Multiple currencies

[lenetere]

Of course, it's easiest if all the countries I travel to accept Euros.  But I'm pretty sure not all of them will.  We're traveling from Budapest to Bucharest.  Most of our stops are in Hungary and Romania, although we also hit Croatia, Serbia, and Bulgaria.  Has anyone traveled to any of these countries recently and know if they do or do not accept Euros?  Charging is an option if a vendor accepts it, but I imagine some small shops or restaurants only take cash.  Thanks for any insight!

[JordanF]

In my recent experience (Budapest to Regensburg, and then Prague), Euros would work, but I did not even need them.  I realize we only overlap with you in Budapest.  Everything we bought there was was with a credit card.  We tipped the tour guides and bus drivers in dollars.  However, Euros were widely accepted.

[Haqdeluxe]

Every country on this cruise has their own currency, none are on the euro. However... there will be very few places where you card won't work and euros will work in a pinch. Dollars... not going to fly.

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Haqdeluxe said:

Every country on this cruise has their own currency, none are on the euro. However... there will be very few places where you card won't work and euros will work in a pinch. Dollars... not going to fly.

 

4 hours ago, lenetere said:

Of course, it's easiest if all the countries I travel to accept Euros.  But I'm pretty sure not all of them will.  We're traveling from Budapest to Bucharest.  Most of our stops are in Hungary and Romania, although we also hit Croatia, Serbia, and Bulgaria.  Has anyone traveled to any of these countries recently and know if they do or do not accept Euros?  Charging is an option if a vendor accepts it, but I imagine some small shops or restaurants only take cash.  Thanks for any insight!

Croatia is on the Euro since January 2023. Otherwise, I agree with @Haqdeluxe.

[CDNPolar]

In Hungary / Budapest, they will accept Euros, but you will get any change - typically - in the Hungarian Forint.  You have to be good at the conversion, and not suggesting that a merchant will short change you, but the potential is there.

 

Right now, 1 Euro is about 390 Forint.

 

We typically tip the tour guides and bus drivers in USD.  

 

We typically are not 'consumers' of goods when we travel, and we come home with the exact contents of the suitcases as when we left home.  We use credit cards if we have a meal, and if credit cards are not accepted we just don't eat/drink/shop there.

 

I know that many people want to have cash with them, but for us, I used to buy Euros and local currencies, but we often ended the cruise or trip with all this cash that we cannot do anything with.  We found that anything we wanted was payable by credit card.

 

 

[pontac]

12 hours ago, lenetere said:

We're traveling from Budapest to Bucharest.

 

I did this route with Viking. I didn't get any of their currencies. There were two nights in  a hotel in Budapest and on night in a hotel in Bucharest where we had to get our own meals and we used Visa credit card. Other places we weren't in long enough to spend any money.

[capriccio]

I too recommend using a credit card.  Just make sure that your bank doesn't charge foreign transaction fees or you will incur additional costs.

[RobInMN]

For those with the Costco CC, they do not charge foreign currency conversion fees. Delta AMEX does not either.

 

On our last 2 cruises, the places we needed cash/coin:

1. Guide & driver tips
2. Restrooms (sometimes our CM would just hand out coins)
3. Christmas markets. This one surprised me, as I thought there would be a lot more use of something like Square. The only places that seemed to take CCs were the ones selling more expensive items (like nutcrackers)
4. Some street vendors (think permanent food trucks). Not that common, but the cash only ones surprised me every time.
5. There was some Christmas market in a palace that had an entry fee that was cash only 
6. Historische Wustkuhcl in Regensburg. Even the inside sit down portion, and even though our guide said they did accept CC, our server said no. Highly recommend though, but do the outside where they put the sausage in the roll. 

 

[sharkster77]

Other cards without foreign transaction fees are the AARP card from Barclays, and the Capital One Quicksilver card.  There are no doubt many others.

[Haqdeluxe]

13 hours ago, gnome12 said:

 

Croatia is on the Euro since January 2023. Otherwise, I agree with @Haqdeluxe.

My mistake. Croatia was still on their Kuna when we last visited in the fall of 2022. I recall now that there was discussion of the coming change over by the locals.

[Rebel54]

I have a Revolut card that I plan to try out with my travel credit card as my back up. Plan on getting minor amounts of local cash cash at each location for small things and I'll pull from the ATM..

 

[franski]

On 2/8/2024 at 6:46 PM, lenetere said:

Charging is an option if a vendor accepts it, but I imagine some small shops or restaurants only take cash.  Thanks for any insight!

You might be surprised to see how many small shops take credit cards.  Most (if not all) shops will have a sign on the door saying which cards they will accept. 

 

When we did this itinerary the 1st time, I had cash for Bucharest - as we were there a bit early.  Other than that, I only used an ATM at one stop along the way as I wanted something in a shop that did not take a card.  So, I went down the street to an ATM (the shop keeper told me where one was...) and I got out just enough cash to pay for the item.

 

After that, it was a credit card all the way to Budapest.  I got cash there as we were extending a few days.  Of interest, the ATM that I used there the choice of either euros or forints.

 

Fran

[CastleCritic]

Did that route last May. Used card almost everywhere. Did take some Romanian currency once we started the land extension and had a hard time using it. Mostly because the stores didn’t want to break big bills (the exchange rate is like10:1 to the usd). Only situation that got me caught out was a museum in Bucharest that didn’t take card or break a large bill euro or local(she just let me in for free). 

Edited February 12 by CastleCritic

[CDNPolar]

On 2/8/2024 at 6:46 PM, lenetere said:

Charging is an option if a vendor accepts it, but I imagine some small shops or restaurants only take cash.  Thanks for any insight!

 

Our experience is that most all shops take cards today, much like at home and the banking system in Europe tends to be more advanced than in North America.

 

Cards are a reality everywhere today.

[JordanF]

5 hours ago, CDNPolar said:

 

Our experience is that most all shops take cards today, much like at home and the banking system in Europe tends to be more advanced than in North America.

 

Cards are a reality everywhere today.

I 98% agree with this.  The 2% is that in Vienna last summer we hit a street fair.  One booth took cards, but another was only cash.  The item we wanted was 26 euros.  I only had US dollars.  I gave her $40, and she gave me the item and 10 euros change.  The Euro at the time was about $1.08--so the math came out pretty close!  In a pinch, you can likely work it out.

[HSBC]

I'll join Viking River cruise, Budapest, Vienna and Germany (15 days Grand Europe).

I may need some coins for the washroom, how much does it charge each time?

Thanks!

[lenetere]

44 minutes ago, HSBC said:

I'll join Viking River cruise, Budapest, Vienna and Germany (15 days Grand Europe).

I may need some coins for the washroom, how much does it charge each time?

Thanks!

When we were in Germany, some called for one Euro, some called for .50.  And some will have machines; others have attendants.  One attendant was really, uhhh, demanding that we have exact change.  She wouldn't allow small coins, she wanted the specific denomination.  Other tourists were helpful with making change in that particular case.

 

[Haqdeluxe]

Austria and Germany are both on the Euro. Hungary however is not. I seem to recall it taking a 200 Forint coin or two when there was a charge. The 200 Forint coin is the largest coin Hungary has and is roughly .50 cents US.

[CDNPolar]

9 hours ago, Haqdeluxe said:

Austria and Germany are both on the Euro. Hungary however is not. I seem to recall it taking a 200 Forint coin or two when there was a charge. The 200 Forint coin is the largest coin Hungary has and is roughly .50 cents US.

 

Hungary and especially Budapest, will accept Euros for payment in most places, but you will get Forint in the change.  They typically do not stock Euros to give in change.  

 

This is from our own recent trips to Hungary and also confirmed from our Hungarian friends living there now.

[Kristelle]

when we were on Amsterdam to Budapest trip last year, toilets were usually 1 euro - we kept a few euros in change for that purpose

 

some places had credit card machines even for this - railways station as I recall.

[franski]

On 3/5/2024 at 10:54 AM, HSBC said:

I'll join Viking River cruise, Budapest, Vienna and Germany (15 days Grand Europe).

I may need some coins for the washroom, how much does it charge each time?

Thanks!

The front desk can often change bills for coins if you ask...

 

Fran

[CDNPolar]

6 hours ago, franski said:

The front desk can often change bills for coins if you ask...

 

Fran

 

Really?  They have coins?  I never thought to ask and assumed that they would only have bills.

[JordanF]

When we were on tour the tour guide would typically pay to get us in the toilets.  When we were on our own, a $1 typically did the trick (and would get two of us in).

[Canal archive]

I suspect they’re concerned that a complete tour group may ‘clog’ up a cafe’ or restaurant. Also I actually have seen the ‘mighty’ dollar refused in Europe and I’m sorry to say that the couple it happened to were seriously not amused poor them.

[sharkster77]

19 hours ago, JordanF said:

When we were on tour the tour guide would typically pay to get us in the toilets.  When we were on our own, a $1 typically did the trick (and would get two of us in).

We found it interesting that in the Basel train station, males paid less for the rest room if they "stood rather than sat", if you get my drift.  Wife thought that was unfair--we had a good laugh over he feigned indignation.