Saturday, August 25, 2012

Currency in Riga

Currency in Riga, Latvia is fairly easy to use. This is good news for tourists and travelers, who probably have enough to learn in Riga! The currency consists of Latvian lats and santīms.

Latvian Lats (also abbreviated as Ls) are currently worth almost 2 USD each. As you can see the Latvian currency is quite strong. There are 100 santīms in one lats. One of the best ways to get Latvian lats, is to pull them directly out of an ATM in Riga. Be sure to use common sense and find an ATM in a popular and safe area. I prefer the indoor ATMs. There are some pretty sophisticated scams run on ATMs in eastern Europe, so be careful!

I like to pull 50 lats out of the ATM at once, which is around $90 USD. This is a good balance between safety and convenience. With my preference for good bargains at restaurants, 50 lats has commonly lasted me around 4 or 5 days on my trip. The ATM typically spits out one 20 lats bill, and three 10 lats bills. In Latvia cashiers can be sticklers for what sort of bills they receive, so use your best judgement. Giving a 10 or 20 lats bill to a cashier for a 1 lats item is probably going to make them angry. You will notice change shortages all around Riga. Don't be surprised if you end up with tons of change from a cashier! The good news is, the cashiers are honest in Riga and give you the correct change!

After breaking the 10 and 20 lats bills, I typically receive a 5 lats bill or plenty of 1 and 2 lats coins. The 2 lats coins are a bit heavy, but remember they represent almost $4 USD! The 1 lats coins are perfect in size, and great for spending at convenience stores or cafes. Finally, my favorite coin is probably the 50 santīms coin. This is worth about 90 cents USD, and is great as a tip at restaurants, or enough to buy a bottle of water. Note that all of these coins are silver in color.

Finally we have the copper coins, which are less useful and will build a collection in your pocket! The 20 santīms coin is a must-have coin for using the public restrooms equipped with a coin slot. Keep at least one of these for emergencies! Many of the public restrooms do not take any other coin! There are then 10, 5, 2, and 1 santīms coins. I find most of these just take up space in my pocket. However they are good to give to talented street musicians who are trying to make a living.

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