Currency Exchange

[swdke]

I am hoping people can share what they're doing regarding exchanging currency. I guess I am surprised I've not seen it brought up more on these boards, or maybe I am the only one out in left field.

 

I though about buying Euros here in the States, the exchange rate per the internet is about $1.208 dollars to the Euro. But, when I went to my bank today, they said the exchange rate is 1.29. I asked if that included some fee and they said no, but there must be. Although they did say there is a $10 transaction fee, but that is waved if I am a customer. Anyhow, the bank's exchange rate does not seem too good. I do plan to use my credit card where ever possible as I understand that's how to get the best rate, or so I've think. But on some of the tours, I need cash/currency. I did ask the bank about using my ATM card, and I understand there is a $1.50 usage fee, and a 3% exchage rate fee. For a $100 withdrawal, that's about a $4.50 fee/cost, but also the exchange on $100 at a rate of 1.21 vs. 1.29 is a difference of $5.13. So in terms of buying currency, unless I am doing something wrong, there does not much of a cost difference between bringing foreign currency from the States or using an ATM. Except, I'd rather not be traveing with so much currency. So I was wondering what others are doing, or did? Thanks for sharing.

[SaylorGirl]

I am hoping people can share what they're doing regarding exchanging currency. I guess I am surprised I've not seen it brought up more on these boards, or maybe I am the only one out in left field.

 

I though about buying Euros here in the States, the exchange rate per the internet is about $1.208 dollars to the Euro. But, when I went to my bank today, they said the exchange rate is 1.29. I asked if that included some fee and they said no, but there must be. Although they did say there is a $10 transaction fee, but that is waved if I am a customer. Anyhow, the bank's exchange rate does not seem too good. I do plan to use my credit card where ever possible as I understand that's how to get the best rate, or so I've think. But on some of the tours, I need cash/currency. I did ask the bank about using my ATM card, and I understand there is a $1.50 usage fee, and a 3% exchage rate fee. For a $100 withdrawal, that's about a $4.50 fee/cost, but also the exchange on $100 at a rate of 1.21 vs. 1.29 is a difference of $5.13. So in terms of buying currency, unless I am doing something wrong, there does not much of a cost difference between bringing foreign currency from the States or using an ATM. Except, I'd rather not be traveing with so much currency. So I was wondering what others are doing, or did? Thanks for sharing.

I agree this is a big issue. In the past I have always just used my ATM card and it has worked well in giving me the best exchange rate. However, with the new 3% surcharge this really hurts on the exchange rate. I will probably still just use my ATM card for the convenience of it. At least the Euro is more favorable at this time then it has been, and I'm glad I have about 100 Euro left over from my last trip! One problem will be getting money in some of the smaller ports as I understand they have a minimum you can withdraw and that may be more than I will use.

[Globaliser]

I though about buying Euros here in the States, the exchange rate per the internet is about $1.208 dollars to the Euro. But, when I went to my bank today, they said the exchange rate is 1.29. I asked if that included some fee and they said no, but there must be.

This is because if you see a single rate quoted for the exchange rate, it's likely to be a mid-market rate, half way between the buy price and the sell price. The difference between those prices is often called the "spread". Retail currency exchangers (including banks) often have a very wide spread in addition to any fees they may charge. And, in fact, this is why some money changers can advertise "no commission" yet still end up charging you more than if you go to a bank that charges fees but has a smaller spread.

 

For myself, the convenience of using ATMs far outweighs any additional cost that may be involved - and usually the additional cost is pretty small, if there is one at all. (This is for all my travel, not just cruises.)

[sultan_sfo]

What you normally see are the wholesale rates. One of the bank's foreign exchage FAQ post explains the publlished rates are for over $1 million transaction. Actually, this morning I was set to buy and then decided to wait some more. We travel on Sep 12. The bank "no fee" for Danish Kroner was 5.86 to $1, the place where I usually buy was 5.88 to $1, and the newspaper rate was 6.18 to $1. The 5% difference is the margin for the seller for small transactions. This was true also for the GBPounds. Your figures come to about 6% margin. Now if you bought say in Copenhagen (CPH), the ATM would give close to the wholesale rate. So you save 5% but then there is 3% conversion fee and plus about $5 fee per transaction for using a non-bank ATM. We are staying one night in CPH. So I will buy in US about $300 worth of Danish, about $200 GBP and about $200 Euros (for transatlantic). The other currencies on the Baltic, I will just get on the Star Princess. Our main need for local currency are buses, admission fees, and small purchases from grocery stores such as wine and water./Sultan

 

 

I though about buying Euros here in the States, the exchange rate per the internet is about $1.208 dollars to the Euro. But, when I went to my bank today, they said the exchange rate is 1.29. .

[crazy4cruisn]

Not much, but it will help some...........our bank said they would waive their ATM fee. Anyone know what the ship exchange rates are? I called Celebrity and they said they only exchanged euros and there was no fee. I don't really believe this.........someone else wrote that they will change currency to all the Baltic port moneys except Estonian and Russian. Soooo wonder what gives??

[OhioDogLover]

We have checked with different banks (member of our group use different ones) regarding this issue. Different banks charge different exchange rates. Due to time issues -- for some ports we are just not there very long at all -- we ordered a bit of currency for some of the countries. We thought that the convenience of not having to look for and use ATMs would outweigh a slight cost. We did get an exchange rate for Euros of about $1.26, which wasn't bad. No additional charge. Some of the banks charged up to about $1.29 but said they had "no charge" for exchanging currency. I guess they don't, but the exchange rate is not good.

 

If time permits, we have found that finding a bank in the foreign country, e.g. Germany for Euros, works well. While that works well for a long land vacation, it does not for a cruise stop, however. Besides, no matter where you go, yo will not get the wholesale rate quoted in the WSJ. There will always be a fee or some kind -- or at least I don't know how to avoid it.

[Alicomp]

We will be on the Star in August. How does the currency exchange on the boat work? Is it available the night before the next day's port? Is there usually a long line? I prefer to have some currency ahead of time so don't want to have to look for ATM machines. We will either order it ahead of time of will get it on the boat.

[2martini]

Many ships exchange currency throughout the voyage so you can get some local money in advance. In Riga, our boat let a local exchange company come aboard and they could change anything. The best part was their remaining on board to buy back any unused local currency at the same rate. Their rates were competitive, and the way I see it, if they charged 2% more but I wasn't stuck with $2.00 left over, it was worth it.

 

I think people obsess over the rates, especially when they are only changing $100 or less for walking around money. At the end of the day, what difference does it make if your travels cost you a couple of bucks more? Would getting to a bank ashore and standing in line for 30 minutes be worth the touring time you lost? Is the ship's "bad" exchange rate any different than a $5 ATM fee? I say pay for convenience, free up your valuable time, and don't look back.

Same goes with paying dollars at euro prices. If a bottle of vodka is 10 euros and I give them 10 dollars, then it actually cost me 12. But I would have bought that same bottle if it had been priced at 12 initially. Big purchases, you're going to use a credit card anyway.

[Crown Prince]

Yours is the best common-sense mantra I have read in a very long time. It is the right attitude. I bought Danish Crowns, Euros, and Polish Zlotys 2 months ago and now our USD is stronger. However, it's done and I am happy that now I only need to get Rubles, Estonian Crowns, and Swedish Crowns (our Dollar is getting worse against the SEK only).

My bank only charges 1% and I get the bank currency exchange rate so I will use my MasterCard for large purchases. DW will make a few of those for Amber, Art, Dolls, etc.

[NancyIL]

I considered obtaining foreign currency ahead of time, but in the end I ordered only the "city cards" online so I would have transportation and most sightseeing costs covered before arriving in each port.

 

London: Since we were to spend one night pre-cruise and two nights post-cruise, I got 100 pounds from an ATM at Heathrow upon arrival. I got an additional 70 pounds at an ATM the day before we returned home. I opted NOT to buy the London Pass.

 

Oslo: The Oslo Pass was well worth the money. It covered the ferry to Bygdoy Island and all our admissions. We didn't spend any other money, so no foreign currency was needed.

 

Copenhagen: Our bank charges only $1 per ATM transaction, so we got 500 DKK in Copenhagen - which was really more then we needed. (I couldn't figure out how to request only 300 DKK.) Our last stop was at Tivoli Gardens, and we spent our remaining 90 kroners on 3 ice cream cones and a Coke! (The ship won't exchange foreign coins, so better to spend them.) In hindsight, a guide book would've been a better use of the money! The Copenhagen Card was worth the money. We used the hop-on/hop-off bus and also the city bus.

 

Stockholm: We came out a bit ahead by using the Stockholm Card, and got 100 SEK ($12.82) from an ATM machine for incidentals. We used that for lunch from a street vendor near the Vasa, and I used AMEX for souvenirs at a "recommended store" in Gamla Stan. We had trouble finding the busstop near where our ship docked in Sodermalm, but walked (about 25 minutes) to the Slusson subway station, and took that to the center of town. The ship's shuttle ($4/pp each way) would've been a good value. I wish we had taken the hop-on/hop-off bus, because we really didn't get a good overview of this beautiful city.

 

Helsinki: I got 20 euros on the ship for $25.55. This was the only time I exchanged currency onboard. I bought the Helsinki Card, but did NOT get my money's worth. For one thing, my husband decided to stay on the ship, plus - the cost of the card didn't equal the "savings" with the Helsinki Card. Still, I highly recommend the 90-minute bus tour that leaves from the Esplanade (20 euros - 8 euros if you have the Helsinki card). I used the local shuttle to get to town ($5 each way or $8 roundtrip). Helsinki was much lovelier than I expected, and I really enjoyed my time there.

 

St. Petersburg: We paid for our DenRus tour with US dollars. DenRus was fabulous, btw! I bought guidebooks of the palaces, museums, and churches we visited, and paid in dollars. (Hint - the Catherine Palace guidebook was less expensive when purchased from a man selling them on the grounds than from the giftshop.) I bought a few items at the souvenir shop Katharina - and paid in dollars. I even paid for one bathroom break with my dollar, though not at a favorable rate - lol! No rubles used here.

 

Tallinn: I opted NOT to get the Tallinn Card, and we didn't get any Estonian kroons, either. I bought one guidebook with US dollars, and we paid for our lunch at the Pepper Sack (across the street from Olde Hansa) with AMEX. I walked to the Old Town in the morning (DH took the free shuttle a few hours later), and we took the shuttle back to the ship mid-afternoon. I saw quite a few currency exchanges in town, but most charged a 50 kroon fee - so not worth it for small exchanges. I didn't see any ATM's in the Old Town.

 

Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2005 and Rick Steves' London 2005 books were very helpful in planning what to see in each port. Eyewitness St. Petersburg was also very helpful, as well as being a very beautiful book.