Take it easy. I am not even 1o00% sure that one year from now there will be anymore a monetary economy! By then, you may want to stock up on cheese wheels and flour sacks to barter for your lodging.
I suppose you could if you could find a source of local currency exchange without high fees. But fees typically are quite high.It may say "no fee" but the rate of exchange is poor so you pay in the end.
The dollar is strenghtening at this point. So in summary wait and use a ATM when there. RR
Originally posted by GGirl2: Alice Twain you crack me up!!!!
Thanks ma'am. But the point stands: the current state of crisis and total uncertainity means that you can't just guess what will happen next. Much will dipend on whether the US or the EU will have less problems with the current crisis: if the criis strikes harder on the US economy than the UE one, then the Euro will go up, if it strikes harder the EU the opposite will happen, and the dollar will turn out to be stronger than the Euro. If it strikes hard enough, you may want to sell your flight tickets for the equivalent of a meal (and anyhow, the airline may shut down and all of the hotels in Europe may go broke and the Internet will collapse as well).
Overseas tourism to Australia has declined dramatically, so the tourist industry is pleased that our exchange rate has suddenly gone down.
We are working out how much food our garden can produce.
A scenario in which the next generation looks back and calls us part of the Travelling Era (they had money and fuel was cheap and available) is a distinct possibility.
Do not put off until tomorrow what travelling you can do today. The chance may never return.
John "There are two types of problems: those that solve themselves, and those which you can do nothing about" Isabel Allende's grandmother
Posts: 1582 | Location: Mullumbimby, NSW, Australia | Registered: 26 March 2003
GGirl2, The best exchange rates I have found in the US are 5 to 7% above the interbank rate. You can withdraw euro from an ATM in Italy for, depending on your bank's fees, about 1% above the interbank rate. So if you are trying to save money by buying euro you have to not only guess which way the market will move but it has to move more than 4% to pay off.
Only reason to buy now is to lock in. If the certainty of today's rates are important to you then do it. OTOH odds are thing will be better between now and when you leave. Plus whatever it'll cost you to buy in advance.
Originally posted by Giò59: I'm willing to bet on 1.2$ exchange rate before Xmas....
From your lips to the Dollars ears! I'm leaving November 6th. Right now it's the same as it was back in Feburary 2007 when I went, so I'll even take that!
Posts: 119 | Location: New Jersey | Registered: 28 September 2006
Thanks for your imput everyone. I do realize that it is touch and go and one does not know. I figured if I buy some euro now that it is a little cheaper, then I could withdraw the rest when I get there. My airline ticket cost $50.00 because I used airmiles so I am thankful for that. Also my bank fees for withdrawals is $0, plus whatever the foreign transaction fee is so I will not be dinged by high fees. I think I will wait a while though especially since yesterday happened and hopefully $1.20 would be a reality!!!
I wouldn't bet on anything given today's financial and monetary situation - up or down. Who would have guessed that the US dollar would have dropped to 1.60 to the euro not too long ago? Who was predicting a Dow in the 9000 range only a year after hitting 14000? Nearly everyone who tries to time the market gets it wrong. A few months ago there were people predicting a further weakening of the dollar, so what does this current rebound in the dollar mean? It reflects the EU countries' own economic softening and financial troubles. Some troubles are their own and some tied to ours. Where we go from here is anyone's guess. I think it makes sense to buy euros only if you can presently afford it and are dealing in fairly large amounts; such as paying a bill for a group in euros that you have already budgeted for in dollars. The relatively small amount to be saved for paying a personal bill is not worth the effort in my opinion and you could save more if you wait - or not!
Also, consider which are the real advantages of the price change of a smalla mount of money. The se fluctuations can mean a big deal if you are trading large amount of money, can mean a small deal when you are considering the full cost of a holiday, but a .10$ difference in price means next to nothing if you are talking about, say, 200 euro. It's a difference of a handful of euro or dollars, not worth the effort, IMHO.
Matt D., I still believe that the biggest influence in the fluctuations is mere speculation.
We leave for Italy on Oct. 31 so I'm very happy with today's 1.35 rate! Not such a small fluctuation -- it saves approx. $77.00 on my 2 week car rental , just since the exchange rate last week on 10/1.
Matt D., I still believe that the biggest influence in the fluctuations is mere speculation.
I agree Alice. Speculation certainly contributes to the crazy volatility. I'm certainly no expert on financial matters though. I am very glad to see the dollar's recent small bounce and I hope it eventually returns to parity with the euro as it once was. I think that's in everybody's best interest; including our Italian friends. European companies trying to sell their goods here suffer when their currency is inflated against the US$.
The se fluctuations can mean a big deal if you are trading large amount of money, can mean a small deal when you are considering the full cost of a holiday, but a .10$ difference in price means next to nothing if you are talking about, say, 200 euro. It's a difference of a handful of euro or dollars, not worth the effort, IMHO.
Alice,
I couldn't have said this any better!! For a few hundred Euro, you're dealing in a couple of bucks. For a million Euro... maybe a better deal.
As for the economy, we need to stay calm and not panic. Panic is what causes the fluctuations.
Also... Alice your original comment on this thread was genius!! You had me hysterical reading it!!
Doug
ANCORA IMPARO
Posts: 2108 | Location: Winter Park, FL | Registered: 18 May 2005
Take it easy. I am not even 1o00% sure that one year from now there will be anymore a monetary economy! By then, you may want to stock up on cheese wheels and flour sacks to barter for your lodging
Well, because Doug pointed it out... Yes, fabulous! And really, a little humor goes a very long way during crazy times.
I couldn't have said this any better!! For a few hundred Euro, you're dealing in a couple of bucks. For a million Euro... maybe a better deal.
As for the economy, we need to stay calm and not panic. Panic is what causes the fluctuations.
Also... Alice your original comment on this thread was genius!! You had me hysterical reading it!!
True but you have to draw the line somewhere. For me it was a $1.35. Now had I already planned a vacation and had I not been to Itlay twice in two years, I would have still gone this year. But since I had been to Italy two years in a row, $1.40+ was a bit too much for me. Plus I still have a lot of places to go in my own country so I stayed stateside and had a nice bicycle tour of the Pacific Coast.
I sure hope things calm down, next year I would like to return to Italy and do the lake regions.
And yes we all needed a smile. Thanks again Alice.
Posts: 589 | Location: Pittsburgh, PA U.S.A. | Registered: 16 December 2005
Originally posted by spinnaker: True but you have to draw the line somewhere. For me it was a $1.35.
But the line was drawn thinking of the whole holiday, which includes flight and the full expense for the holiday. Not thinking about only the first couple hundred buck to be exchanged! ^_^
BUT what is currently my biggest concern when we leave in 8 weeks is that a. I have no currency ready, and B. I have been putting off booking all my transfers and some trips and other things through viator.com. Put off due to awaiting confirmation from them on dates and husband being really ill.
So the Aussie dollar is in a VERY bad state now, and what if we pay for a couple of thousand dollars worth of day trips and transfers and find they have gone bust overnight? Not only have we paid a fortune, but we've also lost that and are left with no transfers etc.
Posts: 57 | Location: Perth, Western Australia | Registered: 09 August 2007
So the Aussie dollar is in a VERY bad state now, and what if we pay for a couple of thousand dollars worth of day trips and transfers and find they have gone bust overnight? Not only have we paid a fortune, but we've also lost that and are left with no transfers etc.
Well I think this is really a different situation then the exchange rate. If these are your fears, then you should purchase trip insurance which would protect you in the event that either your husband is too ill to travel and/or there are cancellations or bankruptcies which might effect your travel.
Hey I am not financial guru, but a gut feeling tells me to wait before purchasing Euro's. Either way your best exchange rate come from ATM's while being overseas. So in my opinion you should defiantly wait and see how the Euro VS. Dollar battle turns out before purchasing Euro's a year in advance of your trip!
