What Currency??

[mikedge]

We are cruising the Baltic this summer and will be visiting Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Denmark as well as St Petersburg. Can any one advise as which countries will accept the Euro even though it is not their national currency. It would make life a lot simpler to pay expnses in as few currencies as possible!!

[TLCOhio]

We are cruising the Baltic this summer and will be visiting Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Denmark as well as St Petersburg. Can any one advise as which countries will accept the Euro even though it is not their national currency. It would make life a lot simpler to pay expnses in as few currencies as possible!!

 

There have been many previous posts on this subject or close. You might try doing a search for added info on this and other key questions. The Euro is official in Estonia and unofficial in some ways for many of the other countries. Plus credit cards work well for many needs, especially with most taxi's and better dining places, etc. Retail shops tend to be pretty flexible and eager to be "helpful" in selling their goods by taking Euros and credit cards. Public transit, small food places, etc. will be less likely to be able to do something different than their national currency. If you dock close to the main town, such as likely in Oslo, Tallin and Copenhagen, it was easier to get by without needing any local currency. That's what we did and it worked out well. It depend on your exact needs and personal interests. And a little luck and/or pluck! At the WWII Germany occupation museum in Oslo, they had a minimum requirement for credit card use and I didn't have the local currency. She waved me in at no cost.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[Ultima Thule]

The Euro is official in Estonia and unofficial in some ways for many of the other countries.

For your information The Euro is official in Finland. The Euro IS NOT YET official in Estonia as plans to join the common European currency has been postponed until 2011 because of high Estonian inflation.

[north-bound]

In Sweden Euro is a foreign currency, just as US Dollars are. So if you think of using Euros to pay why not use Dollars? The same places (mostly tourist oriented businesses) that accept the Euro will usually accept the Dollar too. Both will be likelly to offer bad exchange rates.

 

The best way to pay in Sweden is with credit card. This is widely accepted. The time you would need local currency is for example with public transport and for small purchases like an ice cream etc.

[kruzseeka]

This is a copy of my response to a similar question from further down the board which details how easy we found it to get by on just Euros. Check out that thread too - it's only a few down the board - it will give you some other opinions on the matter.

 

 

 

Certainly Euros are widely accepted - we've cruised to the Baltics on three separate occasions and never had any currency other than Euros which has bought us coffees, stamps (even in the main Post Office in Helsinki), postcards, souvenirs, canal trips, entry to City Hall, Stockholm, and souvenirs from market traders/souvenir shops in St P. Euros have also been accepted to pay to walk the walls and buy caramelised almonds from a street vendor in Tallinn. Most places price up in local currency and Euros (even the cafes) and in Russia, souvenirs are commonly priced in $, £ and Euros.

 

Sometimes we have used our Mastercard for entry to Museums (Vasa, Den Gamle By) for example, to conserve cash - and at the 'going' exchange rate which I consider in the context of our expenditure has been less expensive than buying separate currencies (how much, which/all?) then having lots of small amounts to change back again (at a cost). Perhaps the 'mark-up' for traders exchange rates would be more of a problem if you were buying more expensive items - but as prices are ususally displayed in Euros as well as local currency, you can see what the price is before you buy, and judge whether you consider it reasonable and if not use a local ATM.

 

As most of the countries involved are member states of the EU - although retaining their own currency - they are pretty familiar/happy with the Euro as a currency. (The UK is a rather startling exemption to this - the £ rules here - for what it's worth - literally these days!! :eek:) But at ports of call, so much of their economy depends on tourism, especially from the cruise industry that they make it as easy as possible for you to spend your money.

 

Enjoy your trip though - it's a wonderful cruise, so interesting and varied.

[TLCOhio]

For your information The Euro is official in Finland. The Euro IS NOT YET official in Estonia as plans to join the common European currency has been postponed until 2011 because of high Estonian inflation.

 

THANKS! Sorry, my memory goofed, big-time! The Euro is official in Finland, but we used the Euro easily in Eastonia, creating my old-age, mental recall confusion. All of these different currencies do get complicated in this area. Some of the currency names are similar and that added to the complications. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[LHT28]

Here is a site with the Countries that official currency is the Euro

some other may accept it but be prepared with local currency.

 

http://www.ecb.europa.eu/euro/intro/html/map.en.html