Euro Ups & Downs
 

As U.S. traveler headed to Europe this summer (August) I am watching with anticipation on how much it will cost me to buy a Euro. This, of course, can make a significant difference in the cost of a holiday. I am interested in what some of the savvy travelers with an understanding of world economics think the trend is for the Euro. I suspect the woes of Greece, Ireland, and Portugal will influence the Euro.

Thanks for any insights. I am simply curious (and pretty dense when it comes to understanding world economics)

I think most savvy travellers are too busy travelling savvily to know that much about what exchange rates will do.

Of course, if they did know, they'd be players on the international currency exchanges making and losing fortunes rather than travellers...

I'm confident the exchange rate will do one of 3 things.

1. Go up
2. Go down
3. Stay the same

I'm willing to bet $1 it'll do a combination of 1 & 2. Beyond that anybody (even our German fodors expert on exchange rates) who tells you they know for sure which way it'll go is blowing hot air.

There was a thread a while back where someone insisted that the 2012 Olympics would have a measurable impact on the USD:Euro exchange rate. That balloon was deflated quickly.

There's another poster who insists with certainty that the euro will hit $2.00 by this summer. Same prediction as the summer before, and probably often times before that.

More important than global economics is how you plan to "buy" your euros. Please tell us you've followed the weekly discussions here on fodors on the best methods to get the most euros for your dollar using fee free ATM cards and forex-fee free credit cards.

I only know that using your ATM card in Europe is cheaper then getting Euro in the US.

I always wonder about exchange rates before I travel. But when I calculate how much it will cost me to change, say, 1000 euros at x rate, y rate or z rate, the difference is often no more than I might waste at a café or on scratch off lottery tickets in one day.

Why worry about the exchange rates? You're going to spend lots of money getting there, lots of money staying there and lots of money eating/drinking. 2 or 3 percent either way probably won't ruin or make your time there any better or worse. Just go, have fun and spend.

All good responses! There is NOTHING I can do about it AND I am going regardless. Merely thot some of you might have a crystal ball or a perceived trend or analysis of world events or... In any case, this stuff piques my interest for some reason. I am a penny-pincher and am always looking for ways to make the trip more enjoyable by saving money (not that I have any control over exchange rates). BTW, I do exchange for Euros at fee-free ATMs and have done it for years.

Thanks and Happy Traveling!

Hedge fund managers are betting the euro is going down over the next 6 months.

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-...15-712554.html

One thing that tends to happen to exchange rates in August is because there are fewer forex players (most are away on holiday), there are often exaggerated moves in a thin market, and just a whisper of a rumour can have a big effect. Whether that will help you or not is entirely at the mercy of the market.

I hope that the Euro will go down by September..When I was in Paris with my grand-daughter the Euro went up and up..

With the recent events...any change of opinion. I've got to exchange some dollars to euros in the next 2 weeks, and can't decide if I should do it this week or wait...or if it really will make a hill a beans difference, since everyone seems to be in a pickle.

It's still a war of nerves at the moment, based on precious little useful financial data. Since the economies on both sides of the ocean are equally unsettled, there is no reason for one or the other currency to suddenly tank unless all of the speculators suddenly agree -- but the whole point of their existence is to disagree.