Holiday Extras launches AI travel money assistant with Caxton

Designed to combat 83% of UK travellers returning home with holiday cash

Ancillary titan Holiday Extras and its currency partner Caxton have launched a new AI-powered travel money assistant this week to help UK travellers know exactly how much cash they’ll need on holiday.

It follows new research by Holiday Extras that revealed the majority (83%) of UK airport travellers return home from trips abroad with leftover currency, mirroring findings in a recent Visa report. 

The study reported that 3 in 5 (60%) of travellers return with foreign notes or coins - often too small to be exchanged back, and often never used again - while 1 in 5 (21%) end their holiday still with a substantial amount of unused foreign currency.  

In response to this the teams have developed the new AI assistant in a hope to help holidaymakers better plan for the amount of money they’ll need on holiday, hosted on Caxton’s website.

It works by letting customers select their destination and trip type, then it instantly calculates a realistic cash budget for their needs based on real traveller data.

The Caxton travel money card is available directly alongside the new tool. 

“We’ve all come back from holiday with a handful of useless coins or notes,” said Tom McGarry, associate director of business development at Holiday Extras. 

“With our new AI assistant, you’ll know exactly how much to take, and we’ll even give you £10 when you load your card. It’s one less hassle to think about when you’re heading off.”

“This is a fantastic example of how embedded finance and AI can combine to create genuinely useful tools for travellers,” added Alana Parsons, chief operating officer at Caxton. 

“It helps people plan smarter and spend better - with zero guesswork.”