Overseas travel - money options

Hello

I am wanting to travel overseas in the next six to twelve months. However with the current rate of exchange for foreign dollars we are not getting much value for money.

What would be the advisability of getting an account overseas and buying euro now, to stash away to use while I am travelling and before the aus dollar drops any more?

I am looking to travel to eastern Europe in particular, and I am looking to put away a regular amount every pay day.

I have looked at both HBSC and ANZ but the minimum amount required was around the 25 K amount, with fees payable.

I have been thinking about either parax bank in Latvia who will open an account and are backed by the Latvian government, who are now broke.

Swede bank was another option.

any suggestions?

 

Angella

Why do that?
Are they using EURO where you are going?
Also, when you buy foreign currency the banks will give you a lousy rate and you have to pay fees for the priviledge.
You then pay fees again if you want to change it over in the local currency.

How easy is it to open an overseas bank account?
I am guessing it would be hard.
What if you carry the money with you and you lose it or it gets stolen?

I have been travelling in Europe before and credit / debit cards work well.
You can pay nearly everywhere with a visa card and you can withdraw money from your savings account from any ATM there.
I haven't travelled in the eastern block countries though.

 

No problems in eastern Europe particularly in countries members of EU -Poland etc. they still have no Euro but local currencies are as good as any other. I often visit this part of the world and always use my debit or credit Visa card at local ATM to withdraw local currency. There is a fee associated but still more convenient that caring cash or setting bank account. I believe both will also attract some fees.

 

Thanx heaps that was very informative, would u know of any good overseas banking facilities?????

Mikojo - Beta v2.0

 

Hi Angela,

I've spent the last year as an expat in the USA, and as you may know, over the course of the last 12 months our dollar dropped from an almost parity to under 60c.

This effectively meant a 40% reduction in income (I was earning in AUD) and all of a sudden, the $2 hotdogs from Walmart became slightly less attractive.

Although it may seem as though 80c is not 'good value for money', my advice would be to hedge your bets and exchange a proportion of your needed funds in advance.