“International tourism, the access to internet and innovating technologies have radically changed the consumer’s perception and behavior. While Romanians previously preferred travelling abroad with foreign currency from home, at present, more and more of them choose to pay directly by card at merchants and withdraw money from ATMs in the destination countries when they need cash,” said Catalin Cretu, Visa Europe’s general manager for Romania, Croatia, Slovenia and Malta.
The average value of a card payment abroad made by Romanians reached EUR57 (RON254), while the average value of an ATM cash withdrawal stood at EUR182 (RON810).
Romanians have a similar payment behavior with foreigners traveling to Romania. Thus, foreign tourists in Romania pay an average EUR53 by card and withdraw EUR155 from ATMs.