Don't change money on the train
🗓 2010-07-10 · ↻ updated 2010-07-13
One of the participants in our hike in the Carpathians, on the way from St. Petersburg to Ivano-Frankovsk, exchanged money on the train and became the happy owner of a counterfeit 500-hryvnia bill (that’s about 2,000 rubles).
Do not change money (rubles to hryvnia) on trains or at private money changers!!! The exchange rate there is certainly tempting, but they will almost certainly “slip” you a couple of counterfeit bills (if not all).
At each station there are several official exchange offices (with a bad exchange rate, but with real money). It's not worth risking thousands for hundreds.