Money

The official currency of WSJ will be Swedish Kronor.  USA Dollars, Euros and other currency will not be accepted and there will be no exchange facilities.  There will be ATMS.

NOTE:  Make sure you know your pin before you get here.  It could be really frustrating if you find out you don't know what your pin is and cannot get cash.

You may find you get the best exchange rate by purchasing kronor from your bank before you leave.  Use a money belt, this is not an item you want to leave in your tent.

A Note on money when traveling in Europe

European banks have standardized on "Chip and Pin" technology for credit/debit cards.  American banks only issue "magnetic strip" technology for credit/debit cards.  Some travelers have found a few isolated instances when a magnetic strip credit card would not be accepted.  So far as I can tell, this is pretty much limited to small, occasional mom and pop shops and ticket kiosks at transportation centers (this is apparently true in France, at least).  In those circumstances, cash will work.  ATMs apparently still work for the magnetic strip technology cards.  There is not much you can do about this since as an American you cannot get a chip and pin card.

It is becoming increasingly rare for vendors to accept travelers checks.  They have become too easy to forge and fewer and fewer places are taking them.  In any case, they really never were all that great an alternative.  Credit cards are the way of the present and near future, and if you haven't gotten into the credit card age, you may not be real happy traveling in Europe.  My experience has been that American Express is accepted in few places. In Europe, you will have difficulty finding places that do not accept both Visa and MasterCard.

Other cards such as Discover are very rarely accepted in Europe.  If you have something like Diner's Club or Carte Blanche, I have to ask: why? I have had some difficulty with MasterCard in Africa, but for Europe that is fine.

It used to be that credit card companies had pretty good exchange rates.  That seems to be changing.  However, the worst exchange remains the kiosks at transport hubs like airports and currency exchange street vendors.

If you are joining me on my ISTour, note we will be dealing with four different currencies at various stages (which you may or may not need depending where you join me).  England is the British Pound.  France is the Euro.  Denmark is the Danish Kroner.  Sweden is the Swedish Kronor.  I would suggest you get a limited amount of each of the currencies you will be using from your home bank, which often has among the best of exchange rates.

Now available from www.us.travelex.com is the first Chip and Pin technology debit card available to Americans who do not work for the UN.  It isn't the best of exchange rates, but it will work in ticket kiosks, and other places your magnetic strip cards won't work.  As a debit card, you will have to make a decision on getting it preloaded.  You can have it delivered to your home (for $10 and someone needs to be there) or pick it up at a travelex office, such as the one at Downtown Disney, for $15.  Be sure to get the option to sell back unused funds for no commission fee.  This will be especially helpful getting the train ticket from Copenhagen to Kristianstad and back after jamboree.