Currency question in Norway

[MomC]

Anyone have advice on money matters on the Norway cruise?  I’m thinking of tipping excursion guides and drivers but what currency should I use?  Any purchases and food can be put on credit card, but I would love to hear from those who have sailed in Norway.

 

Thank you.

 

Mom C

[SophieM]

45 minutes ago, MomC said:

Anyone have advice on money matters on the Norway cruise?  I’m thinking of tipping excursion guides and drivers but what currency should I use?  Any purchases and food can be put on credit card, but I would love to hear from those who have sailed in Norway.

 

Thank you.

 

Mom C

I’m curious, too. Thanks for asking the question. 

[CurlerRob]

1 hour ago, MomC said:

Anyone have advice on money matters on the Norway cruise?  I’m thinking of tipping excursion guides and drivers but what currency should I use?  Any purchases and food can be put on credit card, but I would love to hear from those who have sailed in Norway.

 

Thank you.

 

Mom C

 

Tipping is generally not expected in Norway. "Rounding up" is fairly common.

 

If you choose to tip, it's always polite to tip in local currency - in this case NOK. If you can't, EUR would be the next best choice. 🍺🥌

[ronrick1943]

We always go to the bank before leaving, they will get you the currency in small amounts.  That way we have what we need when tipping, or need a taxi or a lite lunch.  If for some reason we have to much left-the bank at home will deposit into our account.  If it;'s na smaller amount we drop it in a charity bin in that country or in the airline envelope or airport charity barrel.  

[vlthom]

Be careful about acquiring too much of the local currency and then thinking that you’ll use it again on another trip.  They frequently take notes out of circulation and then you are stuck with useless ones.  It has happened to us - also in the UK where you can replace them but it is with extraordinary effort.  In Norway, we have often tipped guides in US $ and they have been pleased to get it.

[Harters]

Entirely agree with all of CurlerRob's points at post #3. 

[lilybug]

We got NOK from our bank.  Small bills.  It may not be widely expected in Norway, but we use pretty much the same guidelines when abroad as we do here in the US - a thank you, a tip and a smile!

[pinotlover]

When we tip, we do it in local currency. 
 

Di you believe an American waiter would want to be tipped in pesos or yen? People should try not being the ugly American tourist.

[ronrick1943]

3 hours ago, lilybug said:

We got NOK from our bank.  Small bills.  It may not be widely expected in Norway, but we use pretty much the same guidelines when abroad as we do here in the US - a thank you, a tip and a smile!

Absolutely, great answer.

[Harters]

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

People should try not being the ugly American tourist.

Lack of sensitivity to local customs is not confined to Americans. I feel I have an obligation, when travelling, to understand something of the culture, including tip culture, of the place I'm visiting. But I know many  fellow Britons take our low/no tip culture with them - means they seriously undertip in the States, for example. Hopefully, they'd have USD with them, rather than tipping in GBPs. 

[clo]

3 hours ago, pinotlover said:

When we tip, we do it in local currency. 
 

Di you believe an American waiter would want to be tipped in pesos or yen? People should try not being the ugly American tourist.

IMneverHO, this can't be repeated too often. This is just one of the reasons we have to wear that badge.

[Techno123]

7 hours ago, lilybug said:

We got NOK from our bank.  Small bills.  It may not be widely expected in Norway, but we use pretty much the same guidelines when abroad as we do here in the US - a thank you, a tip and a smile!

Sometimes, just the thank you and the smile is all that is required in many cultures, or at least it used to be but people do come to expect the middle bit which causes consternation with the locals (just ask our Aussie cousins) 😁

[Techno123]

3 hours ago, Harters said:

Lack of sensitivity to local customs is not confined to Americans. I feel I have an obligation, when travelling, to understand something of the culture, including tip culture, of the place I'm visiting. But I know many  fellow Britons take our low/no tip culture with them - means they seriously undertip in the States, for example. Hopefully, they'd have USD with them, rather than tipping in GBPs. 

I think whoever we are and wherever we visit we, as guests in that country, should abide by the local customs - however much it hurts 😂 but it goes both ways.

[WESTEAST]

We always have currency in the countries we are visiting though do bring some US dollars for tipping crew onboard e.g., room service as it is the currency of the ship. You may find the Ports of Call page of interest for this area (https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/116-northern-europe-baltic-sea/) as this is the source we use for most country-specific questions and this thread in particular:

 

[Harters]

11 minutes ago, Techno123 said:

people do come to expect the middle bit

I read the results of a recent survey in the UK about tipping. It concluded that only about 30% of customers now tip in restaurants and that the practice has virtually died out amongst the under-30s. I mentioned this to the owner of a nearby restaurant that we go to regularly and he reckoned the survey was accurate.  Survey didnt take in how many might ask for a service charge to be removed - I suspect quite a low percentage which is why places are moving over to that practice. 

 

My brother in law used to drive a taxi. When he started it was reasonably common to get a tip. By the time he stopped (during Covid), he said that it was very rare to get a tip, not even of the "keep the change" variety. Days would go by when he didnt get one.  In fact, he tells the story of driving footballer, Ronaldo, home when he was playing for Manchester United. The multi millionaire waited for Pedro to give him the 10p change. 

[Techno123]

@Harters We do have a strange approach to tipping in the UK - well I'm in the 30% as long as the service has been good. If it hasn't then I join the 70% club 😁. Funny with the taxi though I'm usually a keep the change or throw an extra pound in if that's too little, but, when we were at Heathrow last, the cab driver had alternatives of 10, 15 and 20% on his card reader. He got zilch as he popped the boot and didn't even help to get the bags out! But the guys who delivered my patio furniture got something 'to buy a pint after work😜'. 
 

I think it may be a combination of how high inflation is following Covid so less spare cash around but also, as people who work in the service industry in the UK get minimum wage (as a minimum, some are on the living wage or even more as it has been so hard to recruit hospitality staff), perhaps those customers who are paid the same think the server doesn't work any harder than them and can't understand why they need to tip on top of the cost of the food.

[clo]

2 hours ago, Techno123 said:

I think whoever we are and wherever we visit we, as guests in that country, should abide by the local customs - however much it hurts 😂 but it goes both ways.

"Google is my friend." 🙂

[JeffElizabeth]

Yes, my wife reviews the tipping customs are part of trip prep. Norway is a small nation however and they didn't seem to have a problem when I tipped in Euros. Many of them Winter in other parts of Europe so they will use the currency. 

[clo]

49 minutes ago, JeffElizabeth said:

Yes, my wife reviews the tipping customs are part of trip prep. Norway is a small nation however and they didn't seem to have a problem when I tipped in Euros. Many of them Winter in other parts of Europe so they will use the currency. 

Whenever you tip during your trip to Norway it is important to use the local currency, that is - Norwegian kroner. Otherwise you'll leave your service providers with cash they can't use without paying high fees on currency exchange.

 

Tipping in Norway Etiquette: Who & Where to Tip - Wise

 

Wise

https://wise.com › travel-money › tip-calculator › norway

[Harters]

10 hours ago, JeffElizabeth said:

Many of them Winter in other parts of Europe so they will use the currency. 

Indeed. I'm one of the "swallows" that have a long break (3 weeks) in Tenerife each January. There are always lots of Scandis there as well. 

[Harters]

11 hours ago, JeffElizabeth said:

my wife reviews the tipping customs are part of trip prep

It'll be worth her while looking at a couple of websites. My experience doing this sort of research suggests that websites written by Americans tend to suggest a more generous tip in a particular country, than do websites written by Europeans. 

[pinotlover]

😂. Do people really believe those wintering in the warmer climates are the ones working for tips back at home? 🙄🙄. Yep, Oceania is full of former service workers, garnishing tips, so to live the life of liesure. 🤔

 

I guess most of those O guests give their left over foreign currency to American service workers. It’s easy for a Chicago cabbie to convert that Argentina money. If you’re too lazy to convert even a small amount to local currency, why are you even tipping?

Edited Wednesday at 12:54 PM by pinotlover

[Harters]

On the rare occasions that we've had a small amount of leftover currency from a country we (or family members) are unlikely to be revisiting, then we've donated it in the charity collection points you find at most international airports. 

[JeffElizabeth]

On 6/26/2024 at 6:52 AM, pinotlover said:

😂. Do people really believe those wintering in the warmer climates are the ones working for tips back at home? 🙄🙄. Yep, Oceania is full of former service workers, garnishing tips, so to live the life of liesure. 🤔

 

I guess most of those O guests give their left over foreign currency to American service workers. It’s easy for a Chicago cabbie to convert that Argentina money. If you’re too lazy to convert even a small amount to local currency, why are you even tipping?

One of our glacier guides in Norway guides in Argentina during the Winter. And many of our Canadian guides Winter in Florida.  They didn't mind US dollars at all. 

[clo]

On 6/26/2024 at 5:52 AM, pinotlover said:

😂. Do people really believe those wintering in the warmer climates are the ones working for tips back at home? 🙄🙄. Yep, Oceania is full of former service workers, garnishing tips, so to live the life of liesure. 🤔

 

I guess most of those O guests give their left over foreign currency to American service workers. It’s easy for a Chicago cabbie to convert that Argentina money. If you’re too lazy to convert even a small amount to local currency, why are you even tipping?

You seem pretty passionate about this as am I. I've never known for sure if it's laziness, arrogance or ignorance. And I've never seen anyone here or elsewhere who's said "oh, sure, I'll gladly take Norwegian kroner (and all the others).