£50 changed at the Travelex desk here often feels like £40
Currency Exchange Travelex at Stansted sits airside in the departures area and serves early-morning flights from around 04:00. Reviews across London airports say the headline rate here can be several percentage points worse than app cards like Wise or Revolut, which is why frequent flyers treat it as a last-ditch option, not a money saver.
Staff can change major currencies like EUR, USD and AUD on the spot, but travellers report “daylight robbery” margins baked into the rate rather than a clear fee. One TripAdvisor poster said they “never, ever” change money at Stansted because Travelex’s rate was far worse than their Wise card rate on the same day.
Travelex also pushes prepaid currency cards at the counter, but FlyerTalk and Reddit users flag extra fees and FX spreads that add a few percent on top of the Mastercard/Visa rate. A Reddit commenter said they walk straight past the Travelex booths here and withdraw cash from an ATM in London instead, using Monzo or Revolut to keep fees near zero.
You can pre-order online for airport pickup and sometimes see a slightly better rate, but regulars still say online banks and city-centre exchanges beat it. Queues build up before 07:00 as unprepared passengers change last-minute cash before boarding Ryanair and Jet2 flights. Tip: use Travelex here only to offload leftover coins and small notes at the end of a trip, and do the real FX with your card or an ATM in town.