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There's a NEW top way to spend abroad (gives £20 free too), so here are our 11 travel money summer must-knows to avoid rip offs
 

The pound is weak, as Brexit uncertainty is strong, and there's little sign anything will improve soon. So £500 today gets just €560 versus €590 back in March. Against the dollar it gets $630 compared to $670 in March, and it's a similar story against many other currencies.
That's going to push the price up when you're abroad. Therefore it's important not to pay a penny more than you need to, to, well, er, pay when abroad. Just look at the impact with this example looking at what €1,000 costs,excluding any special cashback (5 x €100 at ATMs, the rest in 20 transactions):
- Top specialist credit/debit card repaid in full: £898  
- Best cash rates via cheapest bureau (London only): £900  
- Cash from M&S on the high st (non-cardholders): £910  
- Top prepaid card: £936  
- Using a debit card from hell: £958  
- Changing cash at airport: £1,000
So here are our must-knows...

1. New. Top pick overseas spending card (plus £20 cashback). The easiest and cheapest way to spend abroad is on the right plastic, and many pocket them in an overseas wallet so they're not tempted to use them at home. But cards can take a couple of weeks to arrive, so early planning is essential.

The new top pick is the Halifax Clarity (eligibility calculator / apply* ) credit card. Unlike most cards, which add a 'non-sterling exchange fee' of 3%-ish, meaning £100 of euros costs £103, this doesn't. So £100 of euros costs just £100, as it's got near-perfect exchange rates on spending worldwide. Though always repay it IN FULL each month to avoid interest on spending or it's not worth it.
Plus, apply by 29 Aug and it gives £20 cashback on your first spend within 90 days. It's slightly more expensive for cash, as you'll pay 19.9% rep APR interest even if you clear it in full (roughly costing up to £1.50 per £100/mth), but even that's usually better than bureaux de change.
The prior top card was Barclaycard, but new customers now get charged abroad. Halifax has been cheap overseas for years with good feedback.

- An alternative credit card is app-only Tandem (apply). It gives near-perfect exchange rates on spending worldwide, plus 0.5% cashback on spending in the UK and abroad. So if you want to trouser just one card to use worldwide, this is a good option. Ensure you pay it off IN FULL to avoid the 18.9% rep APR, though like Halifax there is a bit of interest on cash even if paid in full.

2. Top pick overseas debit card (and you don't need to change bank). Like Halifax Clarity, the debit card from app-only Starling Bank (apply*) has no overseas fees on spending and withdrawals (max £300/day cash), but with no interest to pay on the cash. In fact you earn 0.5% AER interest on up to £2k, 0.25% AER interest up to £85k.
It's easier to get than Halifax as the credit scoring process is far less harsh as long as you don't apply for an overdraft. While technically it's a current account, as you can just put cash into it then spend overseas, you can easily just use it for going abroad.

3. Which is the best card - Halifax or Starling? It's a tough call. We probably just hedge for Halifax for three reasons:
- The £20 cashback.
- It's been a top pick for years. Starling is new-ish, and we've seen similar debit cards, which were cheap for a while to lure people in, before costs were raised.
- With Halifax you get Section 75 protection, meaning if you buy things that cost £100+ the card firm's legally liable. So if you bring it home, and it breaks, you can ask your card firm to sort it rather than taking it back.

Then again, it's a fine call, and Starling is easier to get, has got a great app, pays a tiny bit of interest when you're in credit, and is not a credit card, which some don't trust themselves with. Either is a good call.

PS: Both these cards are a Mastercard - which tends to just beat Visa on rate. For a full rundown of all the top cards and more help, see Top Travel Credit and Debit Cards.

4. If you've already got a 'specialist' overseas debit or credit card, there's no need to switch. The deals above are the best for new cardholders. Yet there are a raft of others which are either no longer available or are only a tad more expensive. If you have one, we don't think there's a need to change it.

- Cards no longer available to new customers: Post Office Platinum and Barclaycard Platinum Cashback Plus (new customers can get it, but they get a worse deal than existing customers).
- Very cheap, but not quite best buys: B credit card, Creation Everyday, Monzo's debit card, Santander Zero, Virgin Money Travel and Metro Bank's current account (Europe only, switch it if you go further afield).

5. Have you got a DEBIT CARD FROM HELL? Some debit cards not only add 3%-ish to the exchange rate, and charge ATM fees, they also add charges every time you use them overseas - so a  £5 glass of wine could cost £6.40 a time. Here are the spending fees:

- Halifax, Lloyds, Bank of Scotland: 50p per transaction.
- Santander: £1.25 per transaction.

A few others do it a different way, they just charge a minimum exchange fee, so they're just as bad on smaller transactions, although are less of an issue on bigger ones (but they still charge an exchange fee, unlike specialist cards):

- NatWest/RBS: min £1 per spend.
- Clydesdale/Yorkshire: min £1.50 per spend.

ANY other card from a major bank, including a credit card (if repaid IN FULL), is cheaper to spend on than these. See full Beware the debit cards from hell info.

6. When using ANY plastic abroad, if you're asked 'do you want to pay in pounds or euros?', what do you say? Euros. For why, see Martin's Pay in euros? blog. Though as many people struggle to remember, on the back of Martin's This Morning appearance on Monday, @FndPtsd's tweet sums it up: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."

7. Want cash? TravelMoneyMax compares 30+ bureaux in seconds. What currency you want and how much dictates which is cheapest, and changes by the hour. So our TravelMoneyMax comparison tool  tells you as it quickly compares 30+ bureaux every half-hour to find the best rate for delivery or collection.

8. I'm not going away till later in the summer. With all the Brexit stuff still going on, should I buy my euros/dollars etc now? With Brexit delayed until the end of October and the current UK political uncertainty causing currency fluctuations, many ask what to do. That answer's complicated, so read Martin's Buy holiday money now? blog.

9. Top prepaid card - if you want one. We used to go big on prepaid travel cards as they don't require a credit check. But now Starling doesn't require a hard check, and as its rates are hot it's more attractive for most than prepaid cards, but they can be worth it for some. See Cheap Prepaid Travel Cards for full info and top picks. 

10. Don't buy cash or load a prepaid card with a credit card. Most credit card providers count buying foreign currency as a cash withdrawal - and they usually charge a fee for that, plus interest even if you repay in full. Some do the same when loading up prepaid cards. So it's better to pay on a debit card, as they can't charge fees for it. See  Don't buy travel cash with a credit card.

11. Will withdrawing cash abroad on a credit card hurt my credit file? On the right card it's cheap, but there's a possible minor impact on your creditworthiness. Full info in Credit card ATM withdrawals abroad.