Hi Sarah!
Welcome to planDisney.
It's always a pleasure to assist my fellow guests from the UK, and I'm happy to answer this question for you.
You will need to exchange your £ Sterling cash into US Dollars before you arrive at Walt Disney World - I would suggest that you do this in advance of your holiday, and try to avoid using the airport Foreign Exchange as their rates will be among the worst. You want to find the best deal for your currency!
You may use several payment options around Walt Disney World. Credit and Debit cards, along with Disney Gift Cards, and cash in US$ are accepted. A Currency Card should be fine if they are a pre-paid Mastercard, as Mastercard is accepted across the whole Resort - at the theme parks and
water parks, at the Disney Resort hotels and at
Disney Springs. I have never had any trouble using my pre-paid currency cards - FairFX, Revolut and Monzo - when making purchases or linking to my My Disney Experience account. I keep an eye on the £/US Dollar exchange rate in the months preceding my holiday, and buy some dollars straight to my currency card when the exchange rate looks good.
I always bring some cash with me (in US Dollars) for tipping - if you use Bell Services at your Disney Resort hotel, I would recommend tipping them for looking after your luggage, or delivering it to your room. Also if you have a rental car and you use valet parking at all, you might like to tip there too. If I use Mears Connect to travel from the airport to the hotel, I will tip the driver when I leave the coach.
When settling any restaurant bill, you can also leave your tip in cash if you prefer, or you can charge everything to your room account. You can visit the Front Desk at any time to settle your account - I find this is useful to keep track of what I am spending!
Please come back and visit us if you have any further questions, you can also
send me a direct question if you wish. We will be happy to help you plan your magical holiday to Walt Disney World!
Sue