Foreign exchange bureaus don't give you the best rate
We recently got this question about where was the best place to exchange foreign currency to get the best British Pound exchange rate.
Last year I did a couple of posts about how you see so many tourists getting ripped off getting British Pounds when using foreign exchange bureaus.
I’ve grouped those posts into this article so that you can have a quick guide as to what to do and where to go to get your UK Pounds.
I feel so sorry for the tourists I see queuing up to be ripped off at foreign exchange bureaus in London or even worse at the airport.
To ensure you’re not one of them get your cash from one of the online currency exchange bureaus before you leave for the UK. The Pound exchange rate they give will be way better than anything you’ll find in London and will be better than the exchange rates offered by your bank.
I often use Travelex, they are well known, been going for years and I have never had any problems with them. They offer their currency service to most countries and apart from giving you a great rate, you can also pick up the currency at the airport.
Do a Google for foreign currency exchange and you’ll find many others.
ATM’s
The other alternative is to check with your bank to see if you can use your debit card in the ATM’s over here. If they say you can, find out what exchange rate they charge, what fee there is and if there’s a limit to how much you can withdraw.
Depending on the bank these fees shouldn’t be too much and the rate they charge will easily be better than exchange bureaus in London or at the airport.
When it comes to using the ATM’s here just go to any bank, below I’ve put a list of the most prominent banks that you’ll come across. If however you can’t see a bank just ask someone where the nearest bank or as we call ATM’s, Cashpoint is.
One word of caution with ATM’s only use the ones from one of the banks and not one in a pub or shop. Many of the ones in pubs and shops will charge you an extra fee on top of whatever fee your bank charges you.
The reason for that is that those ATM’s are run by private companies who make their money by charging you to use them. At the time of writing the banks listed below do not charge you anything extra.
Here are some of the banks, in no particular order, that you can use in London:
Barclays, NatWest, HSBC, Lloyds, Abbey, Halifax, Royal Bank of Scotland
When you’re in central London you’ll never be that far from one of these banks and like I said if you can’t see one, just ask someone.
I hope this little bit of advice has helped. And if you only take this one piece of advice away with you it will have been worthwhile – please don’t use the exchange booths on the streets in London. As I said the British Pound exchange rate they give is not good at all.
What every tourist ought to know about London
To get more useful information to help you on your vacation. Take a look at the eBook we have written, What Every Tourist Ought To Know About London.
It helps you in planning your vacation and helps when you’re here. You can get it at EPok.com.
Also if you’re looking for a London travel guide book to buy take a look at the review we did on 7 of the most popular ones. Click London travel guidebook review.
And just so you know what the average weather is likely to be, have a look at our reliable London weather forecast.
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