What to do with remaining Euros?

Keep it with your passport and you are ready for your next trip. I actually like to bring some euros and pounds home so that I will have ready cash when I arrive in the UK or Europe.

Several options for left over funny money:

Hold on to the left over Euro currency and coin. Like the reported tradition of boat era visitors to Hawaii where tossing your leis overboard in the hope that they will float back to shore. If the lei returns so will you. And if the Euro strengthens you will be a successful currency speculator.

Sell your left over Euros to friends/family at a fair rate or better yet give them anon voyage gift of Euros.

Spend the excess at the duty free store on departure. You can pay a mix of Euro, USD and credit card.

If only 50, save for your next trip or give to a relative as a gift if they should be going in the future. In an exchange back to dollars you will lose 10 to 15% plus a couple points when you got the Euro. Or sell at the Interbank rate to a friend going to Europe - good deal for both of us.

I do what the others do, save it for the next trip!!

What I do with left over euros is to use them towards my last days hotel bill and pay the balance with a credit card.

Do you have a taxi ride to the airport or any other last-minute expenses that weren't part of your calculations, you might wind up with less money to take home than expected ?!?

J,

If youre hard up for $$ ,the cash it out.

If not, then hold onto it. Youre not out of the woods yet.

i always save my extra $$ for when i return. I also give some of the coins to my nephews as souvenirs.

happy trails.

It's very nice to have some local pocket money when you arrive in a country- you probably want to be able to pick up a drink, snack, or forgotten small toiletry at the airport, and it's nice to not have to find an ATM first or break out the credit card for a small purchase.

If it's burning a hole in your pocket, you can always browse the duty free shops at the airport on the way out and be underwhelmed at the 'discounts'.

Any of the above. I hold leftover euro for the next trip. There's always some small thing I use some of them for at the airport (snacks, magazines). If I were not planning to return to Europe, I would give/sell them to someone who is going. A friend once gave me €20 that she was sure she wouldn't use again so she could buy me lunch in Berlin - it made a nice connection to home.

Maybe RS should start an exchange bureau on this site.

I always save the paper currency for my next trip and put any coins I have left into one of the charity collection buckets or other receptacles that are often found in European airports. Paper is easy to keep, coins not so much!

Anita's generosity is commendable but I like to have coins handy for the public WCs.

If you do save 50€, a combination of smaller denominatio notes and 1€ and 2€ coins are better than a large denomination note.

I sold mine to my sister for her trip. I have a few left from my last trip which I probably will keep for the next trip.

Hi J, glad you enjoyed your trip. In past years, I made it a game of sorts to try to return home with zero euros (spent some at the airport, puchased duty free stuff on the plane, etc.). Now I keep any leftovers for my next trip. It's nice to be able to hit the ground running with cash for a taxi, etc.

I do as Bob does, pay my hotel bill with remaining Euros and put the rest on my card. Now, if I knew I would be returning in the near future, I'd just bring it home for next time.

If you read through the posts you will find a number of addresses where you can mail it; mine included.

Take the 50 and change it into 5/10"s or 10/5's. When you get back and start telling everyone about your wonderful trip, give them one of the bills and and have them put it on the fridge as a reminder of how much fun you had and it might get them thinking about a European trip. I did that 5 years ago and two of those people went last year. It was worth the 35 Euro's I had left to get them excited about travel.

I always bring some home, I have euros, pesos and GBPs at home right now, ready for next trip! (note all amounts are under 200 units) . I use arms wherever o go, bit like to arrive with a bit of cash.

Coins I drop in charity bins at airports.

Bring them home and save for your next trip. Also, Euros make nice wedding gifts to couples honeymooning in Europe.

oh, Pat, I can't resist.....
I use my arms wherever I go as well!!!

Lol Doric this stupid tablet and its autocorrect! Took me a minute to even figure out what I meant, note to self " always proofread"
I meant I always use ATMs lol

Pat and doric8's exchange gave me a chuckle.
As others noted, bring it home with you. 50 euro is not that much in the scheme of things, and it will be a good amount to have on hand for the return. If that is not an option in the near future, then I say splurge on something or do the hotel paying thing. Try to avoid the money exchange. You can also gift it to someone who is going abroad. It's actually a rather neat gift to get!

Agree with Edgar.....save the coins. You may need to use a public toilet and they are typically pay-so-you-can-go.