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Where | How Much | When | What | How to Say It/Write It Today's US Dollar to Euro Rate Complete Listing of Ed and Julie's Travel Tips and Planning Tools
For many, a trip covering several European destinations will mean just one currency to deal with. Soon ... but not quite yet. These currencies won't disappear until 2002. And even though you may think a 2002 event won't affect your 2001 trip, you do have to decide ... now ... what you'll do with the currency leftover from your 2001 trip that will be (almost) worthless in 2002. Spend it, convert it, donate it ... whatever you do, don't make it a donation to the European governments. They're hoping tourists will leave hundreds of millions of dollars of currency unconverted. The good news is that the euro converts at a rate reasonably close to the US dollar ... a true boon to the decimal place-challenged! And useful now since most prices are posted in euros in the zone, as well as in the local currency.
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Great Britain, Sweden and Denmark will surely participate … some day. Norway and Switzerland will have to resolve EU (European Union) membership issues before considering EMU (European Money Union) participation. Some eastern bloc countries will join the EU and euro zone in the future. How Much
European Community (EC) regulations establish the following permanent rates:
To repeat: the rate of exchange between the euro and non-euro zone currencies (e.g. dollars, pounds, rands) will fluctuate: the euro to national currency within the euro zone rates have been fixed irrevocably. The old euro zone currencies will be withdrawn from circulation by the end of February, 2002. When and What
For those outside the euro zone, credit-, charge- and cash- card statements may show transactions made within the euro zone in euros, rather than the local currency marked on the pricetag.
Banks in some non-zone countries (e.g. Great Britain) offer euro-denominated accounts, advantageous to persons and firms who do business in the zone. For most of us, though, the major change won't occur until the changeover occurring as 2002 begins.
Changeover
If you skip reading this important section, know this: Don't have any leftover legacy currency by the end of this year. Convert before your last trip to the eurozone is finished. If you've already made your last trip, convert it now, even if you pay a high conversion cost. You do not want to try and get it converted next year on a trip. How to Say It/Write It
Is your computer ready for the euro?
Here's a test: if you don't see a euro symbol between the brackets [ € ] you're not
ready for the euro! (The graphic symbol in the preceding paragraph is a .gif
image which you're welcome to borrow ... just right click on it.)
You'll find a language-by-language guide at the EU site. Paper Money and Coins
Coins will be issued in eight denominations: 2 and 1 euro, and then, in euro cents, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1. Each denomination will have a common face (obverse) throughout the euro zone. The reverse, however, will be decorated uniquely by issuing countries. The full range of notes and coins are shown at the EU website. All will be valid throughout participating countries regardless of state of issue or the particular design. You may munch a München wurst sandwich purchased with a 2 euro coin bearing a likeness of an Irish harp on the reverse. What Will You Do With Your Leftover Foreign Coins? Continue on if you're interested in euro-related news items. Euro NewsSeptember 7, 2001 August 30, 2001 Euro-related Links
Other
Financial Information to Help Plan Your Trip to Europe Complete
Index of Ed and Julie's Our Favorites Trip Tips and Tools Copyright © 1998-2001 E.J.
Gehrlein Traveling
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ook, Ma! No francs! And
no lire, marks, pesetas or florins.
hat is a euro? A
multi-country, common European currency worth, in August 2001, about 90% of one US
dollar. (USD1 ~ EUR1.09, about 91 cents.) It replaces the franc, lira, mark and nine other
European currencies. However, with no coinage or banknotes until the beginning of 2002, or
perhaps late this year, the euro is sort of a virtual currency for most travelers ... for
now.
irtual or not,
you’ll certainly see the euro on pricetags and menus on your next trip to Europe, at
least if you visit the euro zone. If you're used to the old system, though, the euro price
will be alongside the old prices.
he euro arrived on January 1, 1999
and will, at the end of this year, completely replace the existing currencies
within the euro zone.
issing?
Great Britain, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway ... and eastern Europe. 
ow much is a euro? How many to the lira,
mark or franc?
ntil 2002 the euro will be a virtual currency used within the
euro zone for paper transactions in corporate financial statements, banking,
stock and bond trading, and international settlements. Many can write euro-denominated
checks.
ut there
will be no euro coins or bills in circulation until late this year.
ou'll find euros on
pricetags and menus throughout the eurozone alongside the local currency. Since the euro
has value close to the dollar you'll probably find it easier to 'understand' prices in
dollar-equivalent terms.
ote: the euro should not be
confused with ECUs whether old or new, Eurobonds or Eurodollars; travelers have only to
think about euros.
lso, the introduction of the euro has
no effect on tax rates. As between US states, sales and value-added taxes (e.g. IVA,
Mwt) as well as others (e.g. car rental, hotels) will continue to vary from country
to country despite the common currency.
t's pronounced, in English, as
"YOUR-oh".
, turning the "C" into a fancy "E". This suggests a
combined "E/C", perhaps representing "eurocurrency". 
on't capitalize the
"e" (or the word) unless you're writing in German. This may seem
strange to some, but remember "dollars" and "cents" aren't capitalized
in English either, and all German nouns are capitalized.
luralization is even more
country-dependent. The official plural of euro in England is euro, at variance to common
English currency-name practice. On the other hand, common street language uses the plural
form. In France the official plural is euros. 
