Austria - Euro - Currency Guide

General Currency Info - Euro

The euro (ISO: EUR) is involved in slightly more than 30% of all foreign exchange deals, and as such, is the world’s second most traded currency, behind the US dollar.

The euro is the currency of the eurozone (officially called the ‘euro area’), which consists of 19 of the 28 member states of the European Union, and is used by almost 350 million Europeans. It was introduced in January 1999.

Of all the thousands of exchange rates that exist in the world, the euro-to-US dollar exchange rate is the most actively traded, or most ‘liquid’.

Since its introduction, the euro’s lowest value against the dollar came in October 2000 when EUR/USD hit lows of 0.8231. The currency was strongest in July 2008, shortly before the worst stage of the 2007-2009 financial crisis, when EUR/USD reached 1.6038.

There are currently more than twenty nations and territories which peg their currencies to the euro, the largest of which is Denmark.

EUR News, Forecasts and Trends

For more EUR currency market forecasts you can read the full article Euro Forecasts.

Travel, Currency and Money saving tips for Austria

Small, landlocked Austria offers alpine scenery, world-class museums, cobbled quaintness, and Wiener schnitzel. Austria is content to bask in its good living and elegant, opulent past as the former head of one of Europe's grandest empires. Austrians tend to be relaxed, gregarious people who love the outdoors as much as a good cup of coffee in a café.The capital city of Austria is Vienna has a population of around 1.7 million and is rich with swirling architecture and world-class museums; impressive Habsburg sights . Austria has a very high standard of living and is one of the richest countries in the world.

Travel tips for Austria?

The majority of the population speak local Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, and Austrian German in its standard form is the country's official language. Most Austrians speak basic English as it is taught in school. But that is not to say that you shouldn’t put in a little effort to learn some basic words in German, such as Thank You (Danke), Please (Bitte) or Hello (Hallo! / Grüss Gott).

Getting around Austria is not a problem as the local transport infrastructure is very good and inexpensive. Austrians really take their day of rest seriously and the majority of businesses are closed on Sundays. Austria is located in the Alps and is a largely mountainous country. For skiers Austria now represents better value for money than the French Alps, everything from basic holiday costs to lift pass, ski school, eating out and partying usually costs less. Austrians strictly observe traffic regulations which means no jaywalking even if there are no cars in sight. Follow the traffic regulations or you might end up paying a pretty hefty fine if a cop sees you.

Are credit cards widely accepted in Austria?

Visa and MasterCard (EuroCard) are accepted a little more widely than American Express (Amex) and Diners Club, although a surprising number of shops and restaurants refuse to accept any credit cards at all. Upmarket shops, hotels and restaurants will accept cards, though. Train tickets can be bought by credit card in main stations. Credit cards allow you to get cash advances on ATMs and over-the-counter at most banks.

How do I get around Austria?

Flying within a country the size of Austria is rarely necessary. The main exception is to and from Innsbruck which is in the far west of Austria. Austrian Airlines (www.austrian.com) The national carrier offers several flights daily between Vienna and Graz, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt, Linz and Salzburg.

Rail routes are often complemented by Postbus services, which really come into their own in the more inaccessible mountainous regions. Buses are fairly reliable, and usually depart from outside train stations. In remote regions plan a day or two ahead and travel on a weekday; services are reduced or nonexistent on Saturday, and often nonexistent on Sunday. Pay attention to timetables on school buses in remote regions.

Austria’s local transport infrastructure is excellent, inexpensive and safe.

Buses & Trams Bus services operate in most cities and are complemented by a few night-bus lines. Tram and bus services in most places run from about 5am to 11pm or midnight. You usually need to press the stop-request button, even in trams. Metro In Vienna, the metro runs all night on Friday and Saturday nights. From Sunday night to Thursday night it stops around midnight or 12.30am. No other towns have metro systems.

The Danube cycling trail is like a Holy Grail for cyclists, following the entire length of the river in Austria between the borders with Germany and Slovakia. The Tauern Radweg is a 310 km trail through the mountain landscapes of Hohe Tauern National Park.

Travel money for Austria

Save money and time by Ordering your Euro online from Travelex, you get better rates and can pick up the EUR cash locally or even on travel day at the airport.

Another popular option is to use a Pre-paid Travel Card. Your Debit/Credit Card provider will charge you 2% from market mid-rate, but your bank may also charge an extra 3% as an “Overseas Transaction Charge” plus “Overseas ATM” fees for withdrawing cash.

For card purchases if offered a choice of currencies always select to Pay in Euro otherwise you may get much worst exchange rates.

Send Money to Austria - Best Rates

To get a good (and fair) exchange rate when sending money to Austria you need to find and compare exchange rates for International Money Transfers (IMTs).

The available FX rates for sending money abroad can be very different to the mid-market (wholesale) rate which you see reported online and in the News.

You should especially compare your own bank's exchange rates to those available from Money Transfer specialists to see how much you can save - we make that calculation easy in the below table.

Get a better deal for foreign transfers to Austria

When sending money to Austria it’s important to compare your bank’s rates & fees with those we have negotiated with our partner money transfer providers. To get a better deal you should follow these 4 simple steps :

1. Open an account with a BER reviewed FX provider (id docs may be required)
2. You specify the local or Euro amount you want to transfer
3. Make a local currency domestic transfer for the requested amount to the provider's bank account in your country
4. Once your funds are received by the provider the converted EUR amount will be transfered to the recipient account you specify in Austria.

Use the above Send to Euro calculator to compare the exchange rates of FX specialist providers rates versus your bank's standard rates you can hopefully save around 5% and maybe more - end result is more Euro deposited into the recipient bank account and less margins and fees kept by the banks!