Buy foreign currency and travellers cheques at airport
You can buy foreign currency and travellers cheques online and get great rates and no commission, or you can buy it at a UK airport, not get as good rates and pay commission. That's the basic choice; so if you have time, don't wait to buy it at the airport.
[See this summer 2005 news article on how bad the rates and charges at airports can be].
Buying Foreign Currency Online
You can buy your currency online via a number of foreign exchange companies. Each time we check the rates, including commission and delivery charges, we find that Onlinefx, Travelex and the Post Office are the most competitive.
With Onlinefx, if you buy it via a website called www.1stholidaystore.co.uk and pay via a debit card, the currency is delivered free as well as commission free. If you order by 2 p.m. the currency or travellers cheques can be delivered to your home (or your work) by 5.30 p.m. the next day. (NB: If paying with Switch, Delta and Solo cards, type "free delivery" in the Promotion / ID box at payment stage.)
With Travelex you need to give 48 hours notice, but you can collect your currency from the airport if they have a desk there (as they do at Edinburgh airport). And with the Post Office you can pick between delivery, or you can pick your currency up at your local Post Office.
Buying Foreign Currency at the Airport
If you want to buy your currency at Edinburgh Airport, even at the largest airports, you will have the choice of either one or two suppliers. Some airports only have Travelex counters, some only have International Currency Exchange (or ICE) counters and a few of the larger airports have both.
Foreign currency desks at the airport will typically be in the departures area (near where you check in), in the airport departure lounge and some also have counters on the arrivals area.
Standard opening hours tend to match those of the airport, so they will usually be open from when the airport opens until when the last flight leaves the airport.
