Plastic fantastic! Or splash the cash?

Pack the plastic fantastic, but if you really like to carry cash, change it before you leave New Zealand shores and steer well clear of the money-changers at Aussie airports.

That's the conclusion of a Sunday Star-Times survey exploring the best way for travellers to get their holiday cash across the Tasman.

According to Tourism Australia, nearly 990,000 Kiwis visited Australia in the year to June, spending an average of $A1330 ($1630) while there. But getting the most bang for your Kiwi buck isn't as simple as you might think.

Varying exchange rates, currency conversion costs and ATM fees can all eat into the amount of cash you get to spend on holiday.

On September 10 we called currency exchange outlets in New Zealand and Australia and asked them how many Australian dollars we would get, after all fees and charges, if we started with $1000. We also calculated how far the $1000 would go if you had simply bought goods on the same day with a credit card, withdrawn Aussie dollars from an ATM while on holiday, or used one of the prepaid cash cards offered by a number of banks.

The result? The best deals could leave you with $A80 more in your pocket than the worst deals that's enough to cover a ticket to Brisbane's Sea World, a two-course dinner at premier Sydney restaurant Aria with views of the Opera House, or an adult and kids ticket to an NRL game.

Simply swapping Kiwi cash for Australian cash is not bad, as long as you use a high street bank and do it before you leave New Zealand you'd get around $A790 after fees. Do the same deal at a currency exchange at Sydney Airport and you'd walk away with just $A709.

Cards conventional ATM and credit cards as well as new-generation prepaid cash cards are a good option too, yielding pretty good exchange rates, while avoiding the risk of walking around with your pockets stuffed with cash.

Travel Agents Association chief executive Paul Yeo agreed airport currency exchanges were best avoided, especially at your destination ("You're captive"), and recommended travellers instead try prepaid cash cards, also known as "electronic travellers cheques". (Travellers cheques are still available, but less convenient, and declining in popularity.)

Yeo warned, though, that Australians were more into cash than Kiwis and often declined credit cards for small transactions such as a coffee.

The best strategy of all, he said, was to carry some cash and a couple of cards, including a credit card, and to keep them separate in case one was lost or stolen.

By Emma Page - Sunday Star Times