Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
bank charging a fee (usually 1.5% to 2.5%), but you'll get a decent exchange
rate, and provided you make withdrawals of at least a couple of thousand
crowns at a time, you'll pay less than the assorted commissions on travellers
cheques, etc. Check with your bank about transaction fees and withdrawal
limits.
Avoid private exchange booths (
směnárna
) in the main tourist areas. They
lure you in with attractive-looking exchange rates that turn out to be 'sell' (
prodej
) rates; if you want to change foreign currency into Czech crowns, the
'buy' (
nákup
) rate applies. Moreover, the best rates are usually only for very
large transactions, above €500. Check the rates carefully, and ask exactly
how much you will get before parting with any money. Similarly, hotel recep-
tion desks sometimes exchange money for guests but seldom offer an attract-
ive rate.
Credit Cards
Visa and MasterCard are widely accepted for goods and services. The only
places you may experience a problem are at small establishments or for small
transactions (under 250Kč). American Express cards are typically accepted at
larger hotels and restaurants, though they are not as widely recognised as
other cards.
Travellers Cheques
Travellers cheques are not much use, as they are not accepted by shops and
restaurants and can be exchanged only at banks and currency-exchange
counters.
Post
post offices can be tricky to negotiate since signage is only in Czech. For
mailing letters and postcards, be sure to get into the proper line, identified as '
listovní zásilky
' (correspondence). Anything you can't afford to lose should go
by registered mail (
doporučený dopis
) or by Express Mail Service (EMS).
