Med/Greece 12 Night Euro Question

[leepep]

Just curious to get your input on how many Euros to take- will be in Barcelona two nights prior to cruise- all excursions/transport and trips at various ports are prepaid so only need to consider taxi from airport, food, snacks, incidentals, spending money for gifts, tips to drivers, etc...I have purchased 600E already- wondering if we should take more- thanks for the advice!

[robint]

Just curious to get your input on how many Euros to take- will be in Barcelona two nights prior to cruise- all excursions/transport and trips at various ports are prepaid so only need to consider taxi from airport, food, snacks, incidentals, spending money for gifts, tips to drivers, etc...I have purchased 600E already- wondering if we should take more- thanks for the advice!

 

That's probably fine. I spent more than that, but I had to pay cash for excursions. I did find that I spent a lot more cash than expected; I had expected to use my credit card more, but it was a whole lot easier to use cash.

 

Also, keep in mind that the ship can break larger bills for you; I ended up going down to Guest Services each morning to have larger bills broken up into smaller ones to make it easier to pay tips, etc.

[dz9yvr]

Just curious to get your input on how many Euros to take- will be in Barcelona two nights prior to cruise- all excursions/transport and trips at various ports are prepaid so only need to consider taxi from airport, food, snacks, incidentals, spending money for gifts, tips to drivers, etc...I have purchased 600E already- wondering if we should take more- thanks for the advice!

 

 

You can always use the ATMs at various banks around the cities to get more Euros. The service charge is a small price to pay carrying a smaller amount of cash and provides an easy source of additional cash/

[countess5]

You can always use the ATMs at various banks around the cities to get more Euros. The service charge is a small price to pay carrying a smaller amount of cash and provides an easy source of additional cash/

 

Just make sure you alert your bank where you are going and the dates you are there. Used ATMs in the Mediterranean last year and it was easy. We had an exchange of 1.24 to the dollar now it's 1.078! :(

[leepep]

All Good Info...so at the ATM's do I use a debit card or a credit card- and does PIN info work the same?

[Clarea]

All Good Info...so at the ATM's do I use a debit card or a credit card- and does PIN info work the same?

We use a debit card and use the same PIN as in the US.

 

If you use a credit card, you will be charged a cash advance fee.

[tidygirl]

Not sure how you are planning on getting around in Barcelona but going by Metro is really reasonable. Our family of 5 just went in Sept and used the buses and Metro to get around (Really our first time besides once in NYC) We could purchase a T-10 train ticket for I think 10 e we could all use the same ticket we just scanned it and handed it to the next person in our party. When we ran out of stamps just bought a new card. Saved alot of money going that way versus taxis!

Will your hotel in Barcelona be paid for?

Also I definitely recommend a money belt for under your clothes and just keep out what you think you will need for the day or till you can discreetly get into your belt!

[Langley Cruisers]

ATM's in Europe are the way to go - quick and easy. You can look for European banks which are affiliated with yours at home. We were able to use Barclay's ATM without any service charge to us.

 

Do not take a cash advance on your credit card! We did that in Rome out of sheer desperation and the fees were astronomical. ATM is better.

 

Have fun!

[leepep]

Thanks again everyone! I think we are good to go and have appropriate credit card and Debit card...getting excited- June cannot come fast enough!

[Rufferto]

I think with 600 you will be fine. Once I get on board the ship I always throw enough money for the cab ride back to the airport into a corner of the safe, so I know my disembarkation day is covered.

Take the metro in Barcelona. You can even purchase 10-trip passes for each of you, which should cover all your travelling in the city.

Remember that cab drivers will charge you for your luggage.

[LoisGriffin1]

ATMs are fine to use if you run low on Euro notes. Use ones attached to a bank then if anything went wrong (such as the very unlikely event that the machine swallowed your card) you can go in and sort it.

 

I have found they either have an English flag option to be able to read the ATM instruction in English or its automatically English when you put your card in the machine (I guess that's recognition from the card issuer).

[GEORGET]

there is now a flat taxi rate fee from the dock to the airport of 39 euro, feb 2015.

would recommend you write down your airline and terminal as the drivers speak little english.

Same applies for your hotel.

 

there is a hop on hop off bus that visits most of the sights.

Please be careful as the pickpockets are renouned in this city. especially around the Rambles and cathedral.

 

Bureau de change will exchange dollars notes at better rates than onboard.

Credit cards are a safer bet for purchases but do not let them convert it into dollars for you.

 

enjoy the cruise but remember while the ship is docked in spanish ports 10% will be added to all purchases onboard.

or for the whole cruise if it does not leave EU waters

hope it helps j

[griffy116]

BE VERY SURE that the bank notes that you will be out of the country and also ask about the limit PER DAY that you can withdraw from an ATM. I ran smooth as silk the previous year. Last year, we thought we had it nailed down with our bank, and got to Italy only to discover at an ATM that our card was declined. It required not one but TWO VERY EXPENSIVE phone calls for the bank to discover they screwed up. With the time difference, this can really screw up a fun day.

[leepep]

I continue to appreciate the input...keep it coming if you think of anything else...our first trip to Europe ever...so we are newbies for sure!

[tidygirl]

I did a review called "Our families viewpoint of our Med cruise" (Oct 2014) We went in Sept and it was our first time too. It took alot of preparing and was a little scary but all went well. Mostly a DIY trip!