Hello,<BR><BR>What's the scoop on merchants, hoteliers, vendors, etc., using the lire-to-euro conversion to raise prices higher than the normal season-to-season increase?<BR><BR>People are talking about it but I haven't seen or heard any hard evidence.<BR><BR>I plan to buy the latest editions of some of the guide books I've used in the past and check some of the prices in hotels and restaurants to see if I can spot anything, but would really value first-hand accounts and opinions from anyone recently or presently in Europe. (Italy or France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, etc.)<BR><BR>In the end, it probably doesn't matter because I'll pay the going price anyway. After all, I'll be on holiday. I'll just end up buying less of this or that.<BR><BR>Thanks to anyone taking the time to respond.

As an expat living in Germany, yes, the businesses, etc have rounded up and added a few cents to the price. Example: my morning cup of coffee at my village bakery used to cost 2.20 DM now it cost 1.15 Euros. The exact conversion rate is 1 Euro=1.95 DM, so now my coffee actually costs 1.12 Euro but the bakery owner has chosen to round up. 3 cents is not a lot of money but add it up if you over the course of a week, sell several hundred cups of coffee you are now making more money. I have notice this little rounding up on everything, newspapers, cups of coffee. So the answer to your very astute ? is<BR>YES

I wonder if this will contribute to at least a mild inflation above what was projected this year for EU countries, such that the Euro will depreciate slightly against other currencies? If every merchant is rounding up to the same degree, that makes it about 2.6 per cent inflation due to rounding alone.

I have just travelled in parts of Europe, and although I do not know what the effect of the new currency was, or merely inflation, I found that the guide book prices quoted for Florence and Rome (the only parts of Italy that I went too) were out by roughly 10 euro. This may not be a big problem to many, however I was travelling on a tight budget and from Australia (hence Australian dollars!!!) and was a difference. But not complaining the trip was fantastic

Sue, the price increases that have indeed occurred for coffees, beers and restaurant meals are just a small fraction of an average person's budget. Main budget items such as rent, mortgage payments, electricity and phone bills, etc., etc., have been converted to euros using the exact exchange rate. So the overall effect on inflation of the changeover to the euro is very limited. A tourist, whose main expenses are the coffees, beers and meals, may notice a high inflation. A local person will be much less affected.