Money exchange

[Baz2512]

Where do you get the best £ to baht rates in Hua Hin?

[usual suspect]

For the last couple of years now one of the most consistent exchange-booths offering a good rate is the one near the entrance to McDonald's, next to the Sirin Hotel..almost opposite the supermarket.
For some reason the Ayudyya (however you spell it) exchange on the same road as the Hilton this high-season is offering a full 1 baht/UK £ lower than the other booths..my guess is tourists are happy to exchange their money at the nearest booth, & the bank can see this.
As a cautionary note please remember to check the billing-sheet they hand you to sign..many just sign & pass it back..again the booth-assistants know this & they do your transaction in amother currency..you give them UK £s & they give you an exchange rate amount for Euros..had it done to me..only the once!

[Baz2512]

thanks, I know it well. Coming over in March for a 2 weeks and I noticed online currency rate had jumped to 54.33 baht to the £, although never get near those rates anywhere

[Pleng]

For the last couple of years now one of the most consistent exchange-booths offering a good rate is the one near the entrance to McDonald's, next to the Sirin Hotel..almost opposite the supermarket.

Weren't they the ones involved in quite a nasty scam fairly recently?

Anyway if I were you I'd avoid bringing large sums of foreign currency, if at all avoidable, and draw your cash from ATMs

[lomuamart]

The only disadvantage of using ATMs on a foreign card is that banks are likely to rip you off from both ends.
The issuing bank normally charge fees and commission for the privilege of using your card abroad and the Thai banks also levy a fee.
My experience of using Barclays debit card over here was that I ended up around 3 THB lower than the exchange rate.
If someone is a regular visitor, then the best bet is to open a Thai bank account and transfer funds through the internet. I've been surprised at how quickly that works - at least through Barclays to Kasikorn. Funds have transferred in a matter of hours rather than days and I get the correct exchange rate although good old Barclays charge me 33 GBP now for the pleasure.

[Big Boy]

Baz, this site will give you an upto date, real time picture of what you WILL get http://bankexchangerates.daytodaydata.net/default.aspx

[Pleng]

The only disadvantage of using ATMs on a foreign card is that banks are likely to rip you off from both ends.
The issuing bank normally charge fees and commission for the privilege of using your card abroad and the Thai banks also levy a fee.
My experience of using Barclays debit card over here was that I ended up around 3 THB lower than the exchange rate.
If someone is a regular visitor, then the best bet is to open a Thai bank account and transfer funds through the internet. I've been surprised at how quickly that works - at least through Barclays to Kasikorn. Funds have transferred in a matter of hours rather than days and I get the correct exchange rate although good old Barclays charge me 33 GBP now for the pleasure.

Yes there is that but then you can always get a travellers/'top-up' debit card which you can use to draw from atms without dealing with fees. And if you draw out at Eon bank you don't get charged this side either. I'm pretty sure you get a better rate from ATMs than you do from the street booths anyway, so as long as you're drawing out large enough quantities you should be quids in regardless of fees.

As for banks charging for the service, you can use an intermediary cash transfer service to transfer the funds. The one I use gives me approx 1.2bt below the base rate if I use them within UK banking hours, and doesn't charge a fee.

[benmo]

In the UK use Norwich and Peterborough BS as your current account. In Thaiand withdraw from Aeon. Result no charges either end! A no brainer!!

[Pleng]

Trouble is, as far as I understand it, the "Foreign Transaction Fee" people are seeing on their statements from UK banks is just a "clarifier" of the percentage adjustment that banks used to work into their exchange rates. Previously banks would just hide the "fee" by giving a lower exchange rate, but now they split it into two transactions 'for the sake of clarity'.

As all banks seem to be moving over to this system, I can only assume (and it is just an assumption, I am not certain by any means) that this is due to some new ruling from the FSA, the EU, or whoever. If that's the case then some banks will move faster than others, but this Norwich and Peterborough will have to fall in line at some point.

[PET]

In the UK use Norwich and Peterborough BS as your current account. In Thaiand withdraw from Aeon. Result no charges either end! A no brainer!!

What about the FX rate - there are no 'free lunches' !

[benmo]

u get the full visa rate, it can't be bettered!

[Big Boy]

I'd never heard of 'the full visa rate' before, so I've Googled it and it comes up at a very respectable 1 BRITISH POUND = 53.650947 THAI BAHT.

The TT rate in the link I quoted earlier is slightly better, but certainly not worth worrying about.

[blue05]

the exchange rate box on this site I believe is from Bangkok Bank, as I fairly much get the rate quoted here when I use Bangkok Bank outside Market Village

[PET]

u get the full visa rate, it can't be bettered!

The rate you get from your bank by direct bank transfer or from the ATM is the TT buying rate stated in the following
http://bankexchangerates.daytodaydata.net/default.aspx

These are the rates and there is no way a transaction is done without the bank making something - what visa rate is I have no idea but is it the ATM ?

Check your rate s against the above and you will know .

[Chromeman]

For Visa cards issued by any European banks, you can find the current exchange rates here.