Fee free Sterling Amex travellers cheques?

meanmum

Now before everyone jumps on me to say the usual, that travellers cheques are the worst option (a view I would normally completely agree with) - I am going to Gambia, where credit & debit cards are usually not accepted and ATMs are often empty. Most people seem to get Gambian cash with Sterling cash or TCs. Apparently TCs have only a very slightly lower exchange rate than cash, which seems a small price to pay for safety. Hence I am looking to get Amex Sterling TCs without a fee.

zagfles

They sound like a good idea if they're fee free - if you don't use them you can cash them in when you return. So you could try using cards and if they don't work, change TC's. Also you often get good exchange rates for cash/TCs in smaller/poorer countries.

mum2one

When I was last looking for travellers cheques in May, I was told to try Post Office, - hope you have a fab time in Gambia, - its on my to go back to list x

benjus

IIRC Lloyds TSB used to do fee-free Sterling TCs - most places charge about 1.5%

Now that Lloyds and TSB are separate I'm not sure what the situation is, but worth checking.

NiftyDigits

The only place for them is Lloyds Bank.

See here

opinions4u

NiftyDigits wrote: »

The only place for them is Lloyds Bank.

See here

Or TSB.

http://www.tsb.co.uk/travel_main_page.asp

NiftyDigits

Useful for Thailand too, as one way to avoid the ATM withdrawal charges there.

meanmum

Thanks everyone. So the best option for Gambia is fee free Sterling TCs from Lloyds or TSB - only fee free if you order online (if you are a customer) or by phone.
It seems you get the best local exchange rates with Sterling cash, only slightly lower with TCs, but significantly worse rates via the ATM after factoring in the fees.
One example where the usual MSE mantra does not apply - there must be other countries where the situation is similar.

fifeken

I don't know about Gambia, but Thailand was mentioned above and it's the case there that each cheque has a fee for cashing it.

If this is the case in Gambia then it's worth asking LLoyds/TSB for high denomination cheques (£200 each) to minimise these charges.

You can do this when you order on the phone, but the request often doesn't seem to make it through their system so be prepared to refuse some when you go to pick them up. Give yourself time to re-order if this is the case.