UK tourists on Greek island are stuck with their pounds as banks refuse to change them for euros
BANKS in Greece are refusing to exchange sterling for euros, leaving cash-strapped tourists searching for ATMS that are still working.
Alan Seabury, who is on Naxos, said the bank on the island had refused to exchange pounds for euros, with tellers saying they had been told not to change any money.
But on the streets it is “business as usual” for tourists, he said, with few outward signs of the turmoil the country is facing.
“Locals do not appear to be unduly worried about the crisis,” Mr Seabury, 63, from Sale, Cheshire, said. “They shrug their shoulders, smile and give a resigned, pained look.”
After having few problems on other islands over the past month, he said he had not been able to change any money when he arrived in Naxos.
“We went to the main bank, Eurobank, to change our pounds into euros, but they refused to take the English pound.
“They said they were instructed not to change money. In all my years of travelling, I have never come across anyone refusing the English pound. It was a strange sensation.”
There were still some working cash machines on the island, but card payments were becoming less widely accepted by the day.
Mr Seabury flew into Athens before travelling around the Greek islands with his partner Janet Taylor.
“Some people report no problem with cards, some have had them refused,” she said. “Some ATMS are working, some empty. In reality the picture is mixed.”
She said the main impact had been having to carry around large amounts of cash, as opposed to being able to pay on card or take out more money as it was needed.
In Greek capital Athens, just one sign – declaring that all travel on the capital’s metro system would be free until further notice – pointed to the economic trouble that the country is in.
Most hotels and many bars and restaurants were still accepting credit card payments, but on the island of Naxos, credit cards were less welcome as business owners and vendors needed access to cash to keep operating.