Strong franc: Holiday destinations that are now cheaper for people from Switzerland
If you have waited until now to decide where to spend your summer holidays, Switzerland's strong currency makes the choice of a foreign destination a bit easier.
When the franc is stronger than other currencies, creating a favourable (for the Swiss) exchange rate —as the situation is now — going abroad makes good financial sense.
Right now, the US dollar (USD) and the euro are lower against the franc than they have been for a long time.
At the time of this writing, 1 franc buys 1.04 euros and 1.15 USD.
Does this mean that you will get more bang for your franc in the United States and the eurozone than in Switzerland?
While on paper it may appear so, there are other factors to consider as well.
A major one is that inflation rate is quite a bit higher in the US and the EU than in Switzerland: 4.8 and 5.5 percent, respectively, against 2.8 percent in Switzerland.
This means that even a favourable exchange rate will not totally compensate for the higher prices of products and services abroad.
So where are holidays relatively inexpensive for Swiss tourists at the moment?
According to Elias Hafner, money expert from Zurich Cantonal Bank, taking exchange rate and inflation trends into account, holidays in Scandinavian countries that have their own currencies could now be worthwhile.
If you want to venture farther afield, Asian nations, like Japan and South Korea for example, are also advantageous for people from Switzerland, Hafner said.
What about spending your holidays right here, in Switzerland?
Obviously, this would not be a cheap vacation (as things in Switzerland rarely are).
However, travelling in the country would certainly be more affordable for people earning average (or above) wages in Switzerland, than for foreign tourists from the United States, the eurozone, and pretty much everywhere else where currencies are weaker than the franc.
READ ALSO: 12 things that are actually 'cheaper' in Switzerland
Also, if you are are still undecided about where to spend your holidays (whether for financial or other reasons), you may want to heed the advice of Franco Muff, the ombudsman of the Swiss travel industry, who warns against vacationing in popular foreign tourist destinations.
"In crowded places, it's like in a full restaurant: the quality of service decreases, Muff said.
This is a good advice, especially for the many Swiss who “are particularly upset about the lack of cleanliness abroad,” he added.
READ ALSO: What to expect when travelling to Switzerland in summer 2023?
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When the franc is stronger than other currencies, creating a favourable (for the Swiss) exchange rate —as the situation is now — going abroad makes good financial sense.
Right now, the US dollar (USD) and the euro are lower against the franc than they have been for a long time.
At the time of this writing, 1 franc buys 1.04 euros and 1.15 USD.
Does this mean that you will get more bang for your franc in the United States and the eurozone than in Switzerland?
While on paper it may appear so, there are other factors to consider as well.
A major one is that inflation rate is quite a bit higher in the US and the EU than in Switzerland: 4.8 and 5.5 percent, respectively, against 2.8 percent in Switzerland.
This means that even a favourable exchange rate will not totally compensate for the higher prices of products and services abroad.
So where are holidays relatively inexpensive for Swiss tourists at the moment?
According to Elias Hafner, money expert from Zurich Cantonal Bank, taking exchange rate and inflation trends into account, holidays in Scandinavian countries that have their own currencies could now be worthwhile.
If you want to venture farther afield, Asian nations, like Japan and South Korea for example, are also advantageous for people from Switzerland, Hafner said.
What about spending your holidays right here, in Switzerland?
Obviously, this would not be a cheap vacation (as things in Switzerland rarely are).
However, travelling in the country would certainly be more affordable for people earning average (or above) wages in Switzerland, than for foreign tourists from the United States, the eurozone, and pretty much everywhere else where currencies are weaker than the franc.
READ ALSO: 12 things that are actually 'cheaper' in Switzerland
Also, if you are are still undecided about where to spend your holidays (whether for financial or other reasons), you may want to heed the advice of Franco Muff, the ombudsman of the Swiss travel industry, who warns against vacationing in popular foreign tourist destinations.
"In crowded places, it's like in a full restaurant: the quality of service decreases, Muff said.
This is a good advice, especially for the many Swiss who “are particularly upset about the lack of cleanliness abroad,” he added.
READ ALSO: What to expect when travelling to Switzerland in summer 2023?
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