MyTravelMoney.co.uk Mystery Shop
| £600 worth of €uros | Exchange Rate | Amount of € | Mid Market Rate | % Margin applied by provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel FX - Online | 1.1854 | 711.24 | 1.2043 | 1.57 |
| Moneycorp - Online | 1.1806 | 708.36 | 1.2043 | 1.97 |
| Travelex - Online | 1.1750 | 705.00 | 1.2043 | 2.43 |
| Natwest - High Street | 1.1395 | 683.70 | 1.2043 | 5.38 |
| Barclays - High Street | 1.1300 | 678.00 | 1.2043 | 6.17 |
| Travelex - Heathrow | 1.0924 | 655.44 | 1.2043 | 9.29 |
| Moneycorp - Gatwick | 1.0836 | 650.16 | 1.2043 | 10.02 |
Key Findings
- The cheapest and fairest way to obtain your currency is by comparing deals with an online currency specialist. They will only tend to add markups from as little as 1.57% away from the interbank exchange rate giving you the best deals.
- Airport Bureaus remain the most expensive place to buy your travel money, adding mark-ups of up to 10.02%
- Banks and airports that offer 0% commission do not exist and should not be bought in to.
- High Street banks have poor exchange rates adding mark-ups of between 5-6%, a significant amount on top of the true mid-market exchange rate.
- MyTravelMoney.co.uk desk research finds that buying online is substantially cheaper than buying at the airports.
- When buying travel money, the exchange rate is the key indicator to obtaining the best value on your chosen currency.
Mystery Shop data collated is true to live recordings of rates between 3:00pm-3:15pm, 7th January 2014.
Web Editor at MyTravelMoney, Sofia Kluge comments:
“British Pound to Euro rates have got off to a great start this year. A great way to make the most of these fantastic rates is by pre-loading a currency card. These will allow you to lock in the current rates so you don’t have to worry about currency or low rates before you travel. If you book a last minute trip, online currency specialists still offer the best rates and can even deliver you currency to your door the next day. Of course, Airport Bureaus still remain the most uneconomical place to buy your currency, taking advantage, and therefore offering you the poorest rates.”
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Written by Sofia Kluge on Google+
