Start of the single trip travel season 'set to get underway'

Marks and Spencer has said that schools finishing for the summer will mark an increase in its foreign currency sales.

Many holidaymakers who have taken out Marks & Spencer travel insurance will be heading away on their break this weekend, the retail financier has said.

According to the company, thousands of families who have booked single trip travel and annual insurance deals will be leaving the country to go abroad this weekend (July 24th) as schools up and down the nation break up for the summer holidays.

And the firm's financial department has stated that it is ready for a seasonal upturn of around 60 per cent in the amount of foreign currency it sells in the coming months, with more than half of such orders being made for euros as Brits head to the continent in their droves.

James Yerkess, head of travel money at Marks & Spencer, remarked that buying foreign money prior to leaving the UK is usually a good idea in order to avoid excessive charges.

Meanwhile, recent research by American Express found that more than a quarter of parents are concerned about how they are going to afford the added costs of the school holidays.

By Mark Hornby