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Here is Why Paying in Local Currency When Travelling is Always Smarter

These days everyone books their ticket online and in most cases, the currency we pay is not our local one. The question that arises is how do we pay? Do we pay in our local currency or what the website shows?

The question that arises is how do we pay? Do we pay in our local currency or what the website shows?

For example, when paying for flights you can opt to pay in £ or $ then either the retailer or my bank will automatically exchange the $ for me in my local currency.

The tip is: You should always opt-in for your bank to exchange the money rather than the retailer!

Retailers many times don’t provide you with a favourable exchange rate, and you do end up paying more.

I just booked some flights with WizzAir, and the difference was staggering, with almost £20 saving on one ticket!

I had to book a flight from Sofia to London and with prices due to summer through the roof I paid 15x more than usual. I almost had a heart attack.

Wizzair gives you the option to chose how to pay either in Bulgarian Leva or British Pounds.

The price was 509BGN

Here is Why Paying in Local Currency When Travelling is Always Smarter

When exchanged on the WizzAir site it shows as £256

Here is Why Paying in Local Currency When Travelling is Always Smarter

If you exchange it online, for example, the price is £237, which is £20 cheaper than letting WizzAir exchange it for you.

Here is Why Paying in Local Currency When Travelling is Always Smarter

Our bank conversion rate was the same one, so we ended up saving approximately £19 per person. Considering that the price of this flight is usually £20, I already felt “robbed” let alone when you consider those exchange fees.

As a travel tip, always make sure you opt for your bank’s more favourable exchange rates in every option. From experience, this is a better choice than letting a retailer exchange it for you.

I have also seen the same principle in actual stores abroad where they ask you in what currency to pay, so even then pick the local currency.

Every little saving helps. 😉

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M G

Sunday 10th of April 2022

Thank you for this! I was just booking flights on Wizz air for the first time and had changed the price from Euros into GBP and right before i pressed "book" i suddenly thought to Google whether i should book in the currency suggested... and your blog post came up. I've saved myself £15 which whilst it isn't a huge saving, i'm really pleased i checked first! :)

Muslim Travel Girl

Wednesday 13th of April 2022

And this is why I love Google!! Glad you saved money because every little helps