hampshirelad Posted June 24, 2023 #1 Share Posted June 24, 2023 Interested to know if you managed with cards alone in these major cruise ports. Many thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaisatsu Posted June 24, 2023 #2 Share Posted June 24, 2023 I have only used cash in Norway once in the past five years, and that was only because I had forgotten my bank card, and my partner didn’t want to get up from the table to buy me a coffee! 😂 (I was honestly surprised he had any, and only one queue at the coffee counter could accept it.) When I travel to Sweden or Denmark, I don’t even consider using cash there either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallasm Posted June 24, 2023 #3 Share Posted June 24, 2023 Exactly the same for me - traveled a lot in Norway and Sweden but didn't use cash - not in Denmark either. However, you should be aware that many vending machines and toilets as well as smaller businesses do not have terminals that can read magnetic stripes - a Chip/PIN / contactless card is therefore necessary if you want to do without cash completely. A good option is ApplePay/ Google Pay - accepted on all contactless terminals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meander Ingwa Posted June 24, 2023 #4 Share Posted June 24, 2023 as others have said, largely cashless. I enjoy having a few leftover coins from different countries as a souvenir more than anything. I am, however a fan of graphics and design. If you like to travel in out of the way places and small villages, it is good to have a small amount of cash for when things go sideways, but overall I would not worry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted June 24, 2023 #5 Share Posted June 24, 2023 There are many discussions here on this topic. Put it on your credit card. We have been in Europe for two weeks...spent maybe 20 euros in cash, everything else on credit card. Two meals a day, buses and trains, you name it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimplyMarvie Posted June 24, 2023 #6 Share Posted June 24, 2023 Not even for vending machines or bus fare. We've been several times and the kids are peeved that we don't have any coins for our collection because there was never an occasion to get one. Credit cards all the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallasm Posted June 24, 2023 #7 Share Posted June 24, 2023 1 minute ago, SimplyMarvie said: …or bus fare In Denmark you can still only pay with cash if purchasing tickets from the driver - several options to purchase tickets in kiosks - also App possible. Same tickets for busses. Metro, harbor bus (ferry) and trains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Azulann Posted June 25, 2023 #8 Share Posted June 25, 2023 (edited) Just returned from Baltic cruise and spent time in Stockholm and Copenhagen. I got $50..00 worth of Swedish and Danish Kronors for tips. I tipped the room maid last day of our three night stay at hotel in Stockholm. I also tipped the tax driver who retrieved my prescription glasses I left in my room of the NOFO hotel.on embarkation day on Viking Jupiter. Guest relation called the hotel and they gave my glasses to taxi driver I met him outside on pier and paid the taxi fare by credit card and gave the man a big ti in cash.. He smiled and pointed to his glass he was wearing too. This saved my cruise before it even started .I also paid in cash to two vendors one in Mariehamn , Arland and one in Copenhagen. I tipped all our guides on our ship excursions in Kronor. Also tipped the hotel bellman for taking our four pieces of luggage to our rooms in Copenhagen and also down to waiting van when we left for airport. Also paid in Kronor for strawberries at the food market in Copenhagen. Otherwise we paid by credit card for everything.. Edited June 25, 2023 by Azulann Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kstetser Posted June 26, 2023 #9 Share Posted June 26, 2023 Do they generally take Apple Pay? (Which is so much easer than using a card or cash.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakridger Posted June 26, 2023 #10 Share Posted June 26, 2023 On 6/24/2023 at 10:12 AM, hallasm said: A good option is ApplePay/ Google Pay - accepted on all contactless terminals. @kstetser Yes per @hallasm in post #3 ~Nancy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaisatsu Posted June 27, 2023 #11 Share Posted June 27, 2023 FYI - Tipping is not necessary in Norway. Some card terminals may offer the option, but you can just enter the total amount again. Even if you receive extraordinary service, don’t tip more than 10%. Tipping drivers, hotel staff, etc is definitely not expected. Some tour operators or tourist-heavy businesses may capitalize on other cultures’ tipping habits and suggest it as a norm, but this is absolutely not the norm and considered by many locals to be exploitative and problematic. (The one exception is free tours that are financed on a pay-what-you-want operating model.) 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desdichado62 Posted July 3, 2023 #12 Share Posted July 3, 2023 100 % card or various mobile payment solutions. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmph Posted July 3, 2023 #13 Share Posted July 3, 2023 We just got back from 2 weeks in the Baltics (10-night cruise plus pre-stay in Stockholm), and the only time foreign currency touched our hands was when a canal cruise operator in Riga accidentally overcharged by 10 euros and gave us that amount back in cash. I never even got out my wallet to use a physical credit card - I used Apple Pay exclusively. My husband doesn't have an iphone and had issues in a couple places with Google Pay, but Apple Pay always worked. If I wasn't right there, he used his physical credit card without issue. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Gail & Marty sailing away Posted July 4, 2023 #14 Share Posted July 4, 2023 Cards work fine for everything .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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