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Högklint
Sheep Barriers
The Botanical Gardens
The Town of VisbyHelpful Hints for Tourists
Currency
Even though Sweden is a member of the European Union, it has chosen not to use the Euro as its unit of currency. Being that Gotland is part of Sweden, the national currency of Sweden is also used on Gotland and of course in Visby. The Swedish unit of currency is the Krona which is abbreviated SEK or SKR. One Swedish Krona is the equivalent of 100 Ore (forgive the lack of grammatical accent). When we visited in August, 2005, one U.S. Dollar was worth about 7.8 Kronor. However, you may wish to ask individual merchants if they will accept American money as some did on our visit there. If not, ATM's or currency exchange offices are open approximately 7 a.m. to 9p.m. Major credit cards are accepted in some establishments, but inquire first.
Language
Swedish is the predominant language of Gotland, but English is also spoken.
Tipping
Service charges are usually included in restaurant bills and taxi fares.
Shopping
Shops are generally open weekdays from about 9 a.m. to 6p.m. However some larger stores open later. Sweden is famous for crystal, but also woolen clothing, amber and the traditional "Salahast" carved, painted horses from the Dalarna province. You will recognize the stylized little horses painted red or blue with additional decorative painting detail as soon as you see them. They are very cute and make a nice gift. (In Stockholm I purchased some chocolates shaped in the form of the "Salahast" horses.
If you see the 3-crown stamp on any gold jewelry, you can be sure that this stamp indicates a minimum gold purity of 18 carats. I am a postcard collector and sender and the postcards in Visby got less expensive as you wandered further into the center of Visby. This rule also applies to the cost other souvenirs as well because the shops closest to the cruise ship piers charge more for everything hoping to snare the unwary passenger.
