Thailand Cheat Sheet

[Rockheart]

I signed up for a mailing list at this site and they provided me with a Thailand Cheat Sheet for travellers.

There is a few interesting things here I didn't really know before,
They say to exchange any foreign currency to US dollars first, then change it to Thai baht, they say you will always save money.
Also they describe why Travellers Cheques are not good anymore.

Thailand Cheat Sheet No matter if you're currently in the process of moving to Thailand or have already set up shop here: This starter kit gives you pointers on how to save on your major expenses - from rent and insurance to furniture and electronics this is a quick and handy guide to the financial things that can make a difference. Work If you are serious about getting a job and working in Thailand, check out Working in Thailand: How to Ditch the Desk, Board the Flight, and Land the Job. It includes the best job-seeking strategies that successful professionals from nineteen different fields in Thailand have used. For a generic job website, you can check out JobsDB where the most sophisticated jobs tend to be posted online. This is also where my company posts ads for which we consider foreigners. LinkedIn is also popular and local recruiters tend to use it to find new staff - keeping your profile up to date and showing you€™re in Bangkok is highly recommended. Think a bit about what keywords recruiters might use when trying to find someone for a position you might be interested in and be sure to add them to your profile. Offline there€™s Bangkok Post as well as a number of recruitment agencies, with PRTRbeing the largest. The biggest challenge is to find jobs that offer a work permit to foreigners. Your best are usually Bangkok-based companies in the tech sector - e.g. Lazada, an Amazon-clone, has 198 open positions listed on their website for the region. Other web companies that hire a broad profile of applicants are Expedia, Agoda, and aCommerce. Rent For most professionals in Bangkok, rent is their biggest expense. If you want to get a place quick without having to do much work internet and legwork, use a real estate agent. They will show you a list of places based on your requirements and take you there. A good website to find a place is to go to hipflat, and check for places in your desired district. If you're looking for hidden deals in condo buildings, check the sub-forum for the building you're interested in on on Prakard. Many listings there are by owners or non-syndicated agents and sometimes these don't show up elsewhere. Should you have the time, you can also scout areas around desirable neighborhoodsand take pictures of 'for rent' signs. This way I came across a furnished 90sqm apartment in Silom that went for THB 20,000 / month. From there on you can do your own research: The best deals are advertised on signs outside of the buildings that have vacancies and are rarely found online. For more details on how to save on rent, check out our Insider€™s Guide to Renting in Bangkok. You€™ll discover how to find hidden gems in Bangkok, how to save 40% on rent, and how to sidestep common renting mistakes that costs expats thousands of dollars a year. Health The best bang for buck is offered by Chulalongkorn Hospital and Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok. Going to these government hospitals and paying in cash will often prove to be a much better deal than the conventional insurance and hospital route. The downside are long wait times. If you want to go the insurance route, I recommend ACS which I€™m currently using myself. It€™ll cover your expenses 100% and you can visit top tier hospitals like Bumrungrad without a second thought. If you€™re looking for more information on health insurance, you should take a look at my in-depth write up of health insurance matters for expats in Thailand. Health Checkup As you make preparations for your move to Thailand. One of your biggest concerns is probably your health and the health of your family. Would you like to find out how you can have your family covered in case of any health emergencies or how you can find out if you have any health issues that need your immediate attention or simply need a health checkup for your work permit application? And if you haven€™t done your health check-up yet and you wish to move or work in Thailand, then you can hit two birds with one stone. I check my health every year at Bumrungrad. It's not the cheapest option out there. But considering the quality of care they give, the hospital offers excellent value for the money. You can read our Bangkok Health Checkup and learn everything you need to know about health checkups in Bangkok, from costs, packages & hospitals. You€™ll also learn everything you need to know about Thai health insurance as an expat. Money and Banks Exchange money with one of the many branches of SuperRich. Their exchange fees are up to 90% lower than what you pay with conventional banks and even wire transfers. If you have the stomach, bring USD in cash and exchange it with their shop before paying it into a local account. Easiest banks to deal with are Bangkok Bank--especially their main office on Silom road--and Kasikorn Bank. Those two banks are the easiest to work with and can cover 95% of all your banking needs - from savings accounts to credit cards and international transfers. TransferWise is one of the cheapest methods to send money to Thailand. Transfer free can be 50% lower than a normal wire transfer. In case you€™re looking for more information on how to deal with banks, open accounts and take advantage of tax incentives, you can find my Thailand money matters guide here. Furniture, Electronics, and Clothes Most apartments in Thailand come furnished. If you need something else, Thailand now has an IKEA. Unless you want custom-made, solid wood furniture, this is your most reliable bet. Also a lot easier to move (which you probably have to every time you change jobs in Bangkok). For any electronics, if you have the time and patience, you can go to Fortune Town or Pantip Plaza - the two traditional IT hubs in Bangkok. They tend to offer excellent deals. If that€™s inconvenient, you can find 80% of that at similar prices on Lazadanowadays. Clothes depend on your taste, so I€™ll just stick what I know and like (after all, you see on my website what wear and can judge if that€™s your cup of tea). If you need something tailored, a convenient and reliable budget option is DNA in Silom Complex. If you€™re looking for top end stuff, consider Tailor on Ten. For everyday wear, I prefer Uniqlo. They have branches in major department stores through the country. If you€™re looking for deals on women€™s clothing, you can give Pratunam Market a shot. A reputation for wholesale, it offers discounts for larger orders. While they€™re okay with retail buyers, a lot of shops won€™t allow you to try on the products. Looking for More? We Can Help! If you're looking for even more strategies on how to save hundreds of hours of time and thousands of dollars in money in Thailand, get a copy of Thailand Starter Kit: Save Cash, Land a Job, Avoid Pitfalls, and More. It€™s your complete solution to moving, living, working, and starting a business in Thailand. Karsten Aichholz ThailandStarterKit.com

[soju]

Crag thanks for the link. There is a lot of good information for expats and those of us who go on holiday.
However, I take issue with the "exchange any foreign currency to US dollars first, then change it to Thai baht."
If I am not mistaken their rationale is that in Thailand the buy/sell spread is lower for the US dollar than it is for other currencies. Thus you save money.
Yet, changing currency always costs and I don't think changing currency twice (a traveler's home currency to US dollars; then US dollars to Thai baht) justifies the buy/sell spread rates in Thailand. I am based in South Korea and last trip I brought Korean Won to Thailand. The rate I was getting was surprisingly close to the daily on XE Currency Converter and mine was not a major currency. Anyway, I certainly could be wrong but you might want to look into it if you are considering exchanging to US dollars for your upcoming volleyball trip.
Cheers

[outlander5]

I've just done the math using US CAD THAI currency with the rates posted on xe currency converter CAD to US $100 gets 76.34 CAD to THAI $100 gets 25 508.58baht $76.34 US gets 506.58 you lose $2 converting to US if you were to add in the cost to convert to US you'd be screwing yourself !! I also use t.t. currency exchange in pattaya and its .2 to .3 off the posted rate on xe the rest like the banks are higher avoid c.c. currency converter or any that don't post rates on the board

[rxpharm]

It is definitely NOT a good idea to change your own country's currency to USD before going to Thailand and changing it to THB. I don't know where they came up with that advice, but as a couple of other posters have proven, it simply doesn't add up.

[Rockheart]

Crag thanks for the link. There is a lot of good information for expats and those of us who go on holiday.
However, I take issue with the "exchange any foreign currency to US dollars first, then change it to Thai baht."
If I am not mistaken their rationale is that in Thailand the buy/sell spread is lower for the US dollar than it is for other currencies. Thus you save money.
Yet, changing currency always costs and I don't think changing currency twice (a traveler's home currency to US dollars; then US dollars to Thai baht) justifies the buy/sell spread rates in Thailand. I am based in South Korea and last trip I brought Korean Won to Thailand. The rate I was getting was surprisingly close to the daily on XE Currency Converter and mine was not a major currency. Anyway, I certainly could be wrong but you might want to look into it if you are considering exchanging to US dollars for your upcoming volleyball trip.
Cheers

I make some money in US dollars, so I am just bringing US cash because i already have it. Crisp 50s and 100s

It is definitely NOT a good idea to change your own country's currency to USD before going to Thailand and changing it to THB. I don't know where they came up with that advice, but as a couple of other posters have proven, it simply doesn't add up.

Yes i agree, i cannot see how it would work.
Unless you have some sort of preferred rate I cannot see how this first conversion to USD would save you anything.
Especially in Canada we don't have many places other than banks to exchange our money and their rates always suck.
There is money exchange booths and major aiports but there is no competition in Canada so rates are similar to banks.

I guess if you exchanged to US at a time when it was going up against the Baht then waited a couple months it may pay off a couple dollars.
But that is too much hassle for a couple of bucks!