Maybe Jason Had a Bargain Week in Zermatt

Tony Crocker

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http://www.economist.com/blogs/economis ... xplains-13

On my 2013 trip I learned that the Swiss government had pegged the Swiss Franc to the Euro in 2011 because their tourist and export industries were hurting from the expensive currency. However the recent slide of the Euro forced the Swiss National Bank to abandon the policy on Jan. 15, resulting in a sharp appreciation ~15-20% of the Swiss Franc.

Jason's trip, while the slide in the Euro was well underway but the currencies were still locked, should have been cheaper than my time in Switzerland 1 and 2 years ago.

With the Swiss franc cut loose, Switzerland is again as expensive for US skiers as 1 and 2 years ago. But ski areas in France, Austria and Italy should be cheaper now with the ongoing slide of the Euro.
 
jasoncapecod":1tbtew36 said:
Interesting article in Bloomberg..
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-1 ... rhorn.html

my wife is a currency trader..she said the move caught a lot of people long Francs..

Yea, a fair number of currency traders and some brokerage firms and hedge funds got wiped out by this currency move. Took almost everyone by surprise.

If the exchange rates hold, going to be quite a bit more expensive to travel (and to ski) in Switzerland but should be somewhat cheaper in the non-Swiss Euro countries with the weaker Euro versus the dollar.
 
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