Hello,

I want to have about $400 dollars in Russian Currency when I arrive in St. Petersburg on June 22nd. I've tried to take all precautions by calling my banks and credit card companies, but I want to make sure I have money for the cab to the hotel and that I can pay cash for my hostel if I need to. It seems all the currency traders here have a high markup for buying cash.

Is there any cheap way to buy currency with a credit card, or should I just carry US dollars and exchange at the airport?

Trying to do this the most economical way, and ideally get credit card points if possible.