The Galleries Post Office

Very disappointed by staff in this Post Office. I get there to exchange travel money. Staff couldn't focus on simple task and was asking me the same questions repeatedly. Then counting money really fast and mumbling for himself. When I asked him to count slowly and the way I could see it, he responded in a rude manner that there 'could be' other people waiting (there was no one behind me in a queue at that time).

Post offices normally infuriate me. There is nothing more mundane than posting a letter and nothing more annoying than cueing for half an hour to do so!
So I went to the galleries post office today expecting to walk out with bald spots and a considerably longer beard! But alas, a swift postal transaction and 250 euros in less than 10 minutes!
Not only that but they don’t charge more for my envelope: cash back!
I won’t be rushing back every lunch time, but hopefully my postal nightmares area thing of the past!

I agree with Laura– it’s not worth coming here of a lunch hour unless your boss isn’t a clock watcher or is a perpetual drunk who does not notice what you do. It’s always real busy and the queuing system can be frustrating– think Argos without the exciting bargains at the end– i. e when you take a ticket your number is thrown into the ether only to land by flashing across one of a variety of screens. But come here at a less obviously stupid time and it all runs pretty smoothly and the staff are mega-​helpful. They offer a passport checking service and the guy was really chatty and friendly, despite being trapped behind a glass window. And they do allow you to mail things abroad without having to queue via an easy to use self-​service screen.

This is a fantastic Post Office, definately the largest I have ever been to, the whole opporation is pretty incredible.
There is a ticket machine where you take a ticket and wait for your number to be called (similar to those old supermarket cheese counters where you take your token and wait for your magic number to be called!). Once your number has been called you can go and see a person to sort out your mail request.
There is also an automated ticket machine, if you are of that technological mindset and are happy to let a machine sort your mail then head to the machine, put your parcel on the scale or measure your letter size and then pay what you need to pay and you are done!
This post office does get extremely busy on a saturday and at most lunchtimes so be careful when you choose to come.

I try and avoid this Post Office at all costs, favouring the smaller local affairs, but since the Royal Mail axe fell on hundreds of satellite offices across the Westcountry I have found myself visiting this PO much more frequently. While it has all the services you’d want, stamps, car tax, currency exchange, birthday cards etc it is rarely quiet. The shortest wait I’ve had in there was about five minutes and that was for the self service posting machine. The longest has been almost half an hour. When you’re popping along in your lunch break to post a letter that is simply rubbish. They clearly know there are problems as there are always loads of staff trying to direct you into the right queue, or giving you the kind of ticket you’d get at a cheese counter. Still, despite their best efforts, it seems pretty disorganised. Give me the local Post Office attached to the local shop any day.

This Post Office is pretty massive. It’s nothing like the ones on the edge of town that double up as little newsagents or corner shops. Oh no, this place means business. Apart from postal services, they also do currency exchange — you can get Euros and US Dollars straight away, but they’ll have to order some more obscure currencies in for you, so make sure you leave plenty of time to change your cash before you travel. The room is brightly lit and there is a row of automated machines across one wall to save you the hassle of having to deal with any kind of human interaction. If you do fancy a bit of conversation, then you’ll have to take a ticket and wait your turn. Human time is precious here, you see. The staff aren’t particularly friendly, in fact, I’d go as far as to say some of them are a little rude. Stick to the machines, I say.