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Euro Drops Against Dollar Travel To Europe Now

Euro Drops Against Dollar Go to Europe Now When a country’s currency drops against your own or is devalued, the country often becomes cheaper for you to travel in — the country goes on sale. Travel Tip: Watch currency rates for cheap travel I read this morning that the Euro had hit a four year [...]

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Euro Drops Against Dollar Go to Europe Now

When a country’s currency drops against your own or is devalued, the country often becomes cheaper for you to travel in — the country goes on sale.

Travel Tip: Watch currency rates for cheap travel

I read this morning that the Euro had hit a four year low against the Dollar. I hope it keeps falling, I like it when countries go on sale — especially since Europe may be our next jump.

As reported in the news:

The euro continued its slide today and hit a four-year low against the dollar, sparking talk of parity and concern that it is losing its appeal as a reserve currency.

The markets piled further pressure on Europe’s leaders, sending the euro to $1.2234 at one stage – its lowest level since April 2006. The European single currency has fallen sharply against the dollar in May, losing more than 7% of its value.
-Guardian Euro Falls Against Dollar

The euro sank to just above a four-year low against the dollar Friday as economic data suggested a stronger recovery in the United States, and the cost and economic fallout of an emergency financing deal for indebted European countries hurt the shared European currency.

The euro, used by 16 countries, slid to a 19-month low of $1.2359 in midday trading in New York. That’s more than 2 cents off its high for the day. A break below $1.2328 would mean the euro was trading at its lowest point in more than four years.
-Euro Falls On Dollar

A budget traveler will watch global currency rates like a sports fanatic watches their team. The global currency exchange is the sport, and the individual currencies are the teams. Our home teams are the money we have our savings in.

I root for the Dollar.

I am sure a Canadian roots for their Canadian Dollar.

And Europeans root for the Euro.

Right now, the US Dollar is making way in the standings against the Euro, the US and Canadian currency is about tied.

A devalued currency means the countries that use them are going on sale for foreign travelers with money kept in other, more stable, currencies. Travel to Europe will soon be relatively cheaper in terms of dollars that it has been in recent years. Europe could be going on sale.

The Euro was valued at well over 1.50 to the US Dollar the last time that I was there, it is now below 1.25, and looks as if it will keep falling.

At least this is what the “experts” have to say on the matter.

The vastness of the EU empire looks to be crumbling due to its own economic diversity: the debt of Greece, Italy, and Spain are devaluing the region’s currency as a whole. As a traveler, I hope it continues to fall, I would like to return to Eastern Europe — the cheaper the better.

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It is funny how travelers have this ingrained pride paid towards their home currencies. We are prone to throw our currencies in the face of other travelers when they are particularly strong, and try to avoid the conversation when they are weak. It is amazing to me how intolerable otherwise jovial and polite Canadians became when their money even begins to compare with the US Dollar. When the Canadian dollar is higher, it is amazing to me just how artfully a Canadian can work a reminder of this fact into conversation.

Though this does not compare to the poor Australian, who, for years, has only been able to hang his head whenever currency conversion rates are brought up.

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A shrewd traveler will watch the global currency conversion charts like a better does the standings at the horse track. This is a matter of money, we want our money to go as far as it can go, we want to travel farther, further, and for longer durations of time with the money that we have.

By knowing which currencies of the world are being devalued against our own is a clutch way to direct our travels around the world.

The Euro is falling, Europe may soon go on sale for travelers.

Read: Travel Tip: Watch currency rates for cheap travel

Filed under: Budget Travel

Filed under: Current Events, Economics, Europe, Money, Travel Economics

About the Author:

I am the founder and editor of Vagabond Journey. I’ve been traveling the world since 1999, through 91 countries. I am the author of the book, Ghost Cities of China and have written for The Guardian, Forbes, Bloomberg, The Diplomat, the South China Morning Post, and other publications. has written 3699 posts on Vagabond Journey. Contact the author.

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2 comments… add one

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  • Bob L May 19, 2010, 12:01 pm

    Question: Obviously, if the prices in the country do not change, then the change in the exchange rate really helps out the traveler with the strong currency. But what about prices? Do they start to go up rapidly? I would think things like fuel would become much more expensive due to the relative costs, and therefore anything that relies on fuel (transportation, heat, A/C). Same with imports and in some cases food. I realize that many of these things will not affect the budget traveler, but the people living in that country have to pay these things, so the assumption is that teh prices should go up, eating into at least some of the savings.

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    • Wade | Vagabond Journey.com May 19, 2010, 11:31 pm

      Good observation. I thought about adding this to the piece, but it is a shaky topic as I have never really known a general rule that governs the rise of prices which comes from the falling of a demand for a particular currency on a global market.

      If a currency is formally devalued by the government then often times inflation will cancel out much of the benefit that using money from a more stable currency will have. Though in some circumstances, like in Argentina some years ago, the currency completely bottomed out to the point where prices could not really get much higher (as nobody could afford to pay them) that the country went on sale for travelers with dollars. So there is a breaking point that a currency’s devaluation needs to cross to make it a value for travel.

      But this, in my opinion, is not really what is happening in Europe. The Euro still seems stable, it is just being traded for slightly less money against the dollar — the currency has not been intentionally devalued. Just so inflation is curbed, then it will cost less to travel in Europe now than it did a couple of years ago.

      Though I did read that prices are going up in many EU countries, but it is my impression that it is a pretty minor rise that does not compensate for the drop in what the Euro is now being traded at with the dollar.

      At least this is my opinion.

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