Croatia and Turkey are proving to be the new hotspots for Brits in search of sun and value according to ICE - the international currency exchange experts, www.iceplc.com. The latest figures from ICE reveal that UK travellers placed more orders for the Croatian Kuna in May 2009 than ever before - making it currently the ICE 5th most ordered currency. This is closely followed by the Turkish Lira in 6th place which has seen orders shoot up by 112% on average.
Andrew Hamilton, Head of Marketing for ICE said: "With the cost of living in both Croatia and Turkey much lower than in the UK, it's easy to see why these destinations are becoming increasingly popular with cash-strapped Brits. The key to making your holiday money go further is to research day to day costs and shop around for the best exchange rates online before you leave home. Every penny counts and if you're exchanging a few hundred pounds, the savings soon add up. For example, £500.93 buys 4000 Kuna from ICE online but you'd need £525.47 to buy the same from a leading high street bank.
ICE website exchange rates are consistently amongst the best in the UK market, as recently recognised by consumer champion Which? Magazine. ICE is one of the only online currency providers that offers the best online currency deals and also provides home delivery.
Travellers can currently buy 7.9851 Croatian Kuna to the Pound and 2.3684 Turkish Lira to the Pound from iceplc.com. Food and drink is relatively inexpensive in Turkey and Croatia making a self-catering holiday or B&B very affordable. For example, a pint of lager costs around £1.70 in Turkey and about £1.40 in Croatia, comparing favourably with the UK where a pint of lager is closer to £3. A can of fizzy drink is about 60p in Croatia and in Turkey it's around 40p.
The Euro-Zone is still proving popular with orders for the Euro 2.5 times up on average and increasing its lead at the top of the table, as the convenience and allure of the Spanish, French and Italian coast and countryside proves hard to resist.
The US Dollar also retains its position at number 2 in the ICE currency table with orders up 65% on April, but this is being very closely followed by the Canadian Dollar in the 3rd spot, up 120% on average.
However, sales of the Mexican Peso have expectedly been hit hard by the swine flu outbreak. Orders for the Peso at iceplc.com are 18% down on average and 48% down on April.
Andrew Hamilton concludes: "The US is still a popular destination for UK travellers but it is starting to lag behind Europe as orders for the Euro have really jumped in the past month. That's no reason for Euro-zone destinations to rest on their laurels though as Croatia, Turkey and Bulgaria are certainly winning the affections of Brits travelling abroad for their holidays this year."
Top 20 selling Currencies - May 2009
|
% of currency volume |
1 |
Euro |
61.9% |
2 |
US Dollar |
25.3% |
3 |
Canadian Dollar |
2.8% |
4 |
Thai Baht |
1.6% |
5 |
Croatia Kuna |
1.3% |
6 |
New Turkish Lira |
1.2% |
7 |
Bulgarian Lev |
0.9% |
8 |
Czech Koruna |
0.7% |
9 |
Hong Kong Dollar |
0.6% |
10 |
Swiss Francs |
0.6% |
11 |
Polish Zloty |
0.6% |
12 |
Malaysia Ringgit |
0.4% |
13 |
Hungarian Florint |
0.4% |
14 |
Australian Dollar |
0.3% |
15 |
Mexican Peso |
0.3% |
16 |
UAE Dirham |
0.2% |
17 |
Barbados Dollar |
0.2% |
18 |
Kenyan Shilling |
0.2% |
19 |
Chinese Yuan |
0.2% |
20 |
Brazilian Real |
0.2% |
|
