EUR 100 Cost USD $141.80 on Sept. 27, 2007

[tennisWalt Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tennisWalt]

100 EUR now cost $141.80. So are you still thinking about going to Europe?

If you are still planning on going to Europe: What are you doing to keep the cost down?
Walt

One Idea

Take a River Cruise:

These are guaranteed U.S. dollar prices that were set 12-18 months ago when the dollar was in much better shape.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

When I went in late July the exchange with fees came out to $1.44, 2-3 weeks later it came down to $1.35 but then started coming back up. FRom what I heard it might be coming back down.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

Every day for the last two weeks when I walk from my office to go to lunch, the currency exchange houses I pass show a daily decline of the US dollar. The euro has moved up and down against local currency, but the dollar is steadily down, having lost about 6% in the last two weeks.

While my salary is paid in dollars, at least my house rent was also contracted for the next year in dollars rather than either euros or local currency, so at least the decline of the dollar doesn't increase my housing expense. I have also been moving my dollars either to local currency or euros.

What was even more disconcerting was when I changed some money today, I looked on the posted rates, which as many do here show the exchange houses buying and selling rates as well as the day's interbank rate. Normally, the buying rate for a foreign currency is less than the interbank rate and the selling rate is higher than the interbank rate. However, today the buying and selling rates for US dollars were both below the interbank rate, meaning the exchange houses are even selling dollars less than the interbank rate in order to dump them. They are obviously betting on the dollar continuing to slide.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

When I went in late July the exchange with fees came out to $1.44, 2-3 weeks later it came down to $1.35 but then started coming back up. FRom what I heard it might be coming back down.

Sounds like you had either a bad rate or a high commission, both problems in exchanging in the euro area.

In eastern Europe, you can actually do a double conversion, dollars to local currency to euros cheaper, usually much cheaper, than a direct conversion dollars to euros in a euro country. Few of the exchange houses here have commissions at all, and for dollars and euros, it is easy to find exchange houses with a spread between buying and selling rates of less than 1%.

Actually, one of the best strategies to cut the cost on a trip to Europe is to see eastern Europe. The Economist magazine likes to use the cost of a Big Mac to gauge the relative cost of living, and a Big Mac here is at least still cheaper than one in the USA. There is a big advantage to not having switched to the euro.

[Jya-Ning Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close Jya-Ning]

I have not think this through, but the brokerage company I deal with - eTrade allows one to trade globally, and lock in with the local currency. I know in Taiwan and Hong Kong, it has been doing that for years. But I have not look into the expense of each one.

Since travel can be just a goal setting, so you can set some goal for EUR saving, then just work on it and lock the EUR during time, so you will reduce the currency exchange risk in the long run.

Jya-Ning

[ArtsieAng Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close ArtsieAng]

100 EUR now cost $141.80.

My poor brother leaves on October 4th.

It was 1.35 when I was there this June.

[dougp26364 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dougp26364]

While it's bad for US toursist's traveling to Europe, it's great for attracting tourist's coming to America and makes American exports less expensive in foriegn markets. As I understand it this is inline with what president Bush wanted to accomplish for our economy. That is making American goods less expenive and more desirable around the world. Having the American dollar balanced with the Canadian dollar puts us on even footing as far as trade would be concenred if I understand my global economics correctly.

But, as far as taking a European vacation for Americans it really sort of sucks.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

While it's bad for US toursist's traveling to Europe, it's great for attracting tourist's coming to America and makes American exports less expensive in foriegn markets. As I understand it this is inline with what president Bush wanted to accomplish for our economy. That is making American goods less expenive and more desirable around the world. Having the American dollar balanced with the Canadian dollar puts us on even footing as far as trade would be concenred if I understand my global economics correctly.

But, as far as taking a European vacation for Americans it really sort of sucks.

It's not great when you're working as an expat, either. Where are the good old days of Clinton's strong dollar policy, deliberately reversed by this administration, when about 80 cents bought you a euro, and all of the national european currencies, east and west, were also much cheaper?

[Holly Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Holly]

What American Goods?

We don't make anything here anymore, do we?

While it's bad for US toursist's traveling to Europe, it's great for attracting tourist's coming to America and makes American exports less expensive in foriegn markets. As I understand it this is inline with what president Bush wanted to accomplish for our economy. That is making American goods less expenive and more desirable around the world. Having the American dollar balanced with the Canadian dollar puts us on even footing as far as trade would be concenred if I understand my global economics correctly.

But, as far as taking a European vacation for Americans it really sort of sucks.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

The dollar is still falling here on a daily basis. The interbank rate against local currency dropped 1.3% since yesterday. Quite a number of exchange houses are selling dollars for 2% BELOW the interbank rate (the selling price for a foreign currency is usually above the interbank rate, while the buying price is normally below the interbank rate).

It appears that the move since yesterday was a rise in local currency, as the euro also fell against local currency by about 1.3%.

In the last six weeks, the dollar has moved downward, while the euro has moved both up and down. Curiously, of the three other eastern European currencies that all local exchange houses deal in, two of them have not moved at all while one fell very slightly in the last few days.

[Dancingfish Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dancingfish]

I am going to Scotland next week and we just aren't spending any extra money....I figure there is a reason we got a timeshare and we won't have to eat out every meal. My suitcase will have coffee and snacks packed!! And we certainly won't be shopping. Which is a shame... my biggest concern right now is fuel for the rental.

[timesfive Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timesfive]

I heard on the radio today that sales are up 20% in the travel industry here. Australia. USA number 1 destination. really good news for us. our $ is up against the Pound too. We have lots of friends travelling to europe this christmas all very excited about the exchange rate.

We were in US when rate was 80 cents to our $ now it is 93 cents. huge diference. so although not good for everyone but the fall is great for some.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

This afternoon, when I went to change a bunch of dollars into local currency, I had some trouble doing so because the first six exchange houses I went to were OUT of local currency because so many people here were ditching dollars today. Dollars are still one of the two ''hard'' curencies used as ''matress money'' here, although it long ago gave up being the primary matress money to the euro and seems to become an even smaller player every day that goes by.

I recall that when the basket of currencies that became the euro took an unexpected severe nosedibe in the run-up to the euro, The Economist magazine pointed out that the cause was two groups of transactions that were under the usual radar screen of economic indicators but involved huge amounts of money, and that was flight of eastern European mattress money out of the Deutsch Mark and into dollars, and organized crime similarly ditching marks in the ''briefcase money'' which they didn't want to explain to a bank in a large transaction after the euro came in and converting them on the sly into dollars. I don't know if what I encountered is going on all over this part of Europe, but if it is it could have the same impact on the dollar now as it did on the mark, and all the other currencies that the mark was tied to in that basket, then.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

It is getting close the the $1.50 mark. Today it is at $1.47. It looks like I am done with going to Europe for a few years.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

. . . and the pound is around $2.10. The local currencies in eastern Europe have also gained on the dollar.

At least things is this part of Europe are still reasonable. My utility bill here is a lot less than it would be in the US.