With over 1,000 miles of coastline and over 1,000 islands and islets, Croatia is one of Europe’s most idyllic summer destinations. Yet until now it has always felt that little bit more exotic than the likes of France, Spain and Greece, with its own currency, the kuna.
All that changed on January 1 when Croatia joined the Eurozone, replacing its historic kuna with the euro. It is the 20th country to join the single currency.
Euro banknotes and coins are now circulating in the country, with around 70% of ATMs in the country already distributing euros rather than kuna, according to the European Commission. The rest will follow by January 15.
The kuna can still be used until January 15, although anyone paying in kuna will receive their change in euros. The exchange rate has been fixed at 7.53450 kuna to 1 euro.
Got spare kuna left over from your last trip? You can exchange them for euros at any Croatian post office until June 30, and at any Croatian bank until the end of 2023. Exchanging at a bank is free of charge until July 1. Croatia’s national central bank will exchange kuna banknotes free of charge until further notice, and coins until December 2025.
“I welcome Croatia to the euro family and to the ECB Governing Council table in Frankfurt” said Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, in a statement.
“Croatia worked hard to become the 20th member of the euro area, and it succeeded. I congratulate the Croatian people.” Hrvatska narodna banka, Croatia’s national central bank, now becomes a member of the Eurosystem — the euro area’s central banking system, made up of the European Central Bank and the national central banks of euro member states.
Source : Julia Buckley