Compare Omani rial travel money rates

The best Omani rial exchange rate right now is 0.4668 from Currency Online Group. This is based on a comparison of 18 currency suppliers and assumes you were buying £750 worth of Omani rials for home delivery.

The best Omani rial exchange rates are usually offered by online travel money companies who have lower operating costs than traditional 'bricks and mortar' stores, and can therefore offer better currency deals than their high street counterparts.

For supermarkets and companies who sell travel money online and on the high street, it's generally cheaper to place your order online and collect it from the store rather than turning up out of the blue and ordering over the counter. Many stores set their 'walk-in' exchange rates lower than their online rates because they can. By ordering online you're guaranteed to get the online rate and you can collect your order from the store as usual.

The Omani rial was initially set to such a high value because the rial can be subdivided into 1000 baisa, unlike most other currencies which are divided into subunits of 100. In order for a single baisa to be worth anything, rials needed to have a relatively high value to begin with.

The high value of the rial is maintained today because rials are pegged to US dollars at a rate of 1 OMR = 2.6 USD. The reason for this peg is because oil is valued in US dollars, and Oman (as one of the world's largest oil producers) maintains a large reserve of US dollars to prop up the rial's value.

Waitrose has the best Omani rial rate right now at 0.4495. You'll need to order online to guarantee this rate; it may be lower if you turn up unannounced and buy over the counter. You can buy your Omani rials online and collect them from your nearest Waitrose travel money store if you don't want to wait for home delivery.

There's no evidence to suggest that you'll get a better deal if you buy your Omani rials in Oman. While there may be better exchange rates available in some locations, your options for shopping around may be limited once you arrive, and there's no guarantee the exchange rates will be any better than they are in the UK.

Exchange rates aside, here are some other reasons to avoid buying your Omani rials in Oman:

• You may have to pay commission or other hidden fees to a currency exchange that you wouldn't have paid in the UK
• Your bank may charge you a foreign transaction fee if you use it to buy Omani rials when you're abroad
• It can be harder to spot scammers and fraudulent currency exchanges in Oman

Lastly, it can be handy to have some cash on you when you arrive at your destination so you can pay for any immediate expenses like food, transport and tips. You don't want to be searching for the nearest currency exchange when you've just landed and you're desperate for a cup of tea - or a cocktail!