If you are going to be traveling abroad in the near future, you are going to want to find the best tourist exchange rates that you can possibly find. Obviously, you will have to convert your currency to something that will be accepted by the local businesses. There are different options of conversion available and each one will give you a different exchange rate. This is why you need take the time to research each one so that you get the best rate possible.
Make sure you check rates before your trip
No matter which option you choose, in order to get the best tourist exchange rates possible, you need to look and see what the current currency exchange rates are. These can change slightly on a daily basis, and if you are going to be in a foreign country for a longer amount of time, you should check these rates more than once, just to keep yourself current on what is going on. There are a number of online tools that are designed especially for the purpose of converting currency, like xe.com, and they are regularly updated so you can be assured that you are getting the most up-to-date exchange rates.
Traveller's cheques: not quite dead yet
Another you can do to ensure that you are getting the best tourist exchange rates possible, is to research the various options of paying for things while travelling overseas. You can carry cash, which can then be converted to the local currency, but if it gets stolen, good luck getting it replaced. You can go the safer route and use traveler’s cheques, which are safer than cash because if these get stolen, it just takes a little time and effort to get replacement checks. Traveller’s cheques can be expensive, however, with service charges and other fees, like paying to have them shipped out to you.
Bank cards often carry hidden charges
Using credit cards or ATM cards seem to give you the best tourist exchange rates, especially when you compare them to cash and traveller’s cheques. These cards are easy to carry and are very convenient. The downside to using them, however, are the hidden charges, which add up over the course of your travels, and ATM machines may be hard to come by on foreign soil.
Get much better value rates on prepaid cards
The best alternative is to use a prepaid travel card, where you put money on the card and use it like a credit card. This gives you the best exchage rates, and is more seucre than having all your funds avaiable, should you card be compromised. Have a look at FairFX's holiday money cards and see how much you could save.
Friday 26 February 2010, 09:53am
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