changing baht to USD, here or BKK?

[stevehaigh]

i need to change a pretty big large amount of baht to USD, cash. do you think its better to do it here at my bank or a change booth or do it in Swampy? will there be any difference in rate/fees, etc.?

[hansgruber]

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

[NamKangMan]

You mention "Swampy" so I am assuming you would like USD, or local currency, to spend in another country.

I don't know where you are going, so I haven't researched their exchange rate, or their fees, but another option may be to Western Union yourself the money.

Lodge the Thai baht with Western Union in Thailand, and pick it up in local currency, or possibly USD, at a Western Union office in the country you are traveling to.

Just another option to consider.

[steelepulse]

I've always heard "Chinatown" but no idea exactly where. Supposedly some good Chinese money changers in Phuket Town, but no idea of where/who.

[hansgruber]

You get robbed in exchange rates no matter where you change it in Thailand.

[macahoom]

In my experience:

Forget about changing it in banks. You'll get a better rate in the currency booths. The best rate in Phuket is either the one in Central (in the bank area), and/or NC in Phuket town.

Your problem could be that they won't have enough US cash for you. You can order it and change it over a few days or even weeks depending on how much you need and how much they have available. Sometimes they have a lot, but usually not.

You might get a slightly better rate in Bangkok from the Chinese changers (Super Rich is no different than Phuket, usually) but certainly not at the airport where the rate is not good.

[LivinginKata]

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

[LivinginKata]

If it's a large amount of baht then you will need to give most banks a few days lead time to acquire the US$. Don't think the regular booths exchange baht for foreign currency, maybe the central f/x buyer could exchange.

[jethro69]

As said, Swampy is a no go, you'll loose almost one bath/$ there. Did you not meet other fellows, who want to change US in Thai bath? Would be a better deal for both of you.

[macahoom]

If it's a large amount of baht then you will need to give most banks a few days lead time to acquire the US$. Don't think the regular booths exchange baht for foreign currency, maybe the central f/x buyer could exchange.

My earlier post has accurate information in it.

[hansgruber]

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

Why is it worthless? Thai gold is 22 karat and is easily sold in Australia for the exact market rate as Thailand, sometimes even make a few bucks on top.

Edit.

http://www.goldpriceoz.com/22k-gold-price-per-ounce/

1160 usd an ounce. That's 36000 baht roughly.

One baht weight of gold is 18,000 baht today prices which is 15.1 grams. Two weight of gold is 36,000 baht and you get two grams for free.

Do the math.

Edited April 7, 2015 by hansgruber

[Jimbo]

Change the money in Bangkok at super rich or at vasu exchange. Much better exchange rate

Edited April 7, 2015 by Jimbo

[macahoom]

Change the money in Bangkok at super rich or at vasu exchange. Much better exchange rate

In my experience, if buying US dollars or Euros or Singapore dollars or British pounds, you will get the same rate in the Central booth, or NC in Phuket Town, as that given by Super Rich.

[Gonsalviz]

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

Why is it worthless? Thai gold is 22 karat and is easily sold in Australia for the exact market rate as Thailand, sometimes even make a few bucks on top.

Edit.

http://www.goldpriceoz.com/22k-gold-price-per-ounce/

1160 usd an ounce. That's 36000 baht roughly.

One baht weight of gold is 18,000 baht today prices which is 15.1 grams. Two weight of gold is 36,000 baht and you get two grams for free.

Do the math.

Depending on where you buy. Thai gold in Krabi is 99.5? Most but not all is 99.9.

[beechbum]

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Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

Seriously?

[hansgruber]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

Seriously?

I don't know anywhere in the world where 22 karat gold is worthless.

He obviously didn't think that through before posting.

[LivinginKata]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Buy gold, wear it home and exchange it for cash in the us. Gold is king at the end of the day.

But not Thai gold. Almost worthless back in the USA.

Seriously?

I don't know anywhere in the world where 22 karat gold is worthless.

He obviously didn't think that through before posting.

Well, I guess I stand corrected. I have (had) always been under the impression that due to Thai gold being 22 karat, then other countries with the 24 karat standard would not be interested in buying Thai gold. For sure it still has value, but maybe too much trouble to deal with karat difference. In reflection I should not have said worthless, perhaps devalued would have been better.

[hansgruber]

Well, I guess I stand corrected. I have (had) always been under the impression that due to Thai gold being 22 karat, then other countries with the 24 karat standard would not be interested in buying Thai gold. For sure it still has value, but maybe too much trouble to deal with karat difference. In reflection I should not have said worthless, perhaps devalued would have been better.

All gold has its market value.
Whether it be 9, 14, 18, 22 and 24k
All countries accept gold no matter the purity. It's better than paper currency as it's tangible.
Thai gold is sold as 22k due to giving it some strength. 24k is just too soft to be worn as jewellery.
An ounce (28 grams) of 22k today is 1116 usd per ounce which is right on par in what it would cost to buy 30 grams of gold today in Thailand.
No fees, no fuss. Humans have been trading it for 1000's of years even before the concept of money came about.
Thais are renowned for getting money out of Thailand this way.

[stuandjulie]

There is a place in Phuket Town that the locals go to and they have the best rates, I have changed quite large sums there no problem.

Don't know the road name but if you head to Robinsons from Suzuki Plaza, go over the klong and it is the set of traffic lights just after Robinsons (the horrible Thai market is on the left.

Turn left and it is 200m on the left.

[macahoom]

There is a place in Phuket Town that the locals go to and they have the best rates, I have changed quite large sums there no problem.

Don't know the road name but if you head to Robinsons from Suzuki Plaza, go over the klong and it is the set of traffic lights just after Robinsons (the horrible Thai market is on the left.

Turn left and it is 200m on the left.

"NC Plus" is the name. Rates are usually the same as the booth in Central.

Sometimes the Central booth gives better rates. Occasionally, but rarely, NC will give a better rate than Central. But that's all academic since, if you're buying foreign currency, they may or not have the amount your require available.

For buying foreign currency, forget about all the other exchangers. They never have more than a few dollars/pounds/Euros available.

[madmitch]

Any updates on the info above as I need to change some baht into Euros? Normally I'd change GBP but as it has plummeted in the last few days, and is likely to continue to do so, I'll exchange baht instead.

I know local banks are a waste of time so I think the booth at Central will be my best option unless anyone comes up with some better ideas.

[fiddlehead]

I go to a kiosk near Mimi corner in Nai Harn.
Been going to the same one for a few years now and she always gives me an even better rate than her posted rate (which is usually the best one around anyway)
It's the little one near the Tesco Express on Sai Yuan.

Way better than the banks, and sometimes equal to the Forex rate!

But yeah, I had friends ask her already about changing baht back to dollars and she said if it's a big amount, give her a day to get it together.

[KhunBENQ]

Change the money in Bangkok at super rich or at vasu exchange. Much better exchange rate

Long thread, short answer.

Chinatown in general.

[DrDave]

I always use SuperRich in BKK. They have a branch in Phuket Town, but according to their website, foreign currency is sold only in the larger BKK branches. The spread between the buy and sell is typically only about 5-10 satang for large denomination USD.

You can check the exchange rate on their website superrich.co.th, and they also have a decent iOS and Android app.