American travellers have been handed a rare bit of good news: the euro has slumped to almost exactly one dollar, a level currency watchers rarely see. According to a CNN report, the pound is soft too, trading around $1.20. For anyone holding US dollars, that's a meaningful discount on everything from museum tickets to dinner in Rome — and it comes at the moment the summer holiday season is in full swing.
The flip side is that Europeans and Brits heading abroad are facing noticeably pricier trips, since their currencies buy less almost everywhere. If you've been hesitating over a European itinerary because of post-pandemic price creep, the exchange rate is doing some of the negotiating for you.
There's a catch, though. Hotel rates across the continent have climbed sharply since before COVID. Data from STR Global shows average daily rates in May 2022 were up 23 percent in Italy compared with May 2019, with Ireland up 21 percent and Spain up 17 percent. In other words, the currency windfall is real, but it's partly offsetting accommodation inflation rather than making Europe outright cheap.
The practical takeaway: the strongest savings come from everyday spending — meals, transport, entry fees — where you're paying in euros rather than pre-booked, price-hiked hotel nights. Locking in a favourable card with no foreign transaction fees, or paying in the local currency rather than being charged in dollars at the terminal, helps you actually capture the rate advantage.
Why it matters: if a European trip has been sitting on your wishlist, this is one of the better windows in years for American travellers. Expect your dollar to stretch nearly one-to-one against the euro, budget a bit more for hotels than you would have in 2019, and you can still come out ahead.
Story via Gadling.