Diamond Princess Asia - Currency Question

[Katie333]

Hi all,

 

I realize this is a port-type question but since I know there are some cruisers who check here regularly that have done this itinerary on Princess and since my question applies to multiple ports I hope I can get a response here. :)

 

We are taking the Southeast Asia itinerary next year with stops in Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Japan, China and Singapore.

 

I am wondering for anyone who has done this or similar, if you felt the need to obtain the various local currencies for souvenir shopping? I will be booking most of my tours with the ship, and thus won't need much actual cash, but I did want to be able to buy a few local items in each port. I'm also curious about any experiences using credit cards in these ports?

 

Would welcome input, with thanks!

[Jenna109]

This year we were on a 'land' holiday in Thailand and Vietnam. I have only ever used baht in Thailand whereas Vietnam we paid in US dollars. I have used credit cards extensively in both these countries but only in larger stores, hotels, etc. As far as I know, Japan and Korea you need local currency. I have been told that in Korea when you dock there is a Government exchange office on the docks so that you can change local currency. Hope this helps - I will be watching your posting as I am going this September.

[scmexico]

At every port the exchange machine on the ship was set to the local currency. It was perfect for exchanging enough money for small expenses (beer, lunch etc.). The exchange rate was not good but for 20-50 dollars it didn't really make much of a difference. At the port there were always vendors who accepted dollars for a wide variety of items. Most of the ports on our 36 day cruise did accept dollars. Vietnam had everything priced in dollars. You could buy almost anything for one dollar. You will not have any problems spending money anywhere you stop. There will always be a way to get the transaction done. BTW when reboarding the ship the exchange machine gave you back USD for BILLS that you didn't spend. It worked exceptionally well for us.

[Katie333]

Thanks very much to both of you, this information really helped.

 

I truly don't want to have to obtain and carry so many different currencies. I usually get around this by using credit cards but I didn't expect local handicraft vendors to take VISA! :)

 

I love the currency machine, while I am sure you are right about the crappy exchange rate, the convenience wins out for me. I was worried about estimating the $ amount and then ending up with currency I'll never use again.

 

As it is, I'm already set on bringing Chinese RMB, Singapore $, USD and Japanese Yen, I'm hoping I can make do and use that currency machine if I need to (for South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong it looks like).

[icat2000]

You can also pay in Dong in Vietnam. But they take US dollars as well in most places.