London - cash or credit card?
 

We will be spending one night in London on our way to Portugal. Would it be best for us to get British Pounds prior to our departure to use primarily for tips and meals, or can we use dollars and/or credit cards?

Forget dollars. Just as US companies wouldn't take British pounds for payment British companies won't take dollars. I would use CC's or British Pounds. When you get to Portugal, you can exchange the British pounds.

You can use cards almost everywhere. But you will also need some cash. Don't take any with you though -- simply stop at an ATM machine in the arrivals hall at the airport. You can get £15, £20, or £30 for tips, newspapers, incidentals. You wouldn't need more than that since you can use your creditcards for most everything.

If you pay for all you can by credit card you will go through the procedure, with signature and now often with a PIN code to tap in. If you pay cash you just pay: there is no procedure. You can draw suitable cash from an ATM at your arrival airport.

Traders pay a percentage to the card issuers. This seems to me hard on them when they are in small firms that make low profits. In general you cannot buy bargains, such as in old silver on street markets, by card.

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Credit cards are taken just about everywhere in London including some fast food restaurants. About the only places where they are not taken are pubs (for drinks; although some take them for meals) and street vendors.

In those cases a small amount of sterling taken from an ATM using an ATM or debit card that does not charge you gor accessing your money will get you through.

ATMs and credit cards are the way to go in London (and no doubt in Portugal too). But check your credit card to see if the issuer adds an overseas transaction fee. Visa and Mastercard themselves add a small fee, but I'm referring to additional fees that banks charge for transactions outside the US.

If your credit card company adds such a fee--it can be 1-2% or even more--then find a new credit card before you go. Some credit unions don't add these fees on their cards, USAA (if you are eligible) issues fee-free cards.

Over the course of a trip the fees can really add up, so avoiding them is cash in your pocket.

Dave White
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We opened a capital one charge account to avoid the fee. When we checked with Citibank they did have a fee. Be sure to call both your credit card company and your ATM to let them know your plans to travel.

There are hundreds or more threads:
fee-less ATM and Low/No fee Credit cards overseas for the best deals.
You don't need a cent in GBPs or Euro.
M

OH, as has been stated repeatedly,
Read the CC charge slip and Don't Sign it if it is converted to USD's - you'll get screwed by the local bank for the conversion - demand the CC statement in the local currency.
This is a new ploy by foreign - mostly UK - banks to squeeze the Yanks.
M

It's not a ploy by UK banks to screw Yanks...it's a ploy by all banks to take advantage of currency conversion fees. Even some US merchants are doing it for cc's of foreign nationals in the good old USA.

xyz123,
Sorry, it was "new" in July to me and most other Fodor folks based on comments posted.
Obviously, banks are very adept at finding "free" money.
'Tho it created quite a "fuss", all of the merchants reprocessed the charges in GBPs or Euro, and I got significantly better exchange rates.
M