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Exchanging Currency at the Right Time and Place Saves You Money When is the right time to exchange currencies? Planning a vacation or a holiday in another country can be stressful; especially if it’s the first time you’re visiting that part of the world. Flight details, restaurant choices and hotel reservations, as well as checking out all the local attractions are important, but if plans about exchanging currency are not on that list, the trip could turn into an expensive adventure. Waiting until you arrive to beautiful Thailand to exchange money will put a major dent in a vacation budget and may even ruin the trip, if the currency pair USD/THB experiences a sudden change in value. Experienced international travelers know that exchanging money is the most important ingredient in producing an accurate vacation budget. They know that credit cards, banks, airport exchange merchants and hotels exchanges can be very expensive choices, especially if the budget is substantial. Exchanging currency is a for-profit business and is very profitable for the companies that prey on a consumer’s lack of knowledge to increase their bottom line results. That’s why exchanging currency should be researched when you begin planning the trip; you need information to make quality choices. Because there are so many different exchange rates available on websites and through other merchants, the choices become a breeding ground for confusion. Consulting an expert when you are in the trip planning stage, will give you the information you need to put a budget together using real costs, rather than estimates. A professional currency trading broker will explain different exchange strategies, like averaging. Averaging offsets value surges in the currency market. A broker will always give you a real time rate, without any hidden fees or transaction fees that can wind up costing you hundreds of dollars. Once the exchange is completed, a professional will securely send your money next day delivery. Why not use a bank or credit card to make exchanges? Banks love to exchange currency. They may only post one or two rates a day, so you never know if you are getting a real time rate, plus they add a hefty transaction fee to every exchange. Credit card companies make up their own exchange rate, which is filled with profit, plus they add a transaction fee and then add a surcharge to every trip purchase, so you don’t know how much you’re spending until you get the statement. Airport merchants and hotels can cost you 20% more than a professional currency broker, which means when you exchange your currency to Baht, you only receive 80% of your money’s value in Baht. The value of a currency pair, like the Dollar/Thai Baht pair, is always fluctuating and that’s why averaging with a currency broker is such a good idea. When you average, you exchange small amounts of currency at different times while you’re planning the trip. A broker will inform you when the pair is trading in your favor, so you can make exchanges at the right time, without fees and surcharges. The broker does make a profit, but you save money and have an accurate budget in your host countries currency, which eliminates exchange surprises. Other travel tips Carry your money and documents in a money belt or leg pouch that’s secure and out of sight and use hotel safes and other security measures when you arrive at your destination. Although Thailand has no restrictions, some countries limit the amount of cash you can carry through customs, so check with your broker and stay within that limit. Remember common sense is your best security weapon when you use it.