Currency question on Cruising to Asia

:Dwe are sailing Dec 19 on our first Asian cruise. We will be stopping in Thailand , Malaysia. Indonesia and Vietnam and wondered if we need their currency. And if so how much would you suggest we exchange. We aren't planning on buying large items, a few souvenirs, lunch etc. Do you tip the drivers of ship tours? Thanks so much, were looking forward to another adventure.

Suggest you join the rol call for your cruise and see what the others have planned. Also ask on the Ports of Call board here for Asia. EM

As I live in Perth Western Australia, I travel to the countries you mentioned quite often and only last year, cruised to them on Celebrity Constellation.

You should be aware that the currency exchange rate you will achieve by changing money in each of the countries, will be considerably more favourable than buying the various currencies at home, before you leave. At least 10% and in some cases, greater than that. However, I appreciate that this may not be really practical, if you are only in the country for a day or two whilst on the cruise.

So what I do is convert a few hundred dollars pre cruise into each currency, to cover taxi fares, coffees, lunches, drinks etc or whatever amount you think you will need to cover these type of expenses for the length of your stay in each country and then use your credit card to pay for the more expensive shopping you may do.

I have a bank issued Platinum Mastercard into which I transfer enough funds to cover my expected purchases while away. The card charges no currency conversion fee, just the exchange rate on the day. Then at the end of the cruise, I can transfer the balance remaining in my Mastercard, back into my everyday bank account.

In Vietnam, $US is the preferred currency.

Hope this helps, but feel free to ask if you want any more info.

Sorry, I meant to mention that tipping tour bus drivers is in our experience very much up to the individual. Having said that however, most people do.

We are making return visits to these countries on our next world cruise in 2020. As time in port is normally short and no guarantee of getting to currency exchange, we always order some local currency from our local RBC about 1 month before departure. We get about CAN $20 in each currency of the ports visited. In addition, we carry US $ in mostly small bills (reason we order early, as they don't always have small bills on hand)

For tips, you will get a huge disparity of responses. Personally, we consider tips for both driver and guide based on the service they provided. If the driver just drives from A to B, etc no we do not tip; however, if the driver is involved helping people on/off the bus, points out things the guide missed, etc - yes, we provide a tip. On our recent Baltic cruise, in Berlin the driver purchased a case of beer for the 3 hr trip back to the ship. He received a significant tip.

We find most countries will accept US $ for tips, just ensure you have newer bills, or at least bills are in good condition.

As I live in Perth Western Australia, I travel to the countries you mentioned quite often and only last year, cruised to them on Celebrity Constellation.

 

You should be aware that the currency exchange rate you will achieve by changing money in each of the countries, will be considerably more favourable than buying the various currencies at home, before you leave. At least 10% and in some cases, greater than that. However, I appreciate that this may not be really practical, if you are only in the country for a day or two whilst on the cruise.

 

So what I do is convert a few hundred dollars pre cruise into each currency, to cover taxi fares, coffees, lunches, drinks etc or whatever amount you think you will need to cover these type of expenses for the length of your stay in each country and then use your credit card to pay for the more expensive shopping you may do.

I have a bank issued Platinum Mastercard into which I transfer enough funds to cover my expected purchases while away. The card charges no currency conversion fee, just the exchange rate on the day. Then at the end of the cruise, I can transfer the balance remaining in my Mastercard, back into my everyday bank account.

 

In Vietnam, $US is the preferred currency.

 

Hope this helps, but feel free to ask if you want any more info.

Having been to the same countries, I agree with everything Viveash recommends. It is always best to have at least some local currency on you when you arrive. We have been in countries where a banking strike was in effect and no ATMs were operational for the duration. We have also found nearby ATMs that were non-operational or out of cash with the nearest one inconvenient to get to. Even though the exchange rate is higher when ordering from your bank, the peace of mind and convenience of having the local currency upon arrival is worth the added cost, which is not that much extra in reality. Unless you are ordering many hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of local currency, the higher exchange rate will amount to no more than what a couple of drinks cost in a local bar.

:Dwe are sailing Dec 19 on our first Asian cruise. We will be stopping in Thailand , Malaysia. Indonesia and Vietnam and wondered if we need their currency. And if so how much would you suggest we exchange. We aren't planning on buying large items, a few souvenirs, lunch etc. Do you tip the drivers of ship tours? Thanks so much, were looking forward to another adventure.

You won't get far with your Canadian dollars but if you exchange them for US dollars you will have no problem. All four countries readily accept US dollars especially if your in the cruise port area or using local tour guides. Expect to get some change back in local currency, we always leave our foreign change on the desk for the room steward as a extra tip on the last morning. happy cruising.