Currency expertise required please!!!!!!!!

[Bellis Belle]

Hi All

We are off in 10 weeks. Should I change my currency now. Or wait a bit longer. Is the $ going to go up again before Oct do you think? If not does anyone know who is offering best conversion at the moment. If anyone knows, you guys/gals will.
Thanks in advance
nicky

 

[gilld]

We always use M&S who offer a good exchange rate and deliver next day for free - provided you use their card I think.

As for the rate moving up or down, it's a chance you take - personally I bought months ago when the rate was $1.89=£1.

 

[Goofyish]

Why not get some know and then some nearer the time, then you can edge your bets.

Althernatively, get a Nationwide credit card and use that in Florida. There are no charges for using it abroad so you get very close to the bank exchange rate

 

[Miffy2003]

Good advice from Goofyish to get half now and half later I think

The Credit Card option doesn't suit everybody - I must admit I prefer to have the majority of my money in TCs and just put the odd "biggish" purchase on my CC. Then I know I won't come home to a bill I will be paying off for ages. Nothing more depressing when you come back from holiday to that!

 

[kcodd]

Then I know I won't come home to a bill I will be paying off for ages. Nothing more depressing when you come back from holiday to that!

Who are you kidding!!!! My credit card has gone into meltdown before we even take off! I think when we estimated how much this trip would cost us we should have double it and then added on a couple of hundred for good luck! We haven't even thought about our spending money yet, in fact I might just tot up what we've spent so far out of interest - or maybe I should wait and do that when we come back!

 

[Clare D]

We are travelling on the 5th Oct and have just ordered our currency on line from Onlinefx. We got just over $1.71 to the £1 which isn't too bad compared to what it was early July. Travelex only allow you to order 60 days in advance and you have to collect from an airport. Onlinefx were the best when I was looking last week. You do need an M&S Credit/store card to order from them. The prediction is that rates are going to remain the same for sometime due to a rate reduction by the Bank of England. We always take our credit card with us as we feel that it is safer but we do always make sure that we have the savings in the bank to cover it and pay it off when we get back. If you can't pay it all off them my advice is to get the Nationwide credit card with 0% interest free on purchasers and balance transfers for 6 months.
If I were you I would maybe order some now and keep your eye on the markets if you want to order more before you go.

 

[Bellis Belle]

Thanks Clare. Good advice.

 

[kevin harrison]

Who are you kidding!!!! My credit card has gone into meltdown before we even take off! I think when we estimated how much this trip would cost us we should have double it and then added on a couple of hundred for good luck! We haven't even thought about our spending money yet, in fact I might just tot up what we've spent so far out of interest - or maybe I should wait and do that when we come back!

LOL - Wait untill you start buying Dinners and breakfast!!!

 

[margaret2]

try dawson and sandersons travel agent today there rate was $1. 7225 to the pound you allways get a good deal from them, and if you are changing a couple of £ thousand you can ask for a better price just ask the cashier to ring for a better rate for you i allways do and allways get it

 

[kcodd]

LOL - Wait untill you start buying Dinners and breakfast!!!

The theory is that we'll have most meals in the villa (Marriott's Cypress Harbour - anyone been there?) Mind you, I've seen some of the 'All You Can Eat' places and they look fab! (Don't suppose I'll lose any weight when I'm there either lol!

 

[sue&and]

Hi, www.1stholidaystore.co.uk are offering free delivery when ordering using a debit card at the moment. They use onlinefx rates so are very competitive. Checked today and the dollar is at $1.7309, better than it's been for a while and certainly better than Travelex.

 

[kristieuk]

Only very marginally though - the Travelex rate today is £ = $1.7297.

 

[wilma-bride]

Hi, www.1stholidaystore.co.uk are offering free delivery when ordering using a debit card at the moment. They use onlinefx rates so are very competitive. Checked today and the dollar is at $1.7309, better than it's been for a while and certainly better than Travelex.

I have just checked and the best rate I can get with onlinefx, thru 1st holiday store is 1.7299

 

[Sarnia]

Trying to predict currency movements is very hard, as the markets can change their focus at any time. Also during the summer months with many people on holiday you can get a lot of volatility.

Having said that, here is my opinion. The rates I am talking about are the interbank market rate, rather than the tourist rate.

Over the last few weeks the GBP/USD rate has improved from a low of 1.7280 to just above 1.7900 today. We might see a move higher to 1.8000, but the market is likely to start selling GBP and buying USD again at that point.

I expect the GBP/USD rate will break below 1.7300 again, and fall towards the 1.6900 area.

Unfortunately it's pretty impossible for anyone to forecast what the currency markets will do with any accuracy, as there are so many factors that can affect them, so the above may be complete rubbish

 

[steve_rob]

I have just checked and the best rate I can get with onlinefx, thru 1st holiday store is 1.7299

I can't even get that! I can only guess that OnlineFx must change their rate hourly or something because they're now only offering 1.7285.

 

[Sarnia]

I can't even get that! I can only guess that OnlineFx must change their rate hourly or something because they're now only offering 1.7285.

It's probably more often than that. FX rates can move a huge amount in a matter of minutes, seconds even sometimes. They probably have an engine that just adds a bid/offer margin to a feed of live interbank FX rates.

If you work out the difference USD wise for those two rates though it's minimal, unless you are converting some serious cash.

 

[steve_rob]

It's probably more often than that. FX rates can move a huge amount in a matter of minutes, seconds even sometimes. They probably have an engine that just adds a bid/offer margin to a feed of live interbank FX rates.

If you work out the difference USD wise for those two rates though it's minimal, unless you are converting some serious cash.

This is true - on a £500 purchase the difference in rates still works out at only about $1.15, but I was just surprised to see it change so often.

I realise that the Interbank currency rates fluctuate a lot during the day, but every other tourist exchange company I've seen (either on the web or on the High Street) sets a rate at the start of the day and only changes it the next morning. I can only assume that as you say, they must use some sort of formula based on the bank rates to automatically determine their tourist rates.

 

[tartangirl]

Best rate you'll get is with Nationwide credit and debit cards.

We have both specifically for using abroad. We load up our Nationwide Flexaccount before we go and then just use the ATM machines whilst we're over there.

You get the same rate for payments with the credit/debit card but the credit card still charges for withdrawing cash which is why we took both.

We still take some cash but £100 worth of dollars does us as there are ATMs all over the place - including the airport.

 

[gilld]

HSBC Premier Account Debit Card also makes absolutely NO charge for withdrawing cash abroad, from an ATM or a bank.

 

[peewakio]

The best rates for travellers cheques are Thomas Exchange buy a long chalk.
Currently offering $1.7684 to the £1