There are plenty of sneaky ways you might not even realise that cause your travel budget to shrink.

Aussies should always choose the local currency (INR), not AUD, when paying or withdrawing money from an ATM. This way they’re not getting stung by unnecessarily high conversion fees charged by ATM providers and shops.

Avoid exchanging money at the airportas these are usually the most expensive places. Instead, withdraw some money from an ATM at your local destination.

Watch out for providers offering “0 per cent commission” or “Zeo Fees” - these are always baked into an inflated exchange rate. If in doubt, compare the amount and rate against what’s on Google.

If you have a travel card, some, like Wise, allow you to lock in your desired currency rate to stop it from being affected by wild swings