Aussie vs Euro

[Princess]

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Hey guys

Travelling next year to Europe, whats the deal with the Aussie dollar vs the Euro? I dont really understand all the currancy buzz...but our dollar's doing really well at the moment I've heard...is that true? Is it likely to stay that way? Or would it be worth swapping a bit of $$ in case it drops?

Any tips would be awesome because as I said I just dont get the currency stuff!!!!

Thanks!

[MuvverRussia]

To explain rates, when you change money you're effectively buying foreign currency using your money. The rate is how much foreign currency you get per unit of your currency.

1 Australian dollar is currently 1.67022 € (interbank rate), so you should get around 1.62-1.64 when exchanging.

Although I don't follow the Aussie dollar against the Euro I do follow the AUS$ against the £. Looking at that, the australian dollar is doing quite well at the moment at $2.386 to the £ though. As to whether it'll stay that way, I wouldn't like to say - then again, any fluctuations will be fairly small and shouldn't really affect you.

All in all, buy euros now if you want. Then again, I can't see you losing out too badly if you were to wait - if you're only changing a few thousand dollars then any currency fluctuations won't have a huge affect upon your plans (I can't see the Euro or Aussie dollar being devalued/revalued any time soon ).

[Eagle]

Princess, there's no way you will be able to predict what the exchange rate will be, but as MR stated they probably won't change all that much. Do your planning on what the rate is now, and keep a watch on it as you get closer to departure time. Check www.xe.net for current rates.

It's likely you won't be taking much cash with you, just enough to take care of incidentals until you obtain more. Therefore, there wouldn't be any benefit to buying a bunch of Euro's right now. When you're travelling, you will likely be obtaining cash from ATM's / Cashpoint machines, so you will be stuck with whatever the exchange rate happens to be at the time you withdraw funds. Check other Posts in the Currency section for tips in using ATM's in Europe (ie: money must be in chequing account, four number PIN's, etc.)

The Aussie dollar is quite close to the Canadian dollar, so I can understand your situation. Try to avoid buying or selling currency too much, as the consumer loses each way. Things are much easier with the Euro now, so this helps to some extent.

Not sure if you're planning on going to Italy, but beware of the "switch" that is being used on some tourists these days. One of the Euro coins looks very similar to one of the old Lira coins (which is virtually worthless now), and some tourists are being given this as change -- most don't notice the difference in coins, so end up getting ripped off!

Also, I believe coins aren't useable outside their "home" areas, so if you're using U.K. coins in a Euro area, they may not be accepted. In my experience, the banks in my area won't even accept U.S. coins for exchange -- only paper currency. If you come home with a lot of coins from your trip, these will only be useful as souvenirs (or use them on your next trip).

If you're going to be visiting the site from time-to-time, you may want to register? Good luck with your trip planning!!!

[MuvverRussia]

Also, I believe coins aren't useable outside their "home" areas, so if you're using U.K. coins in a Euro area, they may not be accepted. In my experience, the banks in my area won't even accept U.S. coins for exchange -- only paper currency. If you come home with a lot of coins from your trip, these will only be useful as souvenirs (or use them on your next trip).

Just to clarify this, for example you cannot exchange UK coins (so £s and pence) in a French (or any country) bureau de change. This is a pain when you consider that in the UK we have coins worth around AUS$5. You wouldn't get far if you tried using UK coins in a French (or whatever) shop .

Also, Euro coins (and cents) are Euro coins, regardless of country of issue (even though they look different). This means that a Spanish 50c coin is accepted in Italy etc.

[Nicstar]

I'm figuring I'm going to have to go talk to my bank. I don't have the option of a chequing account. Only a savings/transaction account. I'm POSITIVE I used the same card o.s last time and could still access my money fine.

Wish there were more Aussie active on this forum who I could get some feedback from!

[Kim]

My savings account did work in a bunch of countries, it just didn't in the rest, you know? But I'm not sure about a savings/transaction - maybe that is different? Mine was just a plain old savings.

What happened was that I would put in my card and pin and it would just go to my chequings accoung - where as here you can choose what account to withdrawl from.

Kim