How to Invest Today

If you are on your way to a business trip, a family holiday or a backpacking adventure in Europe, you’ve got to consider which way is best to access your funds during your stay on the continent. There are quite a few options, but not all of them come with the same price tag or level of convenience. Let us consider a few options to get the best euro exchange rate briefly.

Firstly you can of course go to your bank or an official money changer and exchange all your British Pounds for Euros in cash. You will have a thick wad of notes and probably feel very rich, but if you stand still to think about this option for more than five seconds, you will realize it’s very risky. No matter where you hide that money, it can be stolen and you will have no way of getting it back.

Another alternative is to have your Pounds converted into travellers cheques. It’s definitely less risky than taking cash, since travellers cheques are normally insured. You might not get the best exchange rate though and you will soon find out it’s quite a drag to stand in queues every few days to exchange travellers cheques when you run of out money.

You could of course make use of your ordinary debit/credit card, but once again the exchange rate will most likely not be favourable and you are also bound to pay high ATM fees when you withdraw money.

Modern technology has provided us with a very nifty solution to this age-old problem: the prepaid currency card. How does it work? Well, all you have to do is go to your bank or money changer and tell them the amount in Pounds you want to exchange. They will then load the Euro equivalent of this amount onto a shiny new prepaid currency card. You can use this card anywhere in Europe where they normally accept debit or credit cards, and you can also use it to withdraw money from any ATM. You will also get a very good exchange rate.

Another very convenient benefit of this kind of card is that, in the (unlikely?) even that you run out of funds while enjoying the ruins of Malta, the guys back home can effortlessly load more cash onto your card simply by making use of the website provided. You can also link the card to your current account before you depart, in which case you can arrange for a transfer of funds by phone. The Euro is now the official currency of Malta.

When you use the currency card to buy something in a shop or restaurant, the fees will be similar to that of a credit or debit card. When drawing money from an ATM, you will most likely pay considerably less ATM fees.

If there’s one thing you’ve got to make 100% sure about before venturing on your travels, is that the prepaid card is insured, so you will get refunded if it’s lost or stolen. Without that you will lose one of the biggest advantages of using a preloaded card.

Getting the best Euro exchange rate is therefore perhaps slightly different than what you expected, but don’t worry, you will soon get used to your shiny new prepaid currency card!

Spend less cash when you travel overseas, and order a prepaid currency card. To get hold of the cheapest prices, look at the comparison of euro travel money on this site. Have a good trip!