Dealing with multiple currencies

[OBCtraveler]

My wife (Jan) and I are booked on  Viking Orion for the upcoming Bangkok, Bali & Beyond in November.  There are five different currencies to contend with:  US Dollar, Thai Baht, Malaysian Ringgit, Singapore Dollar, and Indonesian Rupah.  I wrote a program for my phone to handle the various conversions (see screenshot) but I was wondering if anyone had a tip on how to deal with these in a practical manner.  For many purchases, of course, I can pay by credit card but what about the really small ones?  The best hotdog I ever had was at a small stand in a small village in Italy - but of course I had Euros.  What if I just want to but an ice cream or something like that?  The only thing I can think of is to get $20 worth of local currency in each country and bring the leftover currency back as souvenirs.  Any tips?  Are US dollars widely accepted among local merchants in all of these ports?

 

 

[Heidi13]

For our World Cruise we have almost a couple of dozen currencies. I maintain a research document for each port, with currency & exchange rate being one of the items. Just before departure, I will update all exchange rates.

 

Prior to departure, we purchase a quantity of US $, Sterling, Aus $, NZ $ & Euros. For all other ports, we purchase about CAN $20 in local currency. Most purchases we use Visa and keep the cash for small purchases, tips, etc,

 

Prior to going ashore, I memorise the exchange rate and convert prior to each purchase.

[Peregrina651]

Google maps can tell you the nearest ATM to the ship. I'd rather use a local ATM than buy foreign currency at home.

 

Xe.com has a phone app for currency conversion and rates, which is what I use for the job.

 

Other than the world cruises, not many of us in the Viking Oceans forum have been to these ports with Viking but there is a "ports of call" section of Cruise Critic with a much bigger audience and hence a better chance of finding folks who can talk about what currencies are accepted in the various ports, based on their experiences. Asia

[ropomo]

Rather than your program, I suggest a free app for your phone, XE. It will give you either real time conversions or set it to off line and update when internet connections are "free".  You can set your "favorite" currencies to display when opening and is very intuitive.

[Peregrina651]

Just now, ropomo said:

Rather than your program, I suggest a free app for your phone, XE. It will give you either real time conversions or set it to off line and update when internet connections are "free".  You can set your "favorite" currencies to display when opening and is very intuitive.

 

JINX!

[ropomo]

Great minds! 🙄

[Peregrina651]

25 minutes ago, ropomo said:

Great minds! 🙄

 

You said it. 😇

[lackcreativity]

We do get foreign currency at home before we travel. We use a foreign currency exchange company through the mail, and though it's probably not the most economical, it is certainly convenient. Our last cruise had four different currencies and we didn't want to spend time stopping at ATM's. Mostly we use credit cards for purchases, but we want to have the gratuities for tour guides and a little extra just in case. Leftover Euros we will take home, but other money we will drop in the charity collection boxes in the airports. 

[Islandbc]

5 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

For our World Cruise we have almost a couple of dozen currencies. I maintain a research document for each port, with currency & exchange rate being one of the items. Just before departure, I will update all exchange rates.

 

Prior to departure, we purchase a quantity of US $, Sterling, Aus $, NZ $ & Euros. For all other ports, we purchase about CAN $20 in local currency. Most purchases we use Visa and keep the cash for small purchases, tips, etc,

 

Prior to going ashore, I memorise the exchange rate and convert prior to each purchase.

Andy, have you been able to get XPF at a bank?  We had no luck with our local bank.

[Heidi13]

7 hours ago, Islandbc said:

Andy, have you been able to get XPF at a bank?  We had no luck with our local bank.

We haven't ordered the cash yet - probably order at end of November, just before we head over to Victoria for 10 days.

 

Just checked RBC and it is one of the currencies they list. With the less popular ones, sometimes it takes them a few days to ship out from Vancouver.

 

Judi looks after cash, but I believe RBC as only been unable to supply a couple of currencies for or travels over the years.

 

Will keep you posted.

 

With passports sent last month, this month we are working on vaccinations - booking an appointment at a travel clinic for next month, when we return from the Okanagan.

[aungrl]

If you’re a AAA member, I’ve had really good luck in getting all kinds of currencies at local Triple A.   It’s worth checking with them.  On a couple of different occasions, they were able to get different currencies for us more quickly than our bank.