Suggestions on acquiring some British Pounds

jrowland

Have a Best of Ireland Trip coming up shortly in May. Already have some Euros but wanted to get some British pounds for when we visit Northern Ireland later in the tour. We will be landing in Heathrow then on to Shannon.

Any suggestions/thoughts on acquiring British Pounds in Heathrow or waiting exchange some Euros to Pounds once we start our tour in Ireland. If Heathrow, any particular place in Heathrow that might offer the best Exchange Rates?

British

Hi Jeff, the best way to acquire British pounds is to use your American ATM card, but definitely let your American bank know that you will be traveling and where to, before you leave the US, as credit card numbers are often stolen and people seem to try to use them a lot in London. You will get a better rate this way. Fees at travel kiosks in Heathrow will likely seem high especially if you are only changing a small amount of money. If you are not used to Heathrow, be aware that it is a crazy busy airport and if you are flying on to somewhere else and technically still 'airside' you usually have to still go through long security lines before you go to your gate, they are strict, allow or ban different items through security check points than in the US, and if you get a secondary security check you can potentially be delayed even more (been there, got the t shirt and thought I was a savvy traveler!) So even if you think you will have lot of time to kill between flights, in reality it's usually a race to get the flight, no time to change money or shop.

crackers54

If you want to start with Pounds and are a AAA member you can get some before your leave. Otherwise you can go to any bank ATM to get some. They say that is the best way to get a good rate, but the rate will depend on your bank. Last year I got a Capitol One bank account with ATM. They do not charge extra to convert money.

TauckTim

Hi Jeff,

I second British's advise; the easiest, most hassle-free, and usually the best rate you can get is with using your ATM card. Just make sure you let your bank know before you leave. The last thing you'd want would be to go overseas and then, bam, your accounts are locked.

I hope this helps!

-Tim

Francesca King

Hello Jeff,
We did this wonderful trip and never needed British Pounds. We also had Euros from previous trips, but the majority of purchases or meals we bought were put on our credit card. We only used cash for smaller items like postcards and stamps and small souviners. As to where to get your cash, we agree that ATM's are generally the most inexpensive way to go. We will either get our money at an airport ATM--not a money exchange booth-- or the hotels--generally getting the equivilent of $200 US dollars at a time (as needed) as we use our credit card for any larger items. Much depends on your shopping style--sweaters and larger items can be charged.

ndvb

I always enjoy hearing how tight security is at Heathrow. In 2012 we flew into there on the way to Edinburgh and our flight was late, therefore missing our connection. As we got off the flight from the US an United crew member gave us our "boarding passes" for the new flight. I asked if we were all checked in and she affirmed that.Actually, I asked her twice. We went through two security checks. They take your picture at the first one then match the photo to you at the second one. They looked at our "boarding passes" and our passports at both checkpoints, then scanned our backpacks and sent us to the new gate. We waited for two hours and moved into the line to board the plane and were told we only had "vouchers" to get a "boarding pass." We had to go out of the secured area, find an United counter and exchange our "vouchers" for real boarding passes. We then went through security check points again and waited two more hours for out next flight. Once I rebounded from being upset, I was amazed that we managed to move through two security points with no ticket or boarding pass. Now, it just makes for a funny story. So much for the tough security at Heathrow.

The rest of the story focuses on luggage, but I am willing to bet you already know that one.

jdurkin

Oh dear. I can see tears before bedtime in this story ….

My travel agent rolls her eyes every time I need to make a flight connection. Depending on the country and the airport, I never follow the "recommended" minimum transfer times. I often double it… even triple it. I'd much rather wait air side, than give myself conniptions with a tight transfer. Or when I get lost … usually at Frankfurt. Boy is that a Big airport. And I think I might have seen every part of it! Time enough to have conniptions when something out of your control happens!

Cheers,

Jan

TauckTim

Jan, after a missed transfer coming back from a Tauck trip to Italy last year (weather issues; it happens) my companion and I were rerouted to Frankfurt, and from there flying back to the US. That airport is indeed huge. We had around an hour for our transfer, and we spent every moment of it running, it felt like, to try to get to our transfer on time. Which we did, barely; the plane was already boarding when we got there. So, I think allowing extra time is a great idea; thank you for the advice!

-Tim

ndvb

Yep, short layovers may seem nice but they just increase the chance for errors. The flight I was talking about in Chicago to London (above) had a 3-4 hour layover, but weather in the US forced a switch from Washington, D.C. to Chicago and then that flight was delayed. An earlier flight from Chicago had been delayed also and almost everyone from that flight was on another flight. Only five people were left on a 747, so after we had pulled away from the gate, they decided to bring us back and put those five on our plane (that certainly makes financial sense to me) but it took over three hours to do that. No idea what the problem was there.

Anyway, even with appropriate layover you can still miss a flight. I am with Jan...make my reservations with appropriate layovers or non-stop. The less plane changing the better, too. They can serve me all the food and drinks they want in first and business class, but it doesn't make sitting on the runway any better. Giving me a shoulder shrug in economy is even worse.

I find how to do something better on each trip, whether it is flights, luggage, technology equipment, etc. Coming in here or researching online helps, also. Most of the information Tauck gives us is good, too. Some of it is dated, but almost all of it is good advice.

As far as local currency goes, I take less and less each trip. The first couple of trips I came home with a fistful of euros or some other currency, and ended up losing money returning it to the bank. Almost everywhere takes your credit card and by using it you have an opportunity to challenge the purchase if you are overcharged or something isn't delivered as it should be or you get baited and switched, etc. Once you pay in cash, or with a debit card the money is out of your account and you have to work to get it back...almost impossible. With a credit card they don't really have your money yet and once you challenge it, they have to work to get it from you. (That's why I rarely use a debit card for anything.) I'll probably get a couple of hundred Euros for the next trip and a small amount of the local currency in Tanzania and Kenya so that I can make small purchases. If I need more, I'll use the debit card at an ATM--not a credit card (interest starts building immediately).

Even that isn't fool proof. In Sicily I used the ATM with a debit card and the withdrawal of €200 was withdrawn from my checking account three times. The bank replaced it. It wasn't easy to get them to do that.

Just read and pay attention and you'll get some great tips in these forums.