My advice to you is simple. NEVER use a credit card to buy foreign currency because you'll be charged fees and a very high rate of interest from the moment you make the transaction. It makes no difference if the card offers 0% on balance transfers and purchases because foreign currency is treated as a cash advance. The best use of a credit card abroad is to make purchases NOT cash withdrawals. Use the Post Office or Nationwide credit card because they don't charge a foreign currency fee which is normally 2.75%

If I may make a suggestion and look VERY closely at the term and conditions as purchasing US dollars might be seen as a cash advance and therefore the interest free deals may not apply.  In fact, interest may be charged from the day of purchase onward.

About the lack of spare cash, full sympathies from one traveller to another but I don't have any suggestions to make, sorry!

Enjoy New York!

Peta

we are  travelling to new york in september, and are  toying with the idea of getting a capital one credit card before we go. they say they have 0% on transfers  and purchases up to january next year. would i be silly to purchase my U S  dollars with this card before we go? with the dollar being over the 2 mark at the moment. i haven;t got a lot of spare cash at the moment to go and buy my dollars with sterling,  can you help and advise me ? thanks.