Destinations where Canadian dollar can stretch further?

[Aladora]

Why is your dollar so weak?

I asked because the underlying (barely) theme in these and other like threads seems to be US politics,in particular one man, is the cause of all the perceived issues up north …. Those ills have been going on way longer than since Jan 20 … as usual as soon as someone asks a question or heaven forbid doesn’t agree he/she gets accused of being a troll ‘or worse’ … cancel away!

Yeah, so at the risk of starting something, I will take your questions at face value and just assume that you are the type of person who focuses on what is going on within your borders and not outside.

There a couple of things right now that is causing our Canadian dollar to be weak against the American dollar. The first is that the American interest rate is higher than the Canadian interest rate and in fact the gap between the two is widening. The other issue right now is the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs on Canadian goods.

When the tariffs were set to start, the Canadian dollar fell to 67.8 cents US (the lowest it has been since 2003) but as soon as the 30 day postponement was announced, it bounced back to 69.5 cents US. The drop and subsequent rebound of our dollar was directly affected by the tariff announcement and then the postponement announcement.

Please note that I am not talking about politics nor am I talking about any politicians in particular.

So there is a short answer to the question.

 

[Lesverts]

The current exchange rate has much more to do with what is going on with the United States and not about any particular location. The major currencies (CAD, AUD, NZD, JPY, CHF, EUR, GBP) have all moved negatively against the USD. Some of them are even holding their own exchange rates and have moved negatively against the USD in a very similar way. The exchange between the AUD, NZD and CAD is about the same as when I was in New Zealand and Australia in November 2023.

Well lets get back to the conversation at hand shall we?

Now for suggestions:

If you want to stay relatively local but with some interesting flair. Newfoundland with a hop over to St. Pierre and Miquelon for a couple days.

Peru, Chile and Argentina are relatively affordable destinations with straightforward travel from Toronto.

Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and India are always value destinations.

South Africa is another value destination and July would be a low travel season.

 

[eandt]

Yeah, so at the risk of starting something, I will take your questions at face value and just assume that you are the type of person who focuses on what is going on within your borders and not outside.

There a couple of things right now that is causing our Canadian dollar to be weak against the American dollar. The first is that the American interest rate is higher than the Canadian interest rate and in fact the gap between the two is widening. The other issue right now is the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs on Canadian goods.

When the tariffs were set to start, the Canadian dollar fell to 67.8 cents US (the lowest it has been since 2003) but as soon as the 30 day postponement was announced, it bounced back to 69.5 cents US. The drop and subsequent rebound of our dollar was directly affected by the tariff announcement and then the postponement announcement.

Please note that I am not talking about politics nor am I talking about any politicians in particular.

So there is a short answer to the question.

Ty for the answer … I do focus about what goes on inside my border and really doesn’t matter to me what goes on inside another’s but was curious, even by your answer Canadians sure seem to be focused as to what is going on inside my borders rather than their own and that kind of fascinates me…. Last time I traveled to Canada 8-9 years ago the exchange rate was great for my US dollar, I bought loonies dirt cheap then so it appears not a whole lot has changed.

 

[Aladora]

Ty for the answer … I do focus about what goes on inside my border and really doesn’t matter to me what goes on inside another’s but was curious, even by your answer Canadians sure seem to be focused as to what is going on inside my borders rather than their own and that kind of fascinates me…. Last time I traveled to Canada 8-9 years ago the exchange rate was great for my US dollar, I bought loonies dirt cheap then so it appears not a whole lot has changed.

So, there are some pretty important reasons why we are interested in and focused on what is happening in your country.

Our two countries share the longest land border in the world, we are your largest group of international travelers generating around 20.5 Billion dollars in revenue for your country, we are your largest trade partner and we are your number 1 supplier of energy, providing 85% of the electricity you import. We also supply around 20% of all the crude oil you use which is more than all the OPEC and Persian Gulf countries combined. 99% of all the natural gas your country imports comes from Canada. A lot of not only Canada's economy is based on what we export to the USA but without Canadian imports there would be serious shortages in your country.

Also, not to put too fine a point on it, but what goes on within your borders affects the entire world so really, the whole world is focused on what is going on, it is not just Canadians.


Edited to add: I forgot another very big reason that Canadians are paying close attention to what happens in your country: the stated threat of annexing our sovereign nation to become your 51st state.

 

[bababear_50]

Well said Aladora .

Cookies for you

Hugs Mel

 

[Aladora]

Well said Aladora .

Cookies for you
View attachment 936338
Hugs Mel

I do love cookies (and those look like my favorite macarons) so thanks!

 

[CanucksRock]

If still looking to do Disney - then 100% Japan!

When I was there I really just did my conversion by saying ¥100 = $1.00 CDN so it made it easy to do the conversion math. I did not find it expensive at all. Of course flight is more, but if you can get passed that, the costs in Japan were very reasonable. For example park tickets are only ¥8400 to ¥10900 .. so only $84-$109/day.

 

[Frank4202]

I am in Southern Ontario and my wife and I made a list...

-Niagara Falls
-Canada's Wonderland (Vaughan)
-LEGOLand (Vaughan)
-Clovermead Adventure Farm (Alymer)
-The Factory (London)
-Storybook Gardens (London)
-Point Pelee National Park (Leamington)

 

[kittyab]

I looked to day .70 CDN to 1 USD

 

[shaycamp21]

We spent 3 weeks last summer in Thailand—- there is quite the sticker shock with flight prices I have to admit (we did use Visa points for 1 out of 3 tickets), however once you are there food, hotels, excursions and souvenirs were all quite inexpensive so overall the cost of our trip was less than expected.

It was an amazing cultural experience we visited Bangkok, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai (flights within Thailand were cheap—-service was miles above AC— we were served a full meal on an hour flight—imagine that). We got to eat amazing food (some meals cost $2 pp), explored temples, waterfalls, went river rafting (this was crazy cheap at like $15 in total for DH, DD and myself), had $12 an hr beach massage, did a safari tour, boat trip around Ang Thong Marine Park, took cooking classes and stayed overnight in an Elephant Sanctuary (the cute little cottage we stayed in was only $70 for the night). Our dollar really stretched far in Thailand and we got to see and do so much. There is a whole big world to explore outside the Disney bubble.

Though I do have to add Tokyo Disneyland / DisneySea are amazing (visited in 2023) — and good value for our dollar.

 

[AngelDisney]

Having a tough time finding a travel destination this year with our weak dollar.

I’m not really interested in doing a Canadian vacation…plus did a little searching and Toronto to Calgary with a carryon is $720 in July

Also not interested in all inclusives as we don’t drink or like lying around on vacation.

We like hiking/nature, exploring cities and nightlife.
Any suggestions?

What about Japan? Yen is weak and Tokyo Disneyland / Disney Sea is amazing! Need to go to Orlando for a wedding at Christmas. Otherwise, I would love to visit Japan again in the summer for our annual getaway.

 

[T00dles]

https://caaneo.ca/magazine/8-destinations-where-you-can-stretch-your-canadian-dollars-further/

 

[Noah_t]

The OP did not mention one man, US politics, or "recent events".... nor were they complaining. Just mentioned that with the dollar being weak (which it is right now), they are looking for places to go. I don't see how there is any underlying theme to this thread, other than where is the Canadian dollar stronger for travelling to? You seem to be carrying some sort of grudge into this conversation, or perhaps even baiting them, for what reason I don't know - why even ask the question?

I like how his obvious baiting caught nothing.

 

[lilsonicfan]

Thanks for this thread, OP. We are looking into dropping the 2nd half of our summer trip that was supposed to be WDW/Universal and this thread is great, except for the obvious trolling.

 

[mamaofsix]

We have been making lists as a family. Particularly interested in cruise / warm weather destinations. Though the flights aren't as cheap, several that interest us:

-France
-Greece
-Italy
-Spain
-Portugal
-UK
-Germany

In terms of cruise lines that are not U.S. owned, Viking (more pricey) and MSC (budget friendly) are good options. A river cruise looks neat through the interior of some of these countries as well!

 

[mom25kiddos]

Do consider coming west sometime (I know you said not this trip)-July is likely high airfare due to the stampede. If you come anytime after that it is no where near as busy. Come see Calgary and Banff, but there is so much more to see!

 

[mort1331]

Do consider coming west sometime (I know you said not this trip)-July is likely high airfare due to the stampede. If you come anytime after that it is no where near as busy. Come see Calgary and Banff, but there is so much more to see!

Love me the west,,,almost settled in Castleguard,if not for the wife,,ugg..lol....Lived in Fort Saskatchewan, and then worked in Lake Louise for the ski hill for couple of years. Cant say enough about having everyone experience all parts of Canada,,,each coast is wonderful in its own special way.

 

[musika]

We spent 3 weeks last summer in Thailand—- there is quite the sticker shock with flight prices I have to admit (we did use Visa points for 1 out of 3 tickets), however once you are there food, hotels, excursions and souvenirs were all quite inexpensive so overall the cost of our trip was less than expected.

It was an amazing cultural experience we visited Bangkok, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai (flights within Thailand were cheap—-service was miles above AC— we were served a full meal on an hour flight—imagine that). We got to eat amazing food (some meals cost $2 pp), explored temples, waterfalls, went river rafting (this was crazy cheap at like $15 in total for DH, DD and myself), had $12 an hr beach massage, did a safari tour, boat trip around Ang Thong Marine Park, took cooking classes and stayed overnight in an Elephant Sanctuary (the cute little cottage we stayed in was only $70 for the night). Our dollar really stretched far in Thailand and we got to see and do so much. There is a whole big world to explore outside the Disney bubble.

Though I do have to add Tokyo Disneyland / DisneySea are amazing (visited in 2023) — and good value for our dollar.

Curious how old your child was at time of travel? I'm semi-intrigued by Thailand but it doesn't feel as "safe" to me as Europe or North America (and yes that is my prejudice talking, I'm happy to be re-educated here)

 

[Honeypot]

Curious how old your child was at time of travel? I'm semi-intrigued by Thailand but it doesn't feel as "safe" to me as Europe or North America (and yes that is my prejudice talking, I'm happy to be re-educated here)

We were also in Thailand last year for 2 weeks with our kids, as part of a round the world trip. It was my husband's and my 4th time, and our kids first. They were 10 (turned 11 in Koh Samui) and 14 at the time. I think if you have only been to Europe and North America, you might experience some culture shock, especially arriving in Bangkok, but the country is very safe. They get 30+ million visitors a year, so very used to tourists. And I find the Thai people to be super nice and welcoming. Of course there are scams, like you might get a tuk tuk driver trying to charge you too much for a ride, but in the grand scheme of things it's a few more dollars, not a safety thing. So many things to love about Thailand!

 

[mort1331]

We were also in Thailand last year for 2 weeks with our kids, as part of a round the world trip. It was my husband's and my 4th time, and our kids first. They were 10 (turned 11 in Koh Samui) and 14 at the time. I think if you have only been to Europe and North America, you might experience some culture shock, especially arriving in Bangkok, but the country is very safe. They get 30+ million visitors a year, so very used to tourists. And I find the Thai people to be super nice and welcoming. Of course there are scams, like you might get a tuk tuk driver trying to charge you too much for a ride, but in the grand scheme of things it's a few more dollars, not a safety thing. So many things to love about Thailand!

And I have not been to the far east,,,but no different than Europe. Many scams, pickpockets and thieves. We were in Greece,,my wife is greek, had our whole car broken into and everything stolen. Taxis there also try to take you long ways to up the charge,,they did not know my wife spoke greek. Anywhere you go,,just enjoy but be on the look out.