from the bus terminal or Times Square.

The following two solutions are included for completeness; I doubt they'd be suitable for yourself.

Take the #62 bus to Newark Penn Station ($1.60, exact change), and change for the NJ Transit Train (the same one as you'd take from the Airport, but for a lower fare) heading for Penn Station for $5.25.

Total cost of $6.85 .

Take the same bus to Newark Penn Station, buy a Pay-Per-Ride Metrocard with $10 credit on it from one of the PATH vending machines and use same to travel on the PATH train to World Trade Center, changing there for the Subway A or C train to "42 Street - Port Authority Bus Terminal" Station.

Note that this is a reusable card valid for the Subway and NYC buses, and $10 is exactly enough for a round trip from the Newark Penn Station to any New York Subway station.

You may wish to add more if you intend to use the Subway during your stay.

Total cost of $6.60 , not including the one-off card fee of $1.

If your destination is lower Manhattan, you can take the New Jersey Transit bus to Newark Penn Station and then take the PATH train from there to the World Trade Center.

This is especially attractive if you have a relatively small amount of luggage, as the total fare is around $6, but it involves carrying your luggage around.

It is also possible to change to a different PATH train that will take you to Christopher Street or to any of four stations on Sixth Avenue between 9th and 33rd Streets.

My experience was to be met by a stretched limo with a local driver (Mitch)

- I recommend it, best I know of.

You have multiple options: By rail.

Read more about it on NJ Transit official website http://www.njtransit.com/rg/rg_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=AirportConnectionsTo By bus.

I think it costs around $20-25.

You can always ask at Information Desk at the airport where the bus stops and how much is it.

By taxi.

They have flat fee.

Probably around $50-70 depends what part of Manhattan you are going to.

Don't forget tolls and tips.

An economical and convenient way to get to the Port Authority bus terminal in Midtown Manhattan is to take the AirTrain Newark (a monorail) to the airport railway station, and from there catch an NJ Transit commuter train to New York Penn Station, from where it is a single subway stop (line A, C or E) to Port Authority terminal.

This route will take roughly 50 minutes and cost 15.75 dollars in total.

There are also direct buses from the airport to the Port Authority terminal, which cost USD 17.

However, be warned that congestions on this road, as in much of urban America, can be disastrous and lead to a very long travel time unless buses have dedicated lanes on the road from Newark to New York.

Question: I am a small town country girl traveling to NYC alone for the first time. I will be arriving at the Newark airport.   How do I get to Manhattan from there?    What is the best mode of transportation?

New York City from Newark airport

There are many options, including a taxi ($55 plus tip, tolls, baggage fees and rush-hour fee), shuttle bus, #62 bus to Newark Penn Station ($1.60) and then switching to the NJ Transit Train to Penn Station ($5.25) or the PATH train to World Trade Center and then the Subway A or C train to "42 Street - Port Authority Bus Terminal". You an also take the AirTrain Newark (a monorail) to the airport railway station, and from there catch an NJ Transit commuter train to New York Penn Station. Finally, there are also  direct buses from the airport to the Port Authority terminal, which cost $17.

The options for travelling from Newark Airport to Manhatten are: train, bus, taxi or shared van.


Monaco - Monte-Carlo is the only railway station in the Principality of Monaco

Monaco (another European city-state) has only one train station .

Vatican City also has only one train station .

A tourist train serviced it weekly from Italy in 2015, but it is not clear if it is still running.

At time of writing -- but not for much longer -- the railway network in Laos consists of a single station, Thanaleng (near the capital Vientiane), which has passenger services only across the Mekong river to Nong Khai, Thailand: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanaleng_railway_station

However, in 2021 the Vientiane-Boten link across the country to China is scheduled to open, and this will have a number of domestic stations: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vientiane%E2%80%93Boten_railway

Actually all trains in Liechtenstein are Austrian (since 1872) , with locomotive / conductor change in Buch, Switzerland.

In 1970, the passport control was done (for Switzerland) by a Liechtenstein police officer who got on the train in Buch and off at the first Austrian station Feldkirch without stopping.

On request my passport was stamped with a Liechtenstein stamp.

Since early 2018, there is passenger train service between Ethiopia and Djibouti .

It appears that all trains go from Addis Ababa to Djibouti City, so all trains in both countries are effectively international trains.

However, there are at least two passenger stops in each country, so it is also possible to take this train domestically; I'm not sure whether this counts under the criteria of the question.

Moreover, there are other passenger lines under construction in Ethiopia , and once these are completed and begin passenger service, there will be both domestic and international passenger trains in Ethiopia.

Question: All trains in Liechtenstein are international (in fact, they all serve at least three countries).  Are there any other countries with regular passenger train services where all trains are international?

Countries with solely international trains

Monaco and the Vatican City only have one station, and Laos has a single station (Thanaleng) that only has passenger services to Nong Khai, Thailand. Ethiopia and Djibouti have one station each, with trains only travelling from Addis Ababa to Djibouti.

Monaco, Vatican City and Laos all have only one station that has a rail service to another country. Ethiopia and Djibouti have only one railway line that connects Addis Ababa to Djibouti City.

Monaco has only one station as does Vatican City.

Laos has one railway line connecting to Thailand.

Ethipia and Djibouti are connected by one railway line.


While Google Maps may not provide offline maps for this area, OpenStreetMap has mapped Cairo pretty well.

There is a large number of apps for offline maps based on OpenStreetMap.

My favorite so far is Locus Map.

Locus Map has different data sources, some allow downloading, some don't.

"4UMaps" is one that works for Cairo.

Another app I tested is MapFactor Navigator.

This one features good car navigation, but is generally slower than Locus Map.

There are many more apps, but that would be a different question.

The bottom line is: look for an app based on OpenStreetMap that allows downloading areas.

The ones I named are a good example to start with.

My favourite app for exactly this purpose is Maps.me .

They allow you to download countries or provinces/states, depending on the area.

You can add your own locations.

They recently added driving and walking directions.

Another answer for OpenStreetMap, but I like OsmAnd~.

While less polished than others

I find it's more usable in practice than Maps.me, though YMMV.

Only trouble is it's a bit of a pain to install - OsmAnd itself costs money in the Play Store but (since it's open-source)

there's a free redistribution available through F-Droid, an Android package manager.

Yet another great option is the free app HERE WeGo.

It allows to download free offline navigation worldwide.

It's available for iOS and Android

The size of the offline map for Egypt is about 350MB.

Unlike most Open Street Map based solutions, the app if a full offline navigation with Car/foot/public-transport routing (depending on location, I am not sure if public-transport is available in Cairo)

You can check the quality of the map on the web version .

travel.stackexchange.com/users/13112/Josef says Reinstate Monica

Google Maps is quite important in Cairo because of traffic jams.

You're best option is to buy a really cheap sim card with internet once you land in Cairo.

This will be much more useful than any other option.

Getting from Point A to point B in Cairo could take an hour more if you choose the jammed way.

A Taxi driver would speculate which route is faster at which time and as another answer said they know the city pretty well.

Its really cheap to take a taxi in Egypt(e.g 10min

about 3km can cost 0.5 Euro), however for a tourist you might not get those prices.

Another good option however(also via Internet) is uber.

Almost all drivers use google maps and can get you to your destination via the fastest route.

However they are usually new as uber drivers and do not know the city as taxi drivers do

Print off online ones (preferably in colour).

Cairo is a big city and something legible to cover all of it that way would not be practical but that should not be necessary since most people would use taxis to get from place to place if far apart.

Taxi drivers know the city quite well and will head towards the right area and ask once there if not sure of the exact location of a particular address.

Note that even the best maps may be misleading.

I walked hours longer than necessary because Google showed the entrance to my hotel on one street and, though the same block, it was on another.

Then a large building I was using as a reference was not the one I thought it was - Google had "vanished" the one I thought into a park, for security reasons.

Consequently I was one quadrant out until I found a different landmark.

If staying in a hotel it is quite likely to have a city guide, both a free fold-out sheet and books.

This Cairo city map gets OK reviews on Amazon but it is a bit old (2005).

A review for an equally old map says: There are no good maps of Cairo.

Period.

This is probably the best of them but Cairo is a huge city so there are lots of streets that are not shown.

Also, despite the cover, this map is English ONLY, which is a real weakness.

It is also very large, so you end up folding it into something usable, which ends up tearing the corners.

I usually download maps directly to my Garmin device from http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl .

Some companies, such as Everywhere maps and globes in Toronto, Canada, can get the best available topographic and mapping data and print it on demand for you.

But you likely won't get anything better than the old paper city maps or Openstreetmap quality.

On google maps if there is no off-line option you can type "ok google" to save the map.

That being said, it worked for me in Germany where no offline button was given, not in the UK (where there was an offline button) a week later.

I have no idea if it goes deeper than just if there was the button there or not.

I just used maps.me on my iPhone in Cairo (and Luxor) last month

(Dec 16).

The maps seemed very accurate)

although they didn't tell you exactly what kind of neighborhood you'd be getting into).

My paper tourist map would have been totally inadequate.

(Interestingly, as soon as I left the tourist areas, nobody bothered (or even looked at) me, and I don't look remotely Egyptian.)

Question: I am about to travel to Cairo. Usually when I tour somewhere I have offline Google maps downloaded on my phone and I mark all places to be visited.  Is there a convenient alternative for a city like Cairo for which offline maps are not available?

Where to get offline maps for Cairo?

Google Maps is quite important in Cairo because of traffic jams. If you can't get a cheap SIM card, you can also save the map by typing "OK Google". Other services that provide maps for the area are OpenStreetMap, 4UMaps, Maps.me, HERE WeGo.

There are a number of map apps that work well for Cairo. However, buying a sim card at the airport will allow you to use Google Maps. An alternative is to print out the online version in colour.

You're best option is to buy a really cheap sim card with internet when arriving in Cairo.

There are a number of map apps that can be used for Cairo.

Google Maps is important in Cairo so it may be better to buy a sim card. An alternative is to print out the online version in colour.


I will interpret your question as "is it normal practice to tip an Uber driver in London?"---otherwise it would be off topic as opinion-based.

No , it is not expected to tip Uber drivers.

It is also not expected to tip other kinds of taxi drivers in London, except that you might round up to the nearest convenient change if paying in cash.

Your Uber driver will be quite happy to be doing an LHR to SW1 transfer as it is.

As others have said, there is no need.

But I'd like to point you to something else.

Don't use an Uber from LHR.

It is just going to cause you hassle.

Use the tube to get to SW1, Picadilly line till South Kensington and then District line for 2 stops to take you to the middle of SW1.

If your thought of taking an uber was because you'll have a lot of luggage, us ea service like airportr to bring it to your address, it'll be cheaper than the taxi and less faff, especially with a lot of luggage.

If time is at a premium, the fastest way would be Heathrow express to Paddington

and then a taxi / uber or tube.

First trains leave around 5 am so even the first arrivals are no problem.

Seriously, don't drive from Heathrow into central London.

The simple answer is NO.

There is no tip with Uber in London UK.

From the drivers perspective, Uber's policy on tipping is the following: If someone wants to tip the driver, the driver has to say "It is not necessary to tip the driver when using Uber" If the person insists on the tip, the driver can accept it

Any driver I met would first say no to a tip, but then they would accept if I insist.

I only do that if the service is really good.

In general we tip when we get a good service; if a waitress served us well then we tip her.

So why we don't do that for Uber drivers?

Well, simple answer:

You can tip him, it will not cause any harm.

From a Uber forum : You cannot tip from the app

but you can give me him cash.

Also, there is this link about drivers who added a sign for tips .

Question: I've never used Uber in London and will need to transfer from LHR to SW1. Is it customary to tip the Uber driver?

Is it normal practice to tip an Uber driver in London?

It is not necessary or expected to tip Uber or other kinds of taxi drivers in London, although the driver can accept a tip if the passenger insists.

There is no need to tip a uber driver or any taxi driver in London. Uber states a driver should first refuse a tip if it is offered. The driver can accept if the passenger insists.


I also posted an answer in the linked thread, though your case is slightly different.

For reference, I lived in Java and now in Bali.

It's not impossible that there are some hotels that will give you trouble, though I find it highly unlikely with neither of you actually being Indonesian.

As usual, money speaks and most places would rather make money than enforce religious traditions.

Especially in tourist locations (and I doubt you'll go that far 'off the beaten path' that I would not consider it a tourist place)

I can speak from personal experience that I did manage to rent a room with my Indonesian Muslim former girlfriend before.

I can assure you that on Bali and the Gilis you will have no trouble, extremely unlikely in Jogja too, but in some remote places in Borneo

it's possible (but still unlikely)

you'll have to try another hotel.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/28272/Sebastiaan van den Broek

You are an unmarried couple of mixed religion.

But do you have to disclose either?

The easiest solution, if neither of you has any objection to doing so , is faking both a marriage and a shared religion.

Most likely it's enough to just not disclose anything that may lead them to think otherwise.

Law says extra-marital sex is forbidden for Indonesian.

Foreigner do whatever they please.

And the mixed religion couple is no problem either.

There are many mixed religion couple in Indonesia.

They have to get married in Singapore, but this is a totally legal (and admitted) situation.

Even in Aceh

(I know Aceh quite well) you won't have any problem.

Haha.

I traveled around Indonesia with a woman who was in fact my wife, but she carried a different country's passport and we certainly didn't bring a marriage license with us.

Nobody challenged us --

that may have been the wedding rings or the two small children in tow, or just the fact that hotel staff have better things to do with their time than turn away paying customers.

I'll share my experience now that I have travelled and came back from Indonesia.

Absolutely no problem at all.

In most of the hotels, they didn't even asked about the religion.

Some did, but more in a friendly, curious way.

We always stated that we are a married couple, just in case.

We slept in hotels in Jogjakarta, Jakarta, Cemoro Lewang, Banyuwangi, Semarang, Ubud, Gili Air and Sanur.

Hope it helps somebody in the same situation.

Well, "Indonesia" is a big word.

And a big world by itself.

First of all, it all comes to who is the subject: Muslim law has nothing to say over kafir, it's (mostly) their own problem what they do with their lives.

So, when it's about touristic areas or hotels for tourists, you are mostly free to do whatever you want.

This does not apply, anyway, to privately owned places; in short, if you book a guest house or an apartment, or things like AirBnB...the owner has all the rights to prohibit your staying once he discovers that you are an unmarried couple; I've seen myself this in a couple of place in Indonesia, there were signs stating it.

But keep in mind that all of this depends on the island, too, and the area:

Bali is out of question, it is the only big Indonesian island to notbe Muslim, so they never make troubles there.

Gili is another touristic destination, so they'll just ignore mostly everything Jawa can be complicate depending on the area.

Basically it's mostly Muslim, but there are part of Jawa which are more free and some which are more strict.

But again, if you limit yourself to normal hotels nobody will ever have something to say.

Maybe in rural areas do not kiss in public, but Yogja is hardly rural :-)

(while I hade my share of shivers, I must admit it, in Lumajang)

Final point is, obviously, if you are recognizable as a Muslim.

That the case, it can become very complicate even in a normal hotel as someone can get offended by your lack of respect for the tradition (not me, ok?

Just saying, not implying anything), but as a Muslim yourself you already know it, and anyway you wrote in comments that you are not recognizable as such.

Question: I am a  muslima  with  Moroccan  passport, and my boyfriend is European. Do you think that we might have problems sharing a room in Indonesia? We do not plan on going to Aceh. We will mostly go to Yogjakarta, Borneo, Gili Islands and Bali.  What kind of trouble can we get into if any issue? Will we be just able to book separate rooms if anything occurs? Thanks!

Can a mixed-Muslim unmarried couple share hotel rooms in Indonesia?

The easiest solution might be to fake a marriage and shared religion, but as you are both foreigners this will probably not be a problem. Bali would be a lot more open than other parts of the country, and you might be more likely to be refused if you booked a private guest house or apartment rather than a hotel.

In general it easy to travel as an unmarried couple in Indonesia if you are travelling in tourist areas and staying in hotels. Problems may arise with individual owners on airbnb especially if one member of the couple is recognisable as a muslim. An option may be to pretend to be married.

Travelling as a mixed-religion unmarried couple is not considered a problem in the tourist areas. Foreigners basically do as they like and nobody cares. Bali is not muslim so there would be no problem there.

Problems may occur with airbnb as the apartments are owned by private individuals who may object to unmarried couples, especially if the muslim person is recognisable as a muslim. Maybe pretending to be married is an option.


Most travellers will not be physically screened however there's no certainty alas.

The TSA prefers what they call "Advanced Imaging Technologies" (AIT) compared to what they call "physical screening".

However, if the AIT produces an alarm you will be get the "physical screening" as you can find in the Privacy Impact Assessment Update forTSA Advanced Imaging Technology.

And to make things worse, recently they have added that now the "front of the hand may be needed" to the Security Screening page: A pat-down may include inspection of the head, neck, arms, torso, legs, and feet.

This includes head coverings and sensitive areas such as breasts, groin, and the buttocks.

You may be required to adjust clothing during the pat-down.

The officer will advise you of the procedure to help you anticipate any actions before you feel them.

Pat-downs require sufficient pressure to ensure detection.

TSA officers use the back of the hands for pat-downs over sensitive areas of the body.

In limited cases, additional screening involving a sensitive area pat-down with the front of the hand may be needed to determine that a threat does not exist.

You will receive a pat-down by an officer of the same gender.

If the concern is Haphephobia , then yes, you are likely to pass through all screening without being touched.

However, be aware that this is not guaranteed.

The biggest risk is when entering the terminal because if you set of any alarm, either in the mag or scanner, it will have to be resolved, usually by a pat-down of the suspected area.

The reduce this possibility, be sure to wear no metal or dense items, including jewelry , while passing through TSA line.

And, be sure your clothes are dry as water spots confuse the image processor.

You would only be touched by CBP if sent to Secondary Screening and they suspect you may be concealing something on your person.

You will be physically searched if drugs are suspected and possibly for currency.

Much, much less so for an Agriculture or Duty violation.

So, carry no food products or illicit drugs through Customs.

Nothing that would give the detector dogs reason to even look at you.

Country of origin for the arriving flight is a factor in screening methods due to the prevalence of drug trafficking from certain regions.

TSA uses advanced imaging technology to safely screen passengers at the checkpoint.

Advanced imaging technology uses automated target recognition software that eliminates passenger-specific images and instead auto-detects potential threats by indicating their location on a generic outline of a person.

The full-body scanners used in all airports since May 2013 are called "millimeter wave" machines, which bounce electromagnetic waves off the traveler to provide an animated image where a suspicious item might be located.

The TSA no longer uses the backscatter scanners that produced near-naked images of travelers.

Passengers may decline, in some instances, and opt for a physical screen, in which an officer of the same gender does a pat down search, and which, on request, can be done in a private area away from public view.

“Generally, passengers undergoing screening will still have the option to decline a (full-body) screening in favor of physical screening,” said Bruce Anderson, a TSA spokesman.

“However, some passengers will be required to undergo (full-body) screening if warranted by security considerations in order to safeguard transportation security.”

And, as reference, TSA has a video where you can watch both methods in operation.

There are also the airports in Europe.

You might get a security screening at the departure airport in Europe.

They are not all equipped with body scanners.

It also depends on the specific airport.

Security screening in London (UK) is quite tight, while in Thessaloniki (Greece), you might be lucky and walk just through without screening (especially when you arrive late at the gate).

However, it might just happen that even in those more "relaxed" locations, security procedures can be changed without prior notice.

Sometimes, random people are picked for a more thorough screening.

At some airports with the tighter security procedures, you are given the option to remove parts of your clothing (like shoes or the belt)

so they can be inspected without someone getting too close to you.

Belts and shoes are often touched by officials as they are assumed to be good places to conceal illegal items.

if you carry medical equipment on your body (an insuline pump, a CGM, a heart monitor or such things), this equipment might receive additional attention.

Some insuline pumps can be detached, others will need to be replaced when removed from the body.

CGM sensors will also typically be unusable once removed and need to be replaced as well.

If you insist that these devices remain stuck to your body, security officials might want to touch them (not necessarily with their hands, but with a "broom" to collect chemical traces from the surface of this equipment).

On an unpredictable basis I would say we have been touched roughly 1 time in 20.

Beyond that we have drawn searches for things that we had some control over: 1)

Two layers of clothing will likely prompt a search.

A couple of times flying out of a cold place I was wearing thermal underwear--which has always drawn a search. 2) Large areas of solid or quasi-solid material in your carry-on baggage will confuse the x-ray people and generally lead to a search.

Avoid anything that's going to look like a blob on the x-ray.

On my last flight I got a full pat-down due to medical liquids--something that has never happened in the past.

I'm not sure if it's changed procedures or that I drew a guy who didn't really know what he was doing (kept asking other agents for guidance.)

Previously it's always just been

their test strip waved over the bottle (I've never been carrying anything that had to remain sterile.)

This has only been the security people when boarding an airplane.

Never once have we been touched by the customs and immigration people other than incidental contact while handing documents one way or the other.

Question: Can we fly to the USA from Europe and back without being touched at the airport? Do you have a choice to go through a body scanner? Do all airports have them? Does it matter your country of origin?

Can I go through security at US airports without being physically touched by an official?

You are likely to pass through the screening without being touched, as the TSA prefers advanced imaging technology to physical screening. However, if you set off an alarm or were suspected of concealing something on your person, this would need to be resolved with a pat down.

Most people arriving in the US will not be touched during screening as TSA uses Advanced Imaging Technology. However, a passenger may be subjected to secondary screening if there is a suspicion they are carrying drugs, they have set off an alarm or because of the country of origin of their flight.

Most people pass through screening on arrival in the US without being touched as TSA uses advanced screening technology.

Reasons for subjecting a pssenger to a pat-down include setting off an alarm, suspicion they are carrying drugs and the country of origin of the flight.