 Poster: A snowHead
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This may sound like a stupid question, but was it better? I only started skiing 5 years ago (why i didn't go earlier i will never know) and ive no idea what it was like before it came in. Obviously Switzerland still has the Swiss Franc but how was it going to France with the Franc, Italy with the Lira, Germany with the Deutsche Mark, Austria with the Schilling etc. There isn't a purpose to the question other than to get the opinion of people who have skied, long before i started and went when there was different European currancies.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There was far more snow, the Euro has ruined everything 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Ricklovesthepowder, no difference to me. I change my money before going skiing in whatever currency I need. These days it is always the euro. Back then it was francs, schillings or lira. Nothing has really changed.
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I was in Italy (Bormio) just after the Euro was introduced. The Irish people we met there were delighted to "use our own money". The Italians needed a bit of help from us Brits as we were used to the 100ths idea, i.e. 100p to the pound - same as 100c to the €, whereas they were used to lira in big numbers. The snow, as Colin B, points out, was rubbish that year.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I used to like going to Italy.
With the Lira at 3000 to the pound, the only time I could ever be a millionaire!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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22 Austrian Schillings (sp) and 4 Swiss francs to the pound note, and I was 18! Yes we can say it was better!
But skis were over 3 yards long, turns were only for the experts and one was obliged to go TO and participate in the fondue and Curling evenings. No it was hell on earth.
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| Quote: |
how was it going to France with the Franc
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it depended on what the exchange rate was - just like it does with the Euro. Some years Austrian schillings, or French francs, were cheaper than other years.
And as for the snow, I remember one year - early January - in the PdS when the snow was very poor, and a year in Austria when the snow was very poor, and a year in La Rosiere when 5 of our 6 days there was so much fog we couldn't see anything.
Just the same, actually!!
do I remember 80 Austrian schillings to the £, or did I dream that?
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Ricklovesthepowder, blimey, was it ever better. First time I went to Austria in about '79 there were over 30 Austrian Schillings to the pound - by the time they joined the Euro it was nearer 10. I just felt super rich.
One downside was having various currencies in the wallet. So, if you drove from Calais you ended up with Francs, Deutschmarks and Schillings. Nobody bothered with Belgian Francs until you paid for petrol there with French Francs and your change came back as Belgian. And there were no cashpoints and nobody in Austria took credit cards. If you ran out of cash you ran out.
Much preferred it to today. Skis were a bit different mind.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| pam w wrote: |
| do I remember 80 Austrian schillings to the £, or did I dream that? |
dreaming.
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It's a bleedin' easier these days having to deal with less currencies if you are travelling around various countries: it used to be a nightmare juggling french v. swiss france, lire, mark, and whatever they had in Austria.
Mind you, my the international currency of choice for years has been plastic: pity that in some backward countries it's not generally accepted: Sudan, Syria, Germany, Austria.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Quote: |
no difference to me
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ditto. still keep a wallet full of 3 currencies.
edit: did used to like the austrian Gröschen (sp?) coins. weighed nothing. were they aluminium or something? much better than UK/Swiss jumbo coins.
Last edited by snowHeads are a friendly bunch. on Wed 7-12-11 21:24; edited 1 time in total
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Anyone remember when Italy was short of small change (which was worthless anyway) and you got a handful of sweets instead?
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One difference: I no longer change the left over Euro back. In the past, there're too many of them to keep track off. So I change the left over money back to my own. Not need to do that any more if I'll be using the same next year. (I also don't change the Swiss Franc back either).
There're now only 4 "recurring" currency for my skiing: US dollar, Canadian dollar, Euro, Swiss Franc. I keep all the left over money for the next trip. (Japan and Chilly are too far away for repeat visit every year)
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You know it makes sense.
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chilly - love it!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| pam w wrote: |
| La Rosiere when 5 of our 6 days there was so much fog we couldn't see anything. |
Is that not par for the course?
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Poster: A snowHead
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Bode Swiller, I just looked up some numbers. In 1971 there were 26 schillings to the USD and there were about 2.6 dollars to the £. So sometimes in my yoof, a Schillings/sterling rate of 80 is not completely unthinkable.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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pam w, it's 'yoot' not 'yoof' these days my dear - one affects a slight urban-twang
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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When i was on a school trip to switzerland there were 14 Swiss Francs to the pound when I worked in Zurich some years later it was 8!
There were 10 French Francs to the pound I remember one year it dropped to 7 ouch that hurt, now look at it around 85p to the Euro
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Colin B wrote: |
| Anyone remember when Italy was short of small change (which was worthless anyway) and you got a handful of sweets instead? |
Yes, I do. And there was a limit to the amount of Lira you were allowed to change up in the UK and take in. Same with the Drachma, it was about fifty quid.
In '79 I went on a weeks summer ski trip to Hintertux. Coach from central London, single room in the Hohenhaus Hotel (now a 4 star +, then maybe a 3 star), half board, lift pass, ski hire - I remember it well, it was £105 all in. I took £40 in spending money and returned with change. These days I last about an hour on that kind of dosh. It felt cheap and it was cheap. Now it just feels pricey everywhere.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Besides the pound's tedious decline since the Euro's introduction my perception was that there was overnight inflation at least in tourist areas as everyone rounded up their prices in Euros to the nearest round number. I guess for Brits it wasn't nearly as big an impact for the locals.
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| RobW wrote: |
It's a bleedin' easier these days having to deal with less currencies if you are travelling around various countries: it used to be a nightmare juggling french v. swiss france, lire, mark, and whatever they had in Austria.
Mind you, my the international currency of choice for years has been plastic: pity that in some backward countries it's not generally accepted: Sudan, Syria, Germany, Austria. |
Not that much easier now. In the 80s a visit to France to go skiing typically involved Swiss Francs (for Geneva) and French Francs. Now it's Swiss Francs and Euros - so still two currencies. However, no need for Eurocheques. In real terms, travel was more expensive. DIY was more difficult, though possible.
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But we had to wear clashing multicolour Rodeo gear or one pieces - so some things have improved.
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chocksaway, Tarquin looked at a Peak Performance outfit in a ski-shop window in Genva and commented that it took £1500 to look like the man who came round to service his boiler. Odd is till around.
Last edited by After all it is free  on Thu 8-12-11 9:05; edited 1 time in total
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Has anyone changed Euro coins to notes in France? Do they have machines like the ones in UK supermarkets, that weigh the bags and then dispense notes? This no doubt makes me sound really tight. I do always give the annoying amount of USD change I have kicking about (due to their tax meaning nothing costs a round number or $ X.99) to charity at the end of a trip there, but I hang on to the Euro/Sterling stuff with the intention of changing it into notes one day...
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I was in Cyprus on Black Monday in 1992. Couldn't change any money all day and when we could we got about a third less. Luckily it was (and still is to an extent) cheap there. Never skied there though although I've seen the lifts.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Oh? Which supermarkets have coin to note change machines? Or even just coin to credit voucher thing? I have 2 jumbo jars of 2p coins to get rid of, and I can't write rude words on all of them with Cillit Bang and stick them in the penny falls machine in Largs next time I'm over.
Don't think I've ever changed a single european currency back in to GBP. Definitely never changed Euro, Franc, Swiss Franc back. But then being a Kentishman, going to France to stock up was a regular occurrence, before I quit the country.
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Odd is till around.
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It sure is!
http://www.sport-conrad.com/page/product-detail/__/shop/prod/19502 (one for the esob?)
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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miranda, you should be using the euro shrapnel for the coffee machines at the service stations on the long drive back
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You know it makes sense.
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And the anoraks were huge and pufffffy and BRIGHT, helmets had not been invented, Switzerland only had T bars and every one undid there boots to walk...
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| Colin B wrote: |
| Anyone remember when Italy was short of small change (which was worthless anyway) and you got a handful of sweets instead? |
I've heard rumour that the 1 and 2 euro coins will soon be made of chocolate... and preferable to the solid metal ones... *stirs europhobe pot*
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Poster: A snowHead
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Haha! Given that the GBP is tracking the Euro within a very tight band, given the **** that's been going on... The £1 and £2 coins may as well be made of choklit too  Oh and while you're at it shoot the artist (definitely not engineer) who put a wrong number of cogs on the £2 coin. Germans would never be so stupid. But the French would... I especially liked the old 100Fr notes that were (a) to big to fit in a wallet (b) frayed at the edges, and (c) the ink ran, which (d) was not very compatible with either Ski holidays or my trips to French Guiana jungle.
/me stirs the pot a little bit more.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| andy wrote: |
| Oh? Which supermarkets have coin to note change machines? Or even just coin to credit voucher thing? I have 2 jumbo jars of 2p coins to get rid of, and I can't write rude words on all of them with Cillit Bang and stick them in the penny falls machine in Largs next time I'm over. |
I changed 300 quid's worth of schrapnel in a machine at the Islington Sainsbury's, which is just a (largish) high street branch.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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miranda, Didn't they sting you for some of the cash? Last time I saw one of those converters in a supermarket they wanted 10% (IIRC) as a transaction fee! Rather bag it up at home, wash my hands 15 times to get rid of the stink of filthy lucre and herniate myself taking it to the bank than pay for mere convenience!
andy, I already invest a substantial portion of my income into the 'chocolate futures' market... which seldom seem to mature for some reason.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Richard_Sideways, the machines we used to have in the Netherlands charged no fee. Drop all the coins in a chute, wait for it to rattle about a bit, and get a voucher/credit to go spend (same as for the bottle return machine). But the machines went when they introduced chocolate money. Maybe cos the 1+2cent coins are so ferrous/magnetic, that they'd stick to the insides of the machines. Never seen a vending machine here accept anything less than a 5cent coin 
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As people have said all down to the exchange rate............
Remember the Booze cruise ?
We in fact used to go from Newhaven to Dieppe - stay the night - do a massive shop, twins school clothes, booze, food etc etc hotel, and it all was so much cheaper than the UK!
On the slopes, food / booze was not extortionate - lift passes seemed ok - and on the drive down we'd stop off at Decathlon but kit etc - and then of course on the return leg load the car up with booze with the savings helping to pay for the trip!
Now it's all in reverse, when we go out for major stay (4 weeks) we do a massive shop including beer and wine - I even bus cases of Guinness for a local bar - no longer eat / drink on the slopes and are so much more careful with the cash.
Ski passes now are stupid money........
Do sort of kick ourselves for never buying property when the exchange rate was in our favour, but who knows might come back!
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The main technique I use for getting rid of change, is giving the lady in the boulangerie my bag of coins, she counts it out and gives me the bread. She seems quite keen on the coins, smaller, the better.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Now i work on 1 euro = £1
Back in the day it was about 10 francs to the Pound so easy to convert in your head.
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Richard_Sideways, not sure how much they charge, but I'm sure they do charge. But, frankly, I was impressed that we actually bothered to store the money and get round to changing it in the first place. The idea of sitting there for hours sorting through and lugging around 20,000+ coins in tiny bags and changing it all up at the bank (whilst enduring filthy looks and audible grumps from everyone else behind me in the queue) is possibly a step too far along the road to thriftiness for me... unexpectedly got 300 quid cash back for ski kit, which possibly blinded me to any cost associated with the process!
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