Halifax and Saint John - any need to exchange $$

We are scheduled for a Canada/New England cruise in September. Was wondering if they merchants in Halifax and Saint John take US $ or if we need to exchange money or maybe just use a credit card for whatever we buy there. Thanks for the help!

We are scheduled for a Canada/New England cruise in September. Was wondering if they merchants in Halifax and Saint John take US $ or if we need to exchange money or maybe just use a credit card for whatever we buy there. Thanks for the help!

No need to exchange for Canadian money, they take US money but you may get your change in Canadian money. We had no problems last year, we used US at the street fair, on the bus and at the restaurant.

Merchants will take your US money but don't give the best of rates as the banks penalize them when they deposit the US currency. You will get your change in Canadian currency. We no longer have the penny, so if your cost of goods is $5.88, you will pay $5.90. If your cost of goods is $5.86, you will pay $5.85. There are a few merchants, who simply round up all the time, rather than rounding down which they are supposed to do if the price is 1 or 2 cents above the nearest 5 or 10 cents.

You will want to come back so go to an ATM and take out a little money!

You will want to come back so go to an ATM and take out a little money!

LOL! Agreed! We would love to have you come back.

Not hard to take a few dollars out at the ATM for small purchases - it also shows your respect for the country that you are visiting! Besides your credit card will have the best exchange rate on those larger purchases anyway - you shouldn't have a problem!

Hope you enjoy your visit!

Would most merchants offer 1 to 1 exchange rate? If so, an ATM (if the fees don't kill you) would offer better rate. The U.S. dollar is currently worth almost 10% more than the Canadian dollar.

We'll be staying a few extra days in Quebec before our cruise in November -- this discussion is very helpful! :)

most places..including Tim Hortons (coffee shop everywhere) take debit and credit cards...

check out your card to see if they charge a premium for use out of the US

that being said having a bit of cash always a good idea...and we are not $17,000,000,000 in debt so our $ will eventually be worth more than yours (or so I hope)

Would most merchants offer 1 to 1 exchange rate?

No merchants will offer a 1 to 1 rate! That only happens during the very times the two currencies are at the same rate.

Be a good visitor, get some CDN$.

 

Be a good visitor, get some CDN$.

I will -- plus it's pretty! ;)

Get Canadian money....and have a great visit!

I will -- plus it's pretty! ;)

That made me smile... Usually it's called "funny money" :)

Our one and two dollar coins can pile up and are heavy. Spend them when you can.

We will be in St. Johns, NB and Halifax. I was planning to get $100 in Canadian dollars. I don't want too much. We plan to eat lunch in both ports and maybe buy souveniers. Will $100 be enough?

Depends on what you want for lunch and how many in your party.....but lots of lunch options in uptown area for $10 or less.

Also, you are coming to my hometown, Saint John, New Brunswick. St. John's is in Newfoundland. Thought you should know in case you are doing research on the city....lots of people get it mixed up.

Depends on what you want for lunch and how many in your party.....but lots of lunch options in uptown area for $10 or less.

 

Also, you are coming to my hometown, Saint John, New Brunswick. St. John's is in Newfoundland. Thought you should know in case you are doing research on the city....lots of people get it mixed up.

Thanks for your reply. There are 2 of us so I think $100 Canadian will be okay. We will probably find a pub or something similar.

I wasn't sure which Saint John we were going to visit but I knew it was in NB. Thank you for the clarification.

Our first stop in Canada is Halifax. The majority of our excursions are requesting cash payments so I want to exchange our money for Canadian. Where is the best place in Halifax to do that? This is my first time exchanging money...is there a fee?

Thanks in advance!

I hate travelling with cash...so consider travellers cheques...but if contracting tours check that they take them

Tinyfish you will get a better rate by going to an ATM (lots of them all over) and using your bank card to withdraw cash. If you still want to bring US cash then change it at a bank. Your excursion driver will take you to one since it will be in his/her interest for you to get cash.

I have a vague recollection about us bank cards having 5 digits..my bank uses 4 digit. you may need to check out compatibility with our atm machines. sorry cannot be clearer on this just remember somebody having an issue with this on cruise critic posting

I have a vague recollection about us bank cards having 5 digits..my bank uses 4 digit. you may need to check out compatibility with our atm machines. sorry cannot be clearer on this just remember somebody having an issue with this on cruise critic posting

PIN length is not country-specific CC - except Switzerland who issue 6 digit PINs by default. The ISO criteria for PINs require between 4 and 12 digits, and anyone can change their PIN to any length within that range - but not all hardware/software can handle it. All European machines, and most elsewhere should be capable of handling a 6 digit PIN, but some older machines can only manage 4.

You're probably thinking of the common-in-the-US Zip Code verification which uses 5 digits. Very common at gas stations and other automated payment machines.

Interesting factoid for us Canucks - you can use your Canadian Postal Code when asked for Zip Code, just ignore the letters and add two zeros to the end so it's five digits long. Saves all the hassle of going inside to have the clerk check your ID when buying gas!

think the us pin length was in Europe...but like I said not sure just knew it was an issue at one time

I HATE having to prepay for gas...friend put me onto the zip cheat for canucks...made my life much easier.

Interesting factoid for us Canucks - you can use your Canadian Postal Code when asked for Zip Code, just ignore the letters and add two zeros to the end so it's five digits long. Saves all the hassle of going inside to have the clerk check your ID when buying gas!

THANKS so much! We are going to have to try this out next month when we drive to port.

I did not know that!

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/travel-news/finally-canadians-able-to-pay-at-us-pumps-with-credit-again/article13463053/

No merchants will offer a 1 to 1 rate! That only happens during the very times the two currencies are at the same rate.

 

Be a good visitor, get some CDN$.

Why wouldn't it be 1:1 right now? If the US$ is worth more, it would be a deal for the merchants. They'll take that 1$ to the bank and get 1.10$ Canadian for it.