Credit crunch squeezing money but holidaymakers aren’t getting the best deal on their holiday travel money

Whilst the credit crunch might be squeezing money, holidaymakers aren’t getting the best deal on their holiday travel money – only 2% use pre-paid currency cards, the cheapest way to spend abroad.

Research from FairFX, found that 66% prefer to take their holiday travel money as cash.

Worryingly though, nearly 30% withdraw cash from ATM’s whilst abroad and over 20% use their credit cards – meaning either way they invariably pay heavily in fees.

16% of people don’t bother to sort out their holiday travel money and end up simply using the credit card or debit card they have in their wallet. This could be a costly mistake.

Many holidaymakers look for a supplier that charges 0% commission but this may not be the great deal it seems. The issue is what is the underlying exchange rate, how may Euros or US Dollars will their pound buy?

If you have 0% commission you could still be paying over the odds for your travel money if the exchange rate is poor.

Getting holiday foreign travel currency at the airport can cost you more too, as a recent review by MoneyHighStreet showed.

Currency cards, as offered by FairFX and others such as Lloyds TSB and Travelex, do have advantages and many holidaymakers are turning to use them as they find they are the best option for travel money.

MoneyHighStreet currently has a special reader offer with FairFX

You can get a FREE FairFX currency card here – just sign up and load €10 and get the card free – it usually costs £9.95.