Half-terms and summer breaks mean one thing at UK airports: fuller car parks, longer security lines and less patience at every counter — including the currency desk if you leave everything to departure day.
You don’t need a military operation; you need two short windows on the calendar.
Window one: the airport journey
As soon as flights are in:
- Airport parking* — popular lots sell out or jump in price; meet-and-greet and park-and-ride both reward early booking.
- Trains or coaches to Gatwick, Stansted, Manchester or your hub — if that’s how you roll, book before the week everyone else does.
- Lounges — controversial with kids, but for long delays or very early departures they can be cheaper than four rounds of airport breakfast.
If you’re weighing options, start from our holiday extras page and work through what matches your family (parking vs hotel the night before, insurance, hire car at the far end).
Window two: the actual holiday money
Families move larger amounts of cash than solo travellers — which makes percentage differences between providers hurt more.
- Avoid converting the whole trip at the airport unless you have no alternative.
- Order delivery or collection from a competitive provider with time to spare; courier slots tighten in peak weeks.
Use our live comparison tool with your real figure — what you’d actually spend in sterling — and compare total currency received after fees and minimums. That’s the number that pays for extra gelato, not the poster rate on a departures sign.
Euro breaks are still the default for many school-holiday trips; refresh the basics in our euro guide. If you’re doing Florida or a city in the States, switch to US dollars before you run the quote.
Insurance: boring until it isn’t
Travel insurance* that matches your trip (medical, cancellation, baggage, activities) belongs in the same “before we’re too busy” bucket as parking. Sort it when dates are fresh, not the night before the taxi arrives.
Peak travel is expensive enough without paying twice — once for convenience at the airport, and again because nobody compared holiday money while there was still time.