Baht

[daveduke007]

ok you guys, let me put you straight

my name is dave (from Manchester-ref:blue ballz), the pub I manage is called "the duke of york", and the 007 is because im a big fan of james bond films.

Hence the handle daveduke007

I have never heard of this guy that smuttley refers to as being with the kkk, and im sorry if my handle has caused concern or offence to anyone and will change it if anyone wants  me too.
I want to make friends on here not enemies, and share the delights of los with you,

dave...

[smuttleydfs]

I have never heard of this guy that smuttley refers to as being with the kkk, and im sorry if my handle has caused concern or offence to anyone and will change it if anyone wants me too.

Hey don't sweat it DD007........we're just yanking your chain

Besides your icon is flying the wrong flag and

The infamous David Duke prefers the stars and bars


You're cool with us and even more so since you manage a pub

[daveduke007]

ok smuttley  



dave...

[Randyman]

limey bastards

[Guest]

To sort of get this back to the origianl topic, I have a question for all you LOS residents. What is the going rate at the local money exchangers? The online sites are great, but you rarely get that rate. Also, which is the better exchange deal: $20, $100, or traveler's checks? This is all in US by the way. Just curious. Thanks.

Only 11 days

[daveduke007]

I took cash with me to los last august malimike, and saved myself a lot of money by changing it in bkk.
I did not use credit cards, traveller cheques and did not exchange money in my home country of England.
I changed 1000 english pounds ($1923) at bkk airprt and saved myself $153 by doing so.
Hope this helps you.

dave...

[PigDogg]

I bring 100's or $100 travelers checks as well as an ATM card and credit card.
It seems the posted rate for travelers checks are a little better than cash but then they tack on a 30 or 33 baht fee per check so u definitly don't want 20 dollar checks. And the rate for 100's in cash is better than 20's. So i generally excahnge about 700 cash initially. Not really sure if airport is better or worse tghan town and tough to terll cause rate changes daily. But the airport rate always looked reasonable if not the best.

Bring new bills. Sometimes they don't want to cash old style bills.

As far as ATM's I could never get a staight answer from my bank about exactly what fees they charge for baht transactions and how reasonable the rate is.

Beware of hotels that advertise in dollars. You might think this is great they'll bill me in dollars and I'll avoid credit card fees. What they actually often do is bill you in baht at a poor excange rate and then you have to pay all the typical conversion fees so you're changing money and paying commisions twice when u though u may be avoiding it.

[Guest]

Thanks for the fast (really fast) replies. I never exchange money before hand. . .never get as good a rate. My usuall routine is to exchange enough for the first night at the airport, then the rest downtown. I just couldn't remember which were better, big bills or little bills.

Did I mention only 11 days. . .ahhh. . .the waiting is the hardest part. . .

[Randyman]

 

Did I mention only 11 days. . .ahhh. . .the waiting is the hardest part. . .

Geeze;

I've only been back a week and already I hate you.
Definately take 100's. t checks. easier to keep track of and if you get burnt you can get them replaced. Also some US bills have trouble passing, or they won't take. (some places, not all that is) I think the series is 1996 but don't quote me on this
randyman

[PigDogg]

Also some US bills have trouble passing,

So do some ladyboys!

[Guest]

Well I have never taken a travellers cheque or Australian dollars to LOS, so never had to exchange money.

I always use my ATM and credit cards. I have two just so if one network is down I can use the other. Never had a problem and always get a great exchange rate. Also at many of the banks I pay nothing for withdrawing cash.

I always have a few thousand baht left over from my previous trips in small denominations like 100's, 50's and 20's so I can get a cab and the pay the tolls without waiting around.

[Guest]

this was answered in the first reply ..

as far as how to exchange, it depends..

TC's are fine, but if you have to pay to get them, then not so good.. also, get large denominations.. they charge a fee for each one.. also, standing there and signing them is a big pain in the ass..

personally, prefer taking cash.. US$100's are great, take little space and easy to cash..

I also use ATMs with my debit card .. you get about the same rate, but you can only take out so much each day .. depends on your card.. I have two accounts so can take out almost $1K per day so no problem for me..

All banks have exchange windows and the rates are all pretty similar .. you might get a bit of an advantage shopping around, but no much..

Avoid doing exchanges at your hotel, most will give you a low rate compared to the banks..

also don't exchange more at the airport than you need for one night as they are pricy too..

ATMs work all the time so you can find many of them along Sukhumvit

[Randyman]

Also count your money and do the math!! I was in Chaing Mai and the bean counter tried to short me a 1000 and presented me with a cash register tape as a reciept. no no no! This has been tried on me at least twice...be careful out there
randyman

[PigDogg]

The moneychangers in Bali are notorius in that regard. One guy counted out 900,000 rupiahs, i think that's what they're called, I turned my head and there was only 600,000 on the table. I asked him to count it again. Then I laughed, took my unsigned TC and walked out.

After that I would go to a more official looking place but still only change a 100 a day.