Dos and Don'ts: Money

Basics
Czech Crowns come in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 (which are coins) and 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000 and 5000 CZK (which are banknotes.) The fifty crown banknote was discontinued this month. The decimal unit is the heller, but it is no longer represented by hard currency (more on the heller below).

We Won’t Take Your Money
From personal experience, and the accounts of various friends and associates, breaking big notes can be quite difficult, especially in small shops and sometimes even in larger ones. If you hand over a two-thousand or five-thousand note, expect some moaning and requests if you have anything smaller. Even a thousand will be accepted grudgingly if the amount is under a hundred.

The Hellish Heller
In 2003, the 10 and 20 heller coins were taken out of circulation. In 2008, the 50 haller went the way of her younger sisters. Despite the absence of the heller in hard currency, prices still express the decimal unit. for example, instead of being 5 CZK, a bottle of water might be 4,90 CZK. In this case, the price is rounded up. If you buy many items with the price expressed in both units then the total is rounded either up or down.

Rules of Exchange
Seasoned travellers, or just those who have been to the Czech Republic often enough, probably know how to get the best deal. The accepted wisdom is that exchange offices, usually, offer better deals than banks.

Euro – unofficial second currency
The Czech Republic is a member of the European Union but like some other members (Hungary, Sweden and the UK, for example), it has not adopted the Euro. Whether or not it will is an ongoing debate.

One thing to remember, even if you pay in euro, you will usually receive crowns in change. From years of living here and casually observing this happen, I’ve yet to see someone be given change in euros after paying in euros.

Cashless purchases
Making an electronic purchase with a credit/debit card in a larger shop is usually not a problem. In smaller shops, it can be hit and miss. For one, they might simply not have the equipment. Or – as happened to me a couple of times – the shop assistant will refuse and request cash even if the machine is there.

Other Dos and Don’ts in the Czech Republic:
– Introductions
– Public Behavior

– Some More Behavior

– Czech Pubs

– Fashion
– Visiting
– Dating
– Shopping
– Public Transport
– Kids
– Dogs
– The Road

– Animal Sounds

– Culinary & Medicinal Customs

– Czech Superstitions

– Neighbors

– Visiting the Doctor
– Money
– Small Talk
– Going Out
– Swearing
– Names
– Camping
– Measurement