How to Take Money for a Baltic Cruise

[chris43]

This will be our first cruise so please excuse our ignorance. We do not want to find that despite our best plans we cannot access our money.

 

We are cruising on Regal Princess. We are from the UK and we have the UK pound. We have UK pound credit & debit cards and we also have a Euro prepaid debit card which we will top up before we go. At this stage we do not have any US dollars.

 

We are looking to buy some US dollars to cover excursions (including a private tour in St Petersburg), ship expenses, etc but are unsure of the best way to take them.

 

We have the choice of cash or prepaid Visa US dollar debit card. We have found in some European countries that it is not easy to use credit & debit cards that are not issued by a bank in the country visited.

 

For security reason we would prefer to have most of the money on a prepaid debit card but are unsure how easy we will find it to access that card.

 

Will we have a problem using a prepaid Visa debit card issued in the UK?

 

What is considered the best way to take dollars?

[diane.in.ny]

If you have a prepaid debit card in U.S. $$, you should be able to use that to settle your on board account. You can call Princess to check but I'm pretty confident the answer will be yes.

 

I have not had a problem using my ATM card to get local $$. However, if you need U.S. cash to pay for shore excursions, you may just have to do that ... carry the cash.

 

We use a security pouch like this one by Eagle.

 

My husband attaches it to his belt and I pin it to the waist of my pants. We both place it so it is behind a pants pocket, off to the side a bit, and it is pretty invisible, unlike the ones carried over the neck. (After placing it inside your pants, be sure to sit down and make sure it is enough over to the side to not be in the way. Once we have it in place, you won't know it is there.)

 

When needed we simply swing it out, with it still being attached to our pants. Just be sure if you get something like this, that you carry it so when you swing it up in front of you, the zipper is on top :D

[LondonTowner]

You do not need US dollars on a Baltic Cruise. We always have some Euros as we often go to the Eurozone, so did not change any currency at all on our Baltic cruise. In fact, I don't remember using any currency at all as everywhere took CC.

 

We hav a couple of cards which make no charge for foreign transactions. Look at something like Halifax Clarity which is the best for using abroad. If you are eligible and apply online it arrives within a few days.

[Globaliser]

What is considered the best way to take dollars?

Charge your shipboard account to a UK credit or debit card. Don't stress about security for this; it'll be at least as good as using it at any shop in the UK.

 

For stuff ashore, I've never yet had trouble getting a standard UK credit card accepted anywhere in Europe. It's pretty seamless, to the extent that I seldom get or use much cash on European trips.

 

Given what you describe, I would have thought that the only thing that might potentially require you to get USD is the private excursion in Russia, and even then only if the company won't take a credit card.

[chris43]

We have a Halifax Clarity card.

 

Thank you for the comments. I am surprised that nobody else has had problems using a UK credit/ debit card in Europe. In the Netherlands last year no supermarket would accept either, we could not top up the public transport travel card, and self service garages refused both. Fortunately bank cash machines were fine.

 

It appears that we were unlucky so needn't be concerned.

[LondonTowner]

Chris43

 

We travel within the Eurozone all the time and never ever have a problem using a UK CC. Only use ones like the Clarity card otherwise you will be clobbered with high transaction charges. We even used ours at the bus stop in Stockholm to get to the centre to buy a 24 hour travel card as we had an overnight there.

 

Ensure you have your PIN with you. Also, you may be asked which currency you would like to pay in. Ensure you always choose the local currency whether it be Euros, roubles or whatever.

[poisonkisses]

We have a Halifax Clarity card.

 

Thank you for the comments. I am surprised that nobody else has had problems using a UK credit/ debit card in Europe. In the Netherlands last year no supermarket would accept either, we could not top up the public transport travel card, and self service garages refused both. Fortunately bank cash machines were fine.

 

It appears that we were unlucky so needn't be concerned.

 

 

I've had a couple issues in the Netherlands as well. Twice I couldn't pay for parking with my German debit card, but one of those times we tried a Canadian credit card instead and it worked. I think I had a problem buying train tickets with a German debit card one time as well, but I don't really remember. Maybe it's just the Netherlands that is difficult :p

[kitkat343]

I'd directly email the Russian tour operators to see what other currency or prepaid cards they may accept. Please note that they collect payment on the second day of the tour, so that might be the only day you might need to have cash on you.

Edited February 29, 2016 by kitkat343

[LondonTowner]

When we were in SPB we booked our tour with Alla Tours and paid with our CC. We were billed in roubles which is what is the best currency as it is the local one. If you want to leave a tip for the guide and driver, then they will accept more or less anything. GBP, USD or Euro are all acceptable.

[chris43]

Thank you everyone.

 

We have put some US dollars onto a prepaid visa debit card and will sort out anything else with a Halifax Clarity credit card.

 

Just booked Alla grand tour for SPB.

[John Bull]

We have a Halifax Clarity card.

 

Thank you for the comments. I am surprised that nobody else has had problems using a UK credit/ debit card in Europe. In the Netherlands last year no supermarket would accept either, we could not top up the public transport travel card, and self service garages refused both. Fortunately bank cash machines were fine.

 

It appears that we were unlucky so needn't be concerned.

 

Do double-check with Halifax, but I think the Halifax Clarity card is one of the few (others include Capital One, Nationwide Flex & Post Office credit card) which don't charge a foreign transaction fee. And all cards give a far better exchange rate than any exchange bureau.

So use that card as much as you can for transactions ashore.

 

I think you've already learned that ships are cashless, you sign for all purchases and the credit or debit card that you register when you join the ship will get charged in one lump sum at the end of the cruise.

So no need for US dollars - except see my note at the bottom.

At some point during or after the cruise, you'll be asked on a form whether you want the ship to convert the bill to the currency of your card, for your convenience :rolleyes:. DECLINE that kind offer, allow your card to be charged in dollars & your card issuer will convert at a significantly better rate than the awful exchange rates used by cruise lines.

That advice very much in line with LondonTowner's, though if you use your USD pre-pay card for the ship account it's irrelevant.

 

Pre-paid debit cards aren't a great idea. Many cruise lines, and other outlets like car rental agencies & many hotels, don't accept them since it's not possible to place a guarantee "hold" on funds (ask your bank to explain "holds"). Since you've gone ahead, do check with Princess.

If it turns out to be difficult, you'll just have to put it down to the learning experience. ;)

 

Unusual to get problems with using cards abroad. :confused:

All I can think is that perhaps you didn't advise issuers of your travel plans - unexpected foreign use arouses suspicion of fraud & can result in a card being automatically suspended.

Happened to us just once. We paid with a different card (its very wise to carry more than one) then when convenient we opened up our e-mail to query the refusal - and found an e-mail from our issuer telling us that they'd temporarily stopped the card & asking us to confirm some recent transactions so that they could then re-activate it. An anti-fraud measure - inconvenient but understandable.

 

Ahead of foreign travel we use the usual suspects - M&S, Tesco, Post Office, etc - to change into the various currencies as much as we know we'll spend in cash, then top up from ATMs as required. And for this cruise take some reserve funds in euros, you can use them albeit at a poor exchange rate in many outlets on your travels, and the prospects of using unused euros at some point in the future are far greater than Scandinavian currencies.

Use ship's currency exchange only as a last resort, due to the afore-mentioned exchange rates - including the double-whammy of sterling to dollars to local currency.

 

You have a safe in your cabin. Use it for cash that you don't need that day, and for passports if you're not required to carry them ashore - likely only in St Petersburg.

 

Despite my advice above, we actually took dollars to pay for our St Petersburg tour. The cost was quoted in USD, so to avoid dispute over exchange rates that's how we paid, in cash dollars. Since you've already got a pre-paid USD card, that's the thing to use. We also used Alla - excellent.

 

BTW, we like to have some local jingle in our pockets so we took a few roubles - enough to tip the guide.

At lunch (the meal included in the tour) we wanted to wash it down with a couple of beers. The restaurant accepted only roubles - no plastic, no foreign.

Others had to have water, we had our beers :) & made up the tip shortfall in euros. A good way of having local currency but avoiding left-over jingle.

 

The Baltic is great for cruising, have a good one.

 

JB :)

Edited February 29, 2016 by John Bull

[LondonTowner]

JB

 

Yes, the Halifax Clarity card is considered the best for use abroad. Have recently ordered one for my OH to take to Oz. I have two others with no foreign transaction fees.

 

Not a particularly good time to be changing GBP into foreign currencies at the moment. Only 1.25 Euros to £ at the moment. Can't see it getting much better ( or worse) until after EU referendum in June.

[John Bull]

JB

 

Not a particularly good time to be changing GBP into foreign currencies at the moment. Only 1.25 Euros to £ at the moment. Can't see it getting much better ( or worse) until after EU referendum in June.

 

Tell me about it :eek:

In June we're off to the States for an extended road trip, we'll be there at referendum-time (we have a postal votes)

 

I reckon sterling will continue to fall due to the uncertainty. Then after the referendum, totally the wrong time for us, will start to recover. Quickly if the vote is "in", more slowly if the vote is for Grexit.

 

But then if my prediction were worth anything I wouldn't be telling you - you'd have to buy my book "How I made my millions" :D

 

JB :)

[LondonTowner]

JB

 

I think you are right. OH is off to Oz in March and I am going to Spain for two weeks. We are then in France in May, so not much chance of a quick improvement. Will have already spent the Euro stash in Spain ( of course if I don't get pick pocketed).

[Sauer-kraut]

Oh but the Americans are jumping for joy because things are relatively inexpensive in the UK! Even the Euro is almost back to what it was when the Germans dropped the Mark..... I am just giddy at this, its making my trip to the Czech Republic much more reasonable.

 

I'll have a Pivo and toast to you JB! :D

Edited February 29, 2016 by Sauer-kraut

[LondonTowner]

Well, it's a case of some you lose and some you win. The likes of me will never make much difference to the world economy, so just have to go with the flow.

[Alaskanb]

When we did our Baltic cruise I had my brother, who lives in the UK, acquire local currency for us --think he used the Post Office. I don't recollect amounts but it was enough for us to have cash on hand for small items in each country. We used it in markets and shops for drinks, food, and souvenirs.

[John Bull]

Oh but the Americans are jumping for joy because things are relatively inexpensive in the UK! Even the Euro is almost back to what it was when the Germans dropped the Mark..... I am just giddy at this, its making my trip to the Czech Republic much more reasonable.

 

I'll have a Pivo and toast to you JB! :D

 

Guess I'll be toasting you with Mountain Dew - if I can afford it :D

 

JB :)