(no subject)
As an expat and traveller I am very aware of foreign exchange rates. The Aussie dollar is at a historic high which is good for me as an expat but I understand how it can also be hard domestically.
I was lucky that I bought my boat when the AUD was relatively high (but not the highest) in recent times. Even a drop of one cent meant a difference of about $1000 in the cost of my purchase.
But what really pee's me off are the outrageous charges bank levy. I bring cash with me each time leave home because I get much better rates here than at home even with the local charges.
Sometimes, I withdraw $1000 (which keeps me going for a month) from an ATM but when I add up all the bank charges and the lousy exchange rate which happens in Australia it costs me nearly $100 or 10% of the withdrawal amount. This is made up of $5 fee to the local bank, $5 by my bank, $35 foreign transaction fee, and about $55 in the difference between the rate I can get for cash here and what my bank in Aust gives.
I wonder how many tourists realise just how much using an overseas ATM costs them.
I was lucky that I bought my boat when the AUD was relatively high (but not the highest) in recent times. Even a drop of one cent meant a difference of about $1000 in the cost of my purchase.
But what really pee's me off are the outrageous charges bank levy. I bring cash with me each time leave home because I get much better rates here than at home even with the local charges.
Sometimes, I withdraw $1000 (which keeps me going for a month) from an ATM but when I add up all the bank charges and the lousy exchange rate which happens in Australia it costs me nearly $100 or 10% of the withdrawal amount. This is made up of $5 fee to the local bank, $5 by my bank, $35 foreign transaction fee, and about $55 in the difference between the rate I can get for cash here and what my bank in Aust gives.
I wonder how many tourists realise just how much using an overseas ATM costs them.