Money Minute: How to pocket more money when travelling outside of Canada

With the loonie slipping below US$0.80 it can’t help but feel like we will always be the cheaper, less successful (but better looking, obviously) younger siblings to the U.S.

We know. It’s a tough pill to swallow, especially for Canadians whose requisite remedy for the jealous sibling blues is stateside retail therapy or sipping mojitos in Fort Lauderdale.

But a mere 35 per cent of March Break travellers are headed to international destinations this year, compared to 56 per cent last year, says a new CIBC poll. Of those travelling for the week-long hiatus, 26 per cent say the suffering loonie has impacted their travel plans.

For those planning a cross-border jaunt, your biggest hope at getting the most bang for your buck is to focus on avoiding sky-high greenback-to-loonie currency conversion rates and fees, says Stephen Fine, president of 49th parallel hopping comparison site www.crossbordershopping.ca.

“The only thing people can really control is minimizing the fees and getting the best rates possible on their foreign exchange,” he adds.

If you have time to weigh your options and shop around for the best rates before travelling stateside, Fine recommends perusing banks and foreign exchanges on home soil.

“It depends how much you’re converting and how much you’re spending,” he says. “If you’re going to spend $200 dollars in the U.S. are you really going to shop around if the difference in the exchange rate is 2 per cent at one place and 1.8 per cent at somewhere else? It’s not worth your time.”

But according to CIBC, Canadians will be spending much more than pocket change this year. Canucks travelling for March Break plan to spend an average of $2,638, a 13-per cent increase from last year, the poll results show.

If you’re planning to spend a significant amount down South, there’s always the option of a U.S. dollar credit card from an American bank.

“They can be a little bit of a pain sometimes though they’re okay for certain circumstances,” says Fine pointing to snowbirds or frequent business travel​l​ers. “You’re still going to have to convert from Canadian to U.S. at some point to pay that off unless you’re making your income in U.S. dollars.”

But if there’s one cardinal rule for cross-border or travellers anywhere, it’s skip the ATMs and foreign exchanges in malls.

“If you want to exchange money there, they know you’re (likely) not from that country so where else are you going to go?” he adds. “You’re kind of stuck at that point – best to do it when you have more flexibility and you’re not beholden to anybody based on your location.”

Tune into this week’s Money Minute with Yahoo Canada Finance’s Ashleigh Patterson for more insight on how to avoid spending more than you need to be.