We have booked a one week trip to Russia in early August. What would you suggest we do for money--travellers' cheques, ATM machines (we are staying at the Sheraton Moscow and Angleterre St. Petersburg), American cash? A travellers' guide stated it is illegal to pay for services in American dollars, but what is written and what is practised is often different.

I. Peltier

American dollars are eagerly accepted everywhere we went within Russia. You will find ATMs in both MSW and STP. There is a window within the Angelterre hotel (not very good rate of exchange) if you want to cash travelers' checks or exchange greenbacks for rubles. Cash some dollars and use them for taxis, buses, or subways. You can use your VISA card in many places in both cities; be careful to see that the slip has been made our correctly. Any extra rubles can be exchanged for $$$ when you leave. Make sure you do this before you land in other countries, however, because rubles are not accepted in many places outside Russia.

The only legal currency in Russia is the Rouble however you will find that US$ and Euro's are accepted, however at a poor rate. ATMs are available hoever travelers checks can sometime be a problem. If you need to exchange your Roubles at the airport make sure that you do it before customs, however dutyfree shops inside will take Roubles.

We just returned from St. Petersburg and Moscow.

We took American dollars, which were the preferred (often only) currency accepted for SOUVENIRS. Most souvenir shops (even in most of the palaces and museums) accepted dollars (prices in American dollars, so no need to worry about the exchange rate).

There are ATM's all over. Hotel lobbies are a reliable place to find them. Your transaction could be rejected for any number of reasons (machine is out of cash, does not have the change required for your requested amount, you bank is performing it's overnight processing, the phone line is down). Just try another ATM or try again later.

We needed rubles only for the metro and admission to cathedrals, palaces, museums, along with the occasional taxi and cafe.

Most restaurants accept credit cards. Check before you order, though. The odd establishment has signs in the window they haven't removed but no longer accepts credit cards.

Note that when paying by credit card, prices are often displayed in American dollars (in shops), but your credit card is charged in rubles. If the rate is not displayed, inquire. In our experience, the rate was always not much off the interbank rate (I have them e-mailed to me daily). Whenever I made a purchase with a credit card, the cashier showed me the price in rubles, along with the rate. I carefully checked my credit card statements and everything was in order.

My recommendation would be to bring sufficient American cash for souvenirs and gifts you plan to purchase, then use your ATM card for rubles for incidental expenses, and use your credit card(s) for meals, hotel, larger purchases.

BEWARE: The usual pickpocket precautions apply in the cities. Be particularly on guard in the metro and anywhere you notice gypsies. You best defense is to not carry a wallet/purse and carry your cash/cards under your clothing. We didn't observe a lot of pickpockets, but the few were absolutely expert.

For St. Petersburg, I highly recommend a private guide [email protected]

She is worth every penny for her knowledge, and ability to get you into the Palaces, Museums, Cathedrals you wish to visit along with providing an extraordinary tour in English of same. The highlight of our trip was a canal cruise with her. For more e-mail me [email protected]

PS When withdrawing cash at an ATM, enter 2990 (any multiple of ten) rather than 3000 (about $100), for example. If you request 3000 rubles, you'll receive only 500 ruble bills, and these are difficult to use everywhere. You'll need smaller bills.

There's an AMEX office in St. Petersburg in the Grand Hotel Europe on Nevsky Prospekt with decent rates. I found last year that only the souvineer markets would take USD while the cheaper places for high quality trinkets and such as Passazh, across from Gostinny Dvor, were usually nicer and took only rubles. Make sure your bills are the new style bills, new and not torn or worn too much, the exchange bureaus can be picky. I would suggest keeping some dollars handy but having most of your spending money for the day in rubles. I'll be there in early August visiting friends as well so maybe we'll run into each other and not even know it!

I'll be there in August, too! Good tip, DJK, about getting the odd amount from the ATM.

Be advised that the usual pickpocket precautions apply (especially on the metro and when you see gypsies swarming about). There aren't many, but they're expert.

Thanks for reiterating the pickpocket warning. I tend to become complacent, so I will be sure to figure out a good system.

Re Pickpockets in both cities. I was "approached" twice my gypsies but they didn't get anything because I don't carry anything in my rear pockets. I usually keep money and/or credit cards in several different places inc. under my belt. I aggressively shooed them away by yelling NO and swinging around as if to hit them. They disapeared quickly. An acquaintence had his rear pocket cut as he stepped onto the metro. I think it was obvious that that was where he had his cash and cards.

Re: Pickpockets/Gypsies

Wear slacks/skirt/dress with very deep pockets and carry only folded bills, one or two cards - no wallet. Or, stash your cash/cards in the inside zipper pocket of a jacket. You'll be fine.

A bulging wallet, fanny pack, backpack, and you'll be a prime "target".

There really aren't very many "professional pickpockets" or "gypsies" about, but the few are unbelievably expert at relieving you of your valuables...