Padua visitors furious over €30 'snack' bill
Two Slovenians have reported the owner of a bar in the northern Italian city of Padua to police after they were charged €30 for two coffees, a bottle of water and two ‘tramazzinis’, a usually inexpensive ‘snack’ sandwich that is popular in bars across the country.
The pair, said to be businessmen who regularly go to Padua for work, were left “speechless” when the bartender presented them with the bill after they consumed a “fast and frugal snack” at a popular bar on the city’s Via Roma, Urbanpost.it reported.
“They handed over a €50 note to pay for the bill but, feeling cheated, they later reported the incident to the police in Prato della Valle,” the newspaper said.
Depending on the type, the price of a coffee in Italy can range between 80 cents and €1.50, although in tourist traps you can pay about €3 for a cappuccino. In some places, a small bottle of water can cost up to €2 while a tramezzino, a triangular sandwich made with two slices of white bread and based upon the traditional British 'high tea' snack, usually costs no more than €1.50.
The bar in question reportedly doesn’t have a readily-available price list. The matter is now being dealt with by Italy’s finance police.
This isn’t the first time prices in Italy’s have rattled tourists.
In May last year, the news that a group of holidaymakers from the UK paid €64 for four ice-creams in Rome made global headlines, so much so they were later invited back to the capital by shame-faced authorities and treated like royalty.
A tourist in Sardinia last summer was also charged €80 for four soft drinks.
READ MORE HERE: Tourist outrage over pricey fruit juice
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The pair, said to be businessmen who regularly go to Padua for work, were left “speechless” when the bartender presented them with the bill after they consumed a “fast and frugal snack” at a popular bar on the city’s Via Roma, Urbanpost.it reported.
“They handed over a €50 note to pay for the bill but, feeling cheated, they later reported the incident to the police in Prato della Valle,” the newspaper said.
Depending on the type, the price of a coffee in Italy can range between 80 cents and €1.50, although in tourist traps you can pay about €3 for a cappuccino. In some places, a small bottle of water can cost up to €2 while a tramezzino, a triangular sandwich made with two slices of white bread and based upon the traditional British 'high tea' snack, usually costs no more than €1.50.
The bar in question reportedly doesn’t have a readily-available price list. The matter is now being dealt with by Italy’s finance police.
This isn’t the first time prices in Italy’s have rattled tourists.
In May last year, the news that a group of holidaymakers from the UK paid €64 for four ice-creams in Rome made global headlines, so much so they were later invited back to the capital by shame-faced authorities and treated like royalty.
A tourist in Sardinia last summer was also charged €80 for four soft drinks.
READ MORE HERE: Tourist outrage over pricey fruit juice
Don't miss a story about Italy - Join us on Facebook and Twitter.
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