United Kingdom Travel Money Guide

The pound is one of the strongest currencies Malaysians will buy, which makes it tempting to over-exchange. Don't. The UK is one of the most cashless places in the world, and a pub, a bus ticket or a market stall will happily take a tap of your card or phone. A small amount of pounds is enough for the odd place that still wants coins.

When to exchange

Sterling can swing sharply around political and economic news, so the rate you see today may not be the rate in a month. If you're travelling soon, exchange what you need once you've compared the live rates rather than waiting for a perfect day. If your trip is months away, you can split the exchange into two or three smaller rounds to average out the movement.

Tip: Because you'll carry so little cash, the value of a good rate matters less than the value of a good card. Use cash for a modest float and put the rest on a card with low foreign fees.

How much cash to bring

The UK is expensive, but most of what you spend goes onto a card. A rough daily budget for a comfortable mid-range trip:

• Food — £35–60/day (a pub meal or casual restaurant dinner is about £15–25, and supermarket meal deals are cheap)
• Local transport — £10–20/day on buses and the Tube in London, more for long-distance trains
• Attractions — £10–30/day (many national museums and galleries in London are free, though special exhibitions and castles are not)

Contactless in London and beyond

• Tap in and out with your card or phone — Transport for London accepts contactless cards and phones on the Tube, buses, DLR, trams and the Overground, and daily and weekly fare caps work the same as Oyster, so you don't need to buy a separate card.
• Use the same card every time — tap in and out with the same card or device so your journeys are added up into one capped fare.
• Watch for foreign transaction fees — your Malaysian bank may charge every time you tap abroad, so a card with low or no overseas fees saves more than a better exchange rate on a few notes.
• Buses take cards, not cash — most London buses don't take cash fares, so tap a card or phone.

Know your notes

Bank of England notes are now all plastic (polymer). The old paper £20 and £50 notes stopped being legal tender after 30 September 2022, so if you inherit an old stash from a relative, don't try to spend it. Scottish and Northern Irish banks issue their own notes. They are accepted across the UK in principle but can get a hesitant response in England, so try to spend them before you leave Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Where to exchange in KL

These three changers currently post the best GBP rates. Tap to see their branches and live rates:

Payment tips on the ground

• Service charge on the bill — many UK restaurants add 10–12.5% service charge. If it's on the bill, you don't need to add anything, and if it isn't, a 10% tip is normal for table service.
• No tips in pubs for drinks — you order and pay at the bar, and tipping isn't expected.
• Pay in pounds — if a terminal asks whether you want to be charged in ringgit, decline and pay in sterling.
• Cash only is rare — a few market traders, small car parks and public toilets still want coins, so keep a few pounds in change.