The Canadian Dollar is currently worth more than the US Dollar. In 2002 anyone could get C$1.60 for each US dollar. Therefore, everything with a few exceptions like gasoline, was much cheaper in Canada. I used to go to the casinos in Niagara Falls on a regular basis and live like a king.
Due to the plummeting value of the devalued US dollar (see my article The US Dollar Has Been Devaluated Without Our Knowledge) the Canadian dollar is worth more than US$1 today. Actually C$1 will cost you US$1.01 plus the foreign exchange fee which varies from place to place.
There is a way to increase the yield of US dollars if you live near a few rare coin stores. In my area of Maryland my local rare coin dealer buys many hundreds of pounds of foreign coins and bills per year. They pay a small fraction of foreign exchange for coins and a moderate discount on bills from Canada and many other countries where the currency is spendable. As a rule they do not bother to take in the small bills, the one and two dollar notes, to a Canadian bank. The banks will not even take the coins at all.
Therefore, when I am ready to make a trip to my favorite Canadian Niagara Falls destination, I simply buy all their coins, which they sell at a 20% discount. I also buy all their small bills which they sell at a 10% discount. Therefore I get as much as C$1.20 for each US dollar for the coins and C$1.10 for the bills. Last time I went I was able to buy almost $700 in Canadian money. I could have gotten much more by going to additional rare coins store, but I was only going for four days.
In addition to the better exchange rate there was no exchange fee. Since most of the money was coinage, I was able to get close to a 20% discount on Canadian money. I took all the coins and plopped them down at the casino cashier. They have counting machines and gave me the exact amount of chips that the coins could buy. I saved the bills for tips and other expenses since they are collectibles in Canada and the people love to get paid in the old paper money rather than the one and two dollar coins they refer to as Loonies and Double Loonies.
You may think that it is not worth the trouble, but I will gladly take a 20% discount on everything I buy there. If you think it is worth it feel free to use this idea. If not it will cost you $140 more to buy C$700. Either way I hope you have a great time in the Great White North.
Reference:
- The US Dollar Has Been Devaluated Without Our Knowledge
