When traveling from Thailand to the States, what's the best way to maximize the number of dollars you get for your baht? Do you exchange currencies at Suvarnabhumi? At JFK? Or is there a better way?

Money changer, never at airport you are a captive.

In BKK go to chinatown.

I've always used Vasu currency exchange located on Sukumvit Road between soi 9 & 11.

Thanks for the information, but I am not in Bangkok. I live in Chiang Kham and I will be flying to Bangkok from Chiang Rai. The flight gets to Suvarnabhumi late in the afternoon, and I plan to stay at the airport until the flight for New York leaves at about 1 in the morning. There is time for a side trip into the city, or I could arrive a day early and stay over, but then there are extra costs involved. I thought that my best bets were to either change to dollars at Suvarnabhumi or when I get to JFK, and I wondered if anyone knew which location had the best rates.

Is the exchange rate that much better that it would pay to go into Bangkok or arrive a day early and stay over?

Work it out whether the amount you are changing is worth the time, hassle and extra costs of doing it. Can't you just use an ATM in USA ?

Money changer ..

In BKK go to chinatown.

any addresses (and phone numbers) to money changers in china town or anywhere else in bangkok - tomorror morning has to change all my £ into baht

I didn't shop around when I was in Chinatown, but this place beat the best bank exchange rate at least by a few 1/100th's

I was exchanging Baht for $US (I needed dollars), and they told me they give an even better rate when selling baht, i.e. beat the banks by even more.

Thong Bai Yaowaraj Gold Smith (pretty famous in BKK)

(no address on their card, but I think you could say china town and the name and the taxi would probably know. One of those yellow gold shops).

02 226-1235, 02 226-3741

They weren't fazed by selling me multiple thousand dollars.

so what was exchange rate?

I've always used Vasu currency exchange located on Sukumvit Road between soi 9 & 11.

Me too, nice old lady takes me into the back room and w e change it theree out of sight of prying eyes.

Roughly what kind of spread to a bank's rate? If it's just a few hundredths, it likely won't be worth the trip there and back. The rate could easily go that much against you just while traveling there. Has to be many tenths better.

Prepare to get ripped a new one if you sell or buy THB in large amounts at Swampy. The rates there are about 1 THB under/over the city rates.