Cash Isn't Dead: Why I Created Money Maps for Travellers

I have travelled my entire life, and over the years I have set foot in more than 90 countries. People sometimes ask me what the constant has been across all of those borders, buses and back streets. The honest answer is not the food, the weather or the scenery. It is the endless business of changing money.

Every new country meant the same small ritual: find somewhere to change cash, squint at a board of numbers, and hope I was not being taken for a mug. That ritual is where Money Maps was born.

Where It All Started: Changing Cash in Country After Country

When you travel the way I do, cash is never far from your mind. You land somewhere new and the first questions are always practical ones. Where can I change money? Is this a fair rate? Is the place round the corner any better than the one in front of me?

Over the years I changed money in banks, kiosks, little shops and big glossy bureaux. Some were honest and good value. Some were frankly shocking. And very often there was no easy way to know which was which until after I had handed over my notes.

I kept thinking: there must be a better way to see, before I walk in, who is offering a fair deal and who is not. That simple thought stayed with me for years.

From the Financial Markets to Everyday Exchanges

Me in the City of London, where my interest in fair pricing began.

Long before Money Maps, I worked in the financial markets. That is where I learned something that has stayed with me ever since: competition brings better prices. When people can see and compare what is on offer, businesses have to sharpen up, and everyone gets a fairer deal.

Over time, I came to see that the same simple idea matters far beyond the financial markets. Whether you are a student on a gap year, a family on holiday or someone retired and finally seeing the world, everyone who changes money deserves to know what a fair price looks like. That is how I went from someone who understood that competition brings better prices to someone who sees the need for good exchanges across all walks of life.

An Idea Years in the Making

I will be honest with you. The idea for Money Maps is not new to me. I started thinking about this app years ago. Life, travel and everything else got in the way, and I have only now finally got around to finishing it.

It took a while. Along the way, I had to adapt, rethink parts of it and change direction more than once. That is how these things go. But each time I looked at the problem again, I came back to the same conclusion: the need is still there.

Even now, in 2026, people still need to change money. Not just holidaymakers, but workers, tourists and business folk alike, all of whom want to know where the best rate is when they arrive in a city, a town, or anywhere else in the world.

Why Cash Still Matters

You will hear a lot of people say that cash is dead, that we will all be tapping phones and cards for everything soon enough. I do not agree, and I want to explain why.

Cash is practical. It works when the card machine is down, in the market stall that does not take cards, in the small town where the signal drops out. For many people around the world, it is simply how everyday life works.

But for me it goes further than convenience. This is my personal view, and I hold it firmly: cash matters because it gives us a measure of freedom and privacy. As soon as we go fully digital, the government owns us. Every purchase becomes a record, and every record can be watched. I am not saying cards and apps are bad. I use them myself. I am saying we should keep the choice, and keeping cash alive is part of keeping that choice.

So, no, cash is not dead. And as long as people carry it across borders, they will need a fair place to change it.

The Tourists I Met Who Were Being Ripped Off

This is the part that really drove me to build Money Maps. All over the world, I met tourists who were regularly being ripped off by bad exchanges. Poor rates dressed up as good ones, fees that only appeared at the end, and boards designed to confuse rather than inform.

It never sat right with me. These were people who had saved up for their trip, and a chunk of their spending money was quietly disappearing at the counter. Often they did not even realise it until much later, if at all.

I have written before about how visitors can lose out around money exchanges, including in my piece on currency exchange theft on The Strand in London. Money Maps is my attempt to do something practical about the wider problem.

I want travellers to keep more money in their pockets. It really is that simple.

Price Transparency Makes for a Fairer, More Competitive Market

There is a second goal behind Money Maps, and it is just as important to me. I want the money-changing world to be more competitive.

When customers cannot easily compare prices, the businesses offering poor value have little reason to improve. When prices are out in the open, things change. Price transparency makes for a more competitive market. Good exchanges get noticed and rewarded, and the ones relying on confusion have to raise their game.

That is good for travellers, and it is good for honest businesses too.

What Money Maps Does

So, what is it? Put simply: Money Maps compares bureau de change and online exchange rates near you, free on the App Store. It is now live on the App Store.

Here is what you can do with it:

• See walk-up and online rates on a map and a list. Browse the bureaux near you and compare them with online options, whichever way suits you.

• Use the 'You get' fee calculator. Instead of guessing what a rate really means, you can see what you would actually get for your money.

• Capture the Board. Spot an exchange board on your travels? Scan it with the Capture the Board scanner and earn points for helping everyone else.

• Report wrong rates. If something does not look right, you can report it, so the information stays useful for the next person.

• 

  The map view: compare rates near you at a glance.

• 

  The list view, sorted by best rate within your chosen radius.

• 

  Each shop page shows its board, and you can update the rates to earn points.

Left to right: The map view: compare rates near you at a glance. The list view, sorted by best rate within your chosen radius. Each shop page shows its board, and you can update the rates to earn points.

I have tried to keep it plain and simple, the way I would want it myself when I am tired, just off a train and looking for somewhere decent to change a few notes.

Built by Travellers, Kept Up to Date by Travellers

One thing I learned on the road is that travellers love to help each other. Swapping tips in a hostel kitchen, pointing someone to the right bus, warning a newcomer about a dodgy taxi rank. Money Maps is built on that same spirit.

My hope is that travellers will enjoy keeping the app up to date by capturing boards and reporting rates, and competing for prizes along the way. Those prizes will grow as the app base gets bigger, so the more of us who join in, the better it gets for everyone.

It is a bit of fun with a serious point behind it: every board captured and every wrong rate reported helps the next traveller avoid a bad deal.

A Message to the Good Exchange Businesses

I want to be clear that Money Maps is not against bureaux de change. Far from it. Over the years I have met plenty of honest, fair businesses offering good value and decent service.

My hope is that those good businesses will adopt the app. If you run an exchange that treats customers fairly, transparency is your friend. It helps people find you, trust you and come back.

If you run an exchange business and would like to talk, or if you are a traveller with feedback, you can reach me at info@moneymaps.net.

Where to Use It on Your Next Trip

Whether you are heading off on a city break, a long trip or a work visit, it is worth checking before you change your cash. If you are planning a trip to Ireland, for example, my Essential Dublin Travel Guide covers the practical side of a visit, and Money Maps can help with the money side.

My advice, after all these years and all these countries, is simple: never assume the first exchange you see is the best one. Have a look, compare, and then decide.

Download Money Maps Today

Money Maps has been a long time coming, and I am genuinely proud to finally share it. It started with my own frustrations changing cash around the world, and it has grown into something I hope will help travellers everywhere keep more of their hard-earned money.

Download Money Maps free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6817850142

On Android? The Android version is on its way. Subscribe to The Wondering Englishman to get a notification as soon as it's out.

Give it a try on your next trip, capture a board or two, and let me know what you think. Cash isn't dead, and with a bit of transparency, changing it can be a whole lot fairer.

Safe travels,

Alex, The Wondering Englishman