?s on money for a trip that starts in 5 hours!! !! !

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In about 5 hours I will be leaving to start what should be a fantastic vacation.

It's been about 40 years since I last went to Ireland. At that time people from the US used credit cards or traveler's checks to pay for anything they bought. Now the only ways to buy anything is credit card or cash.

What I need help with is trying to figure out the best way to pay for small things like a candy bar, cup of coffee/tea, french fries/chips. Does it make sense to use (and is it possible) to use a credit card to pay something that costs $2.50 US or less? From what I have heard there is a 3% fee to exchange US $ to Euros and the same for the reverse.

Can anyone offer any suggestions? As you can tell I am not very good at making decisions. Should I get the Euros to use along with my credit card, there's no extra fee to use in Europe, or just use the credit card without cash.

Please let me know. I really could use help.

Small retailers/traders in Ireland are unlikely to accept a credit card unless your purchase is a certain limit. I'd suggest exchanging a few $ to Euros. I have a brother [Scotland] who has a small shop and has a minimum purchase of £5 for credit cards as his bank will charge him for processing smaller amounts.
Enjoy your trip.

Use your ATM card to get enough euros for day-to-day expenses (ATMs will give you the best exchange rate.) Just don't carry any more cash than you can afford to lose. I got out about 100 euro every 2-3 days on my last trip to Europe, and saved my credit card for major purchases like hotels and train tickets.

Did you use a prepaid ATM card that you got just for the trip to Europe or did you use the card you have from your bank account? If it was the one from your bank account was the fee for using it more than 3%?

EDIT: Decided to take your advice and use the ATM card to get cash. Thank you for your help.