Euros or US Dollar?

[grandgeezer]

We are going on a two week cruise in Europe with stops in Spain, italy, Croatia, as well as others. Do we have to exchange our money for Euros or is the good old dollar accepted? If we have to exchange them, can we do it on the ship or should we do it in a port to get a better exchange rate?

[ariawoman]

In Croatia you'll more than likely be able to use USD or Kuna or Euro.

 

In Spain and Italy I've only used Euro.

 

I'd suggest getting it before you go - you never know the fees you'll encounter getting it in port, unless you research places ahead of time.

 

I usually buy some Euro here in the US from Bank of America. The do charge a little bit of a fee, but not too bad.

[ariawoman]

Additionally - if you do decide to risk it - you never know what the exchange rate will be when you're away so you might end up spending more today if the euro ended up costing more per dollar than it does now.

[Azulann]

Take Euros with you. Let your bank know you will be using your debit card at atms in Europe.

Enjoy your cruise.

[TLCOhio]

We are going on a two week cruise in Europe with stops in Spain, italy, Croatia, as well as others. Do we have to exchange our money for Euros or is the good old dollar accepted? If we have to exchange them, can we do it on the ship or should we do it in a port to get a better exchange rate?

 

Assuming you live in the U.S., the euro will NOT be accepted in Florida, California, Arizona or Ohio, right? The same logic works that dollars are NOT the accepted currency for Spain and Italy. Credit cards can work in all countries in Europe, including for many or some different shops and dining places, etc. BUT, yes, you will want to have euro as currency for smaller purchases, some local transportation, etc.

 

If your cruise starts in Barcelona, as ours did this past June, you might get euros from an ATM machine there in your first city. You could get euros at banks here, but the charge gets kind of high. There are some places that might take your dollars in Europe, but you will find out that the exchange rate offered by them is not very good and fairly costly. If you are going to Dubrovnik, the euro is not the official currency there, but some places will take it. As we did there, you can get by in many cases without needing to get their local currency by using credit cards and/or euros.

 

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THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 59.489 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[ariawoman]

FYI for credit cards - if you have capital one they do not charge a foreign transaction fee (at least mine doesn't - YMMV) - so you just pay whatever the exchange rate is for the date of the purchase (which can and does fluxuate daily).

[chipmaster]

As another mentioned, take a cab, buy a hotdog at a street stand, or bottle of water and try paying with a peso or canadian dollar :D

 

Euros for euro zone, best with ATM, get them when you land at the airport terminal ATM. You DO NOT want to get from the ship, they charge both an exchange fee and bad rates on most ships. If you need a LOT of euros for say private tours, get them before you go.

 

Good luck!

 

We are going on a two week cruise in Europe with stops in Spain, italy, Croatia, as well as others. Do we have to exchange our money for Euros or is the good old dollar accepted? If we have to exchange them, can we do it on the ship or should we do it in a port to get a better exchange rate?

[chipmaster]

Fluxuations of the euro-dollar on a daily or monthly basis isn't that big, it does move but barring a meltdown in europe or a huge change in monetary policy you are talking a smaller change I think.

 

Additionally - if you do decide to risk it - you never know what the exchange rate will be when you're away so you might end up spending more today if the euro ended up costing more per dollar than it does now.

[commodoredave]

We always buy a small amount of the local currency for small transactions (e.g. taxis, tips, small shops, street vendors, etc.) before we leave home. I can't tell you how many times I have seen people get disappointed because they could not pay for something in US dollars, even though many other places in the same country did accept US dollars. The most graphic example is the time we did a shore excursion to the Cezane Museum in Aixe du Provence in France. A women on our ship wanted to buy some small items in the museum gift store, but the shop did not accept US dollars. She told the clerk that everyone accepted US dollars and that he was an idiot for not doing so. He asked if Euros were accepted at all the attractions in the US; she said of course not. He then asked why she thought US dollars should be accepted everywhere in France. The light bulb finally went off for her, and our next excursion she had plenty of local currency.

[ariawoman]

Fluxuations of the euro-dollar on a daily or monthly basis isn't that big, it does move but barring a meltdown in europe or a huge change in monetary policy you are talking a smaller change I think.

 

That's correct, but if you're buying a high ticket item (you never know lol) you might save money buying euro up front and paying in cash - you just never know. It's a gamble, like stocks. lol.

 

I have Euro left over from my last trip so I should be set this year hopefully.

[ariawoman]

We always buy a small amount of the local currency for small transactions (e.g. taxis, tips, small shops, street vendors, etc.) before we leave home. I can't tell you how many times I have seen people get disappointed because they could not pay for something in US dollars, even though many other places in the same country did accept US dollars. The most graphic example is the time we did a shore excursion to the Cezane Museum in Aixe du Provence in France. A women on our ship wanted to buy some small items in the museum gift store, but the shop did not accept US dollars. She told the clerk that everyone accepted US dollars and that he was an idiot for not doing so. He asked if Euros were accepted at all the attractions in the US; she said of course not. He then asked why she thought US dollars should be accepted everywhere in France. The light bulb finally went off for her, and our next excursion she had plenty of local currency.

 

This just shows that many of us in the US don't realize that the world doesn't revolve around us, even though the USD is considered the global currency (not sure for how long, of course). Hopefully people will start to realize there is indeed a different life outside of the US. :-) Personally, I find it fun to pay for things in another currency. I feel like a complete idiot not knowing if i'm giving the right amount, it's amazing the things we take for granted by virtue of growing up around a certain culture/currency/etc.

[4774Papa]

As another mentioned, take a cab, buy a hotdog at a street stand, or bottle of water and try paying with a peso or canadian dollar :D

 

Euros for euro zone, best with ATM, get them when you land at the airport terminal ATM. You DO NOT want to get from the ship, they charge both an exchange fee and bad rates on most ships. If you need a LOT of euros for say private tours, get them before you go.

 

Good luck!

Agree, buy your foreign currency from the airport or bank ATMs after you arrive in Europe.

Note, we did purchase some dollars on a recent cruise to South America from the Celebrity ATM. Was not charged a foreign transaction fee, but the ATM fee was 3percent.

[Fixit2010]

Generally in Europe we accept Euros except uk where we keep the good old pound. I don't think many shops will take dollars on the quiet.

[backyardponder]

When I travel to another country, I like to arrive with some local money in my pocket. I don't want to get off an airplane, ship, or whatever, without some local money. Murphy's law says if I don't have local money, there will be a problem with the ATM: I can't find one, the network is down, card doesn't work, line too long, etc.

 

I normally get the equivalent of $100 before I travel, then get more at my convenience from a local ATM.

[NukeIT]

I am one that always hits the ATM up as soon as I land.

[austinlw]

Yes, you must use Euros.

 

We made a trip in Oct to Italy where we spent a few nights in a B&B before boarding the Celebrity Equinox. B&B wanted to be paid in cash, not set up to be paid by credit card. So here's what we did:

 

A few weeks before our trip I went to a Wells Fargo branch (after a dip in the value of the euro) and bought enough euros to cover the B&B and the first couple of days of our trip. I went to my credit union and let them know that I wanted to use my debit card in Italy, Greece, and Turkey, along with the dates of our trip, and they entered that in their computer. I also called 2 of my credit card companies to do the same. Failure to do that could cause your card to be rejected. One of my cards is a Capital One Venture card with no foreign transaction fees.

 

Once in Europe and on the ship, I used the debit card in ATMs when I needed cash. Any place that would take a credit card (not as widespread as in the US) I used the Capital One card. This worked out well except for trying to buy train tickets out of machines at Italian train stations, including Roma Termini. I had to stand in line and buy them from an agent because the machines rejected my American-style credit card. No problem buying from the ticket agent though.

[Wine-O]

I am one that always hits the ATM up as soon as I land.

 

While I usually have some Euro left over from a previous trip, I also get my Euro from the Bank ATM as soon as I land. My experience is the exchange rates/fees associated with getting Euro ahead of time is not favorable. European ATM's do not charge any fees, and you get the Interbank rate for the day of transaction. You do have to pay any ATM fees or conversion fees that your bank charges. You have to check with your particular bank or credit union to see what their fees are. My bank, TD Bank, charges no ATM or conversion fees.

 

Additionally, you can get Euro on board the ship, but the exchange rate will not be favorable.

[diligaf51]

When on a November TA, I got a surprisingly good exchange rate on the ship. The euro was trading at $1.35 and the ship was selling for $1.39. That is probably better than you will get at a number of places. A a bank in Barcelona the day before they were charging $1.42

[Wine-O]

When on a November TA, I got a surprisingly good exchange rate on the ship. The euro was trading at $1.35 and the ship was selling for $1.39. That is probably better than you will get at a number of places. A a bank in Barcelona the day before they were charging $1.42

 

Oh, yeah, you never want to go into a bank to get your Euro. In addition to the unfavorable exchange rate you mentioned, there is also a fee associated.

[lisiamc]

When I travel to another country, I like to arrive with some local money in my pocket. I don't want to get off an airplane, ship, or whatever, without some local money. Murphy's law says if I don't have local money, there will be a problem with the ATM: I can't find one, the network is down, card doesn't work, line too long, etc.

 

I normally get the equivalent of $100 before I travel, then get more at my convenience from a local ATM.

 

My middle name must be Murphy, because this has happened to me so often. Now I always get a little "walking around" money before I arrive somewhere, then get the rest from an ATM (when I finally find a cooperative one!)

[besberry]

Take Euros. When I sailed the in the Mediterranean last year (on RCCL) I asked the waiters how they wanted their tips, Dollars or Euros? They both replied Sterling! We were sailing out of Southampton. In the end they both accepted Euros. ;)

[808lady]

In four years of living in Europe and travelling to some out of the way places I never found a place where I couldn't use my American ATM card to get local cash.

 

Service people who live in a place that is not on the Euro often prefer to get tips in US dollars over Euro because most banks will exchange paper currency but not coins. The smallest euro bill is a five. Most small tips are one or two euro. I traded a 20 euro note for 20 one euro coins for my guide in Egypt and made him happy. I would have changed more if I had had more notes in my wallet.

[Lsimon]

Use Euros as others have said. In dobrovnick you can use Euros at most places, dollars at most but a few less, and a very few places only accept the local currency but in those we were able to use credit cards.

 

Personally, I find it best to get our anticipated needs for Euros from a local bank at home before we leave. We've run into issues using ATM machines in Europe and have seen others have issues as well and I wouldn't want to be caught without a good supply of Euros when traveling through Europe. We bank at a local branch of a major US bank and their exchange rate is very fair. We supplement this if we need more euros with ATM or Credit cards. Make sure your ATM and Credit card companies are notified of your travel plans or they may refuse charges.

[Lois R]

I have been reading this thread with great interest. I am going on my

first cruise to the Med in May:). Flying into Rome.......so I will

do as many of you have stated and will bring some Euros with me but

from what I have read (mostly on the European forums) I should be able to get plenty of them in

Rome?....I am staying near the Spanish Steps/Trevi Fountain.....

And I didn't really want to get another credit card but from what

I understand Capital One is probably the best for overseas travel......

[Route66]

As I live in Germany and have to travel a lot to Italy, Spain and France for business, I would highly recommend to exchange your Dollar in the USA and bring some Euros with you.

 

Otherwise you will never know what exchange rate you will get and some shops might not even be accept US$. Furthermore I would like to recommend to bring no larger bills than 50 euros.

 

As for credit cards: Most accepted cards are Master Card and VISA and very often American Express (some smaller shops don't have AMEX due to the high commission payments).