Aussies are a predictable bunch. We like to travel, we like to visit Bali, Japan, and New Zealand, and we treat holiday money like it’s fun money.
At the start of 2026, Money.com.au research showed that the number one money goal of Australians was travel, and they were taking eight months to save and budget for overseas trips.
So it’s in our favour when the Aussie dollar rises against the currency of the place we’re holidaying to.
If the Aussie dollar is strong, it means you may have more purchasing power than you’ve been expecting. Instead of thinking of a place as ‘cheap’ you’ll have a better sense of how cheap.
And your holiday spending can hit your bottom line a little less - or get you a little more. Let’s see.
1. Reconsider destinations you thought were too expensive
The average Aussie budgets $7,310 for an international leisure trip.
This is according to December 2025 research from ING, which found that the average Aussie leisure traveller was willing to spend $7,310 on a two week international holiday.
Shopback compared domestic and international travel and estimated that for a family of four, the average cost of a 10-day holiday was:
- Domestic holidays in Australia: between $7,500 and $13,000,
- Short-haul international holidays: between $7,000 and $11,000, and,
- Budget road trips using a caravan park and your own transport and food: $3,000 to $5,000.
Of course it depends on how you like to holiday, and you’ll want to do your own budget, but it may make sense to go somewhere your $7,310 stretches further.
Shopback points out that you might pay similar prices for accommodation in the Gold Coast vs. say, Bali, but the latter might get you more space, a private pool, and a full kitchen.
Keep in mind, there are always considerations such as food concerns, language barriers, personal safety, and passport or visa requirements to think about.
2. Look at what your money buys once you’ve landed
In general, the strength of the Aussie dollar gets reported against that of the US dollar.
But that’s not necessarily helpful when you’re travelling anywhere else.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that in the 2025-26 financial year, Aussies travelled to Indonesia, New Zealand, and Japan the most, in that order.
As at the time of writing, 17 August 2026:
- The AUD is up around 17.3% against the Indonesian Rupiah over the past 12 months.
- The AUD is up around 13% against the New Zealand Dollar over the past 12 months.
- The AUD is up around 17.5% against the Japanese Yen over the past 12 months.
Keep in mind, exchange rates are unpredictable, and today’s rate won’t be exactly the same tomorrow.
This means that everything else being equal, your money may go further in these places than it did a year ago.
And even though you’re probably still buying your flights in your own currency, once you land in your destination you may find that domestic flights and other modes of transport like rideshare or boats are much cheaper than expected.
3. Use exchange rates to compare your options
If you’re not sure where to travel, one option could be weighing up the value of your money in the local currency.
The ABS reports Australians took 992,500 trips to Japan in 2025-26, up around 105% on 2018-19. That's why it seems like everyone you know is or has been going to Japan.
It wasn’t just word of mouth driving the surge.
Remember a couple of years ago when the RBA kept raising the Australian interest rate up, then up, then up some more?
That was playing out around the world too - except for in Japan. Japan kept its interest rates low.
Higher interest rates can make holding money in one currency more attractive than another, and this can influence exchange rates.
Japan eventually raised its rate, but it’s still only at 1% at the time of writing, 18 August 2026.
Japan’s comparatively low interest rates have been one factor influencing the yen’s value against other currencies, not just the Australian dollar.
What’s that like on the ground?
Australians are a small part of it. Japan received 42.68 million visitors in 2025, according to the Japanese National Tourism Organisation, so there were more than 40 million other tourists wandering around.
So if you’re shortlisting travel destinations, exchange rates can be a valid place to start in the planning stage, and not just after you’ve booked.
4. Make your holiday money feel like ‘real’ money. It could help you catch up on other goals
In general, a favourable exchange rate may lead to a cheaper holiday.
If that’s true for you, another question opens up: what do you do with the money you’ve saved?
Wise did some research and found that for almost 50% of people, holiday money doesn’t feel like ‘real’ money.
Nearly 60% of respondents rely on mental conversions which makes it easy to lose track of your spending and your budget - especially if maths isn’t your strong point.
Whether this is down to your holiday state of mind, or a cheaper exchange rate, the outcome is the same: unchecked holiday spending can damage your plans if you let it.
Keeping track of an exchange rate can be as simple as using a currency conversion app and working out a truer cost of something before you tap and pay.
Creating and checking in on a travel budget may not be as fun as spending with abandon, but it could also save you from being one of the 60% of people who Wise says experience spending regret when travelling.
And if you’re left with extra money in your budget, you have more choice, and because your money is ‘real’ you’re making that choice with your eyes open:
Spend it: Make your holiday even better. Add an extra day, splurge on a better seat, pay for overhead luggage. You only live once, and you may only travel to a destination once, too.
Keep it: Set your budget to last year’s exchange rate, and spend to that. Save or invest the difference - get a head start on your next travel fund, or put it toward your other money goals.
The value of travel is rarely about how much you spend, and spending more just because you can doesn’t always correlate with a better experience.
