Holidays in Europe cost £408 more this year thanks to Brexit
The Brexit vote has cost the average Brit travelling to the EU an extra £51 a week this summer. It means a family of four spending a fortnight in Europe will have to spend £408 more in order to have the same kind of break as they did this time last year. To add insult to injury, those who voted to stay in the EU have been hit particularly hard.
The findings come from Prepaid International Forum. They said the additional cost was the result of exchange rates plummeting 17.5% (from a high of 1,43 to 1.18) since the vote to leave the EU.
Remain voters are hardest hit, with 54% of those facing poorer exchange rates on foreign summer holidays having voted to stay in the EU. This is because Remain voters are more likely to be taking a holiday in the EU than their Leave counterparts.
They are also likely to spend more on holiday (£258 per person compared to £221 per person). This means they are disproportionately affected by the changes in the exchange rate.
Matt Sanders, head of money at GoCompare warned that things are unlikely to improve any time soon either, especially after the Bank of England cut the interest rate to 0.25% last week. He explains: '"An interest rate cut usually results in a weaker pound, which means you'll get less foreign currency for your money. Bargain holidays may be a thing of the past; for the near future at least."
It means it's more important than ever to shop around for the best possible deal on your holiday money. This means checking the rates at local bureau de changes and banks - as well as searching online for the best possible deal. At the very least, you should avoid buying your money at the airport. Sainsbury's Bank found that Euros are on average 7.3% cheaper bought from a local bureau than from an airport kiosk.
But what do you think? Will your holiday cost more this year? And is it worth it?
