Holiday in Thailand – transfer GBP to my Thai account or take GBP cash?

[mattk1]

Hi everyone,

 

Just wanted to ask some quick advice here as I’ve left it till the last minute to sort out holiday money.

 

I’m heading over to Thailand with the wife and kids next week and I was planning on just using TransferWise to send GBP into my Bangkok bank account, but then I thought I might ask on here if it would be better to take GBP cash and exchange it in Thailand?

 

With the exchange rate pretty dismal these days I wondered what are people’s thoughts?

 

Thanks in advance ?

 

[sanemax]

Use your UK ATM bank card to make withdrawals in Thailand ?

[JamJar]

Taking pounds in cash is a good option but of course you can lose it. Exchange some or all at the SuperRich Thailand counter at the Airport Link at Suvarnabhumi. Then you can take it directly to a branch of your Thai bank in order to deposit it. But of course walking around with all your money until you get to deposit it is a bit of a risk.

 

But that is the best value option for you., as currently you'll get 43.07 baht for £50 notes at their airport location. £20 notes; 42.92. But that is still better than what you would receive with Transferwise or a Bank Transfer.

 

 

[JamJar]

A good backup option if you've left it late is to get a Monzo Mastercard prepaid debit card for purchases in shops and supermarkets and a general fallback. Should be with you in a few days. For purchases, that will offer much the same rate exchanging £50 notes at SuperRich.

Anything left over you can spend pound for pound in the UK or keep for travel anywhere else in the world.

 

[JamJar]

The bold Monzo link in the post above is the link through which you should apply if you go for that fallback. It gets the card to you more quickly.

[theoldgit]

The bold Monzo link in the post above is the link through which you should apply if you go for that fallback. It gets the card to you more quickly.

The jump the queue promotion in that link has now expired and you have to join the queue now.

[Arandora]

13 hours ago, sanemax said:

Use your UK ATM bank card to make withdrawals in Thailand ?

Using ATMs is worse than using cash. You pay 200 - 220 baht for every withdrawal to the Thai Bank (unless you can find an Aon ATM which is 150 baht) plus any charges your bank makes. I usually take GBP and change to THB at SuperRich then deposit the THB in my Kasikorn Bank Account at nearest branch, then use fee free KBank Debit Card. In January I transferred cash with fee free transfer to my KBank account using UKForex, now Ofx at https://www.ofx.com/en-gb/ Current market rate is 43.08 THB to £ but create an account and get quote for Customer Rates. This was only marginally lower than SuperRich at time of transfer and much safer than carrying cash and exchanging on arrival. 

[sanemax]

Just now, Arandora said:

Using ATMs is worse than using cash. You pay 200 - 220 baht for every withdrawal to the Thai Bank

No, you can make free withdrawals at banks (counter), its just the ATM machines that charge 220 Baht

[Arandora]

15 minutes ago, sanemax said:

No, you can make free withdrawals at banks (counter), its just the ATM machines that charge 220 Baht

Not every bank or branch allows this. My Kasikorn branch in Khao lak doesn't allow it nor would a branch in Bangkok even though I have an account with them. You still have to pay any fees that your home bank charges. 

[jippytum]

Why not transfer GBP to your Thai sterling  account  ,Very convenient

[WillyJ]

You get a better exchange rates at many of the small local shops than you would at the banks.

[Ashto]

Superrich has a reputation for offering a more favourable rate for large denomination bank notes than the trading banks. 

 

The trading banks quote their rates rates each day on their websites so you can check against others.  Here's KTB today https://www.exch.ktb.co.th/ExRateKTB/ExCounterRate.do?action=currentRate

 

I had it recommended to me to send your transfer in your local currency to the Thai bank and let the Thai bank make the conversion to baht. I've found that my local bank is always less favourable than my Thai bank so I always send my currency to my Thai bank as suggested. 

 

I've  always found using my local cards, current account or credit card, to be the most expensive way to convert my local currency into baht. 

[Arandora]

 

 

42 minutes ago, jippytum said:

Why not transfer GBP to your Thai sterling  account  ,Very convenient

That's why 

41 minutes ago, WillyJ said:

You get a better exchange rates at many of the small local shops than you would at the banks.

[Arandora]

6 minutes ago, Ashto said:

Superrich has a reputation for offering a more favourable rate for large denomination bank notes than the trading banks. 

 

The trading banks quote their rates rates each day on their websites so you can check against others.  Here's KTB today https://www.exch.ktb.co.th/ExRateKTB/ExCounterRate.do?action=currentRate

 

SuperRich, Sia and Vasu offer more for any denomination than all of the Thai banks. You can see the current daily rate for all of them at http://bankexchangerates.daytodaydata.net/

[jojothai]

1 hour ago, sanemax said:

No, you can make free withdrawals at banks (counter), its just the ATM machines that charge 220 Baht

You mean Yes then?

 

Which bank doesnot charge at the counter. Interested to know. Would have to look at their exchange rates.

[sanemax]

3 minutes ago, jojothai said:

You mean Yes then?

 

Which bank doesnot charge at the counter. Interested to know. Would have to look at their exchange rates.

Dont think that any of them do charge , The ATM fee is for usage of the ATM machine .

Dont use the ATM machine and theres no ATM charge

[jojothai]

1 hour ago, Ashto said:

Superrich has a reputation for offering a more favourable rate for large denomination bank notes than the trading banks. 

 

The trading banks quote their rates rates each day on their websites so you can check against others.  Here's KTB today https://www.exch.ktb.co.th/ExRateKTB/ExCounterRate.do?action=currentRate

 

I had it recommended to me to send your transfer in your local currency to the Thai bank and let the Thai bank make the conversion to baht. I've found that my local bank is always less favourable than my Thai bank so I always send my currency to my Thai bank as suggested. 

 

I've  always found using my local cards, current account or credit card, to be the most expensive way to convert my local currency into baht. 

Dont be afraid to use a mainstream uk credit card to pay bills. You need to be aware that you get a very good almost mid exchange rate but have to pay a charge of between 2 to 3 %.

This can be very competitive. 

Eg 100 GBP for say 3 pounds fee.

[robcar]

Transfer it direct online from your UK bank to your Bangkok bank using their London branch.

 

Check this Bangkok Bank link 

 

http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBank/PersonalBanking/DailyBanking/TransferingFunds/TransferringIntoThailand/ReceivingFundsfromUK/Pages/ReceivingFundsfromUK.aspx

[Arandora]

5 minutes ago, sanemax said:

Dont think that any of them do charge , The ATM fee is for usage of the ATM machine .

Dont use the ATM machine and theres no ATM charge

Banks that do counter or in bank exchange with a debit or credit card and passport don't charge but the rate used is less than the ATM charge and you still have to pay your bank's fees. The best UK cards for this are Halifax Clarity Credit Card, no charge by Halifax and great rate of exchange but interest charged straight away until full amount cleared. On-line banking will do this. Nationwide Flex Plus Account Debit Cards, no charge by Nationwide and great rate of exchange. 

1 minute ago, jojothai said:

Dont be afraid to use a mainstream uk credit card to pay bills. You need to be aware that you get a very good almost mid exchange rate but have to pay a charge of between 2 to 3 %.

This can be very competitive. 

Eg 100 GBP for say 3 pounds fee.

No charge on Halifax Clarity or Nationwide Flex Plus Credit Cards for purchases and great rate of exchange. 

[phantomfiddler]

Your best rate would be obtained by bringing cash (new notes) and changing them at the money changers. Best rate and no ATM charges ! Whatever you do, do NOT change your pounds into Thai Baht while in U.K. or you will drop a savage 30% in one fell swoop !!!

[MaiChai]

When I come to Thailand I bring about £300 in cash and change it at Suwanapoom. Wife sometimes does the same thing. Anything larger is a risk imho. Then i just transfer to my Kasikorn account from the UK from time to time; say a couple of thousand pounds at a time. Need money in Thailand to pay bills/support kids etc.

 

Now I never use any of my UK cards in Thailand, although have them as a backup incase. Basically you get a bad exchange rate and then fees on top of that, plus the hassle that your cards sometimes dont work and then the risk of fraudulent transactions/cloning of your cards, etc. Then they want to charge 2/3% on top. Plus you need to check all the transactions on your uk bank. So its alot of hassle.

 

Also sending money to my Thai bank and then using that helps budget and keeps things under control.

 

I never have more than a 2 or 3 thousand pounds in my Thai account. Have read horror stories about money going missing from Thai banks, and well they dont care and you cant get the money back. If that happens to a UK bank account you are fully covered, so best keep your money there.

 

Cash is king in Thailand. Never use my Thai visa debit at petrol stations, although its convenient at supermarkets and builders merchants/wassadus. There is no charge for using my Thai debit unlike my UK cards. Low hassel and no brainer here.

 

Best to protect yourself before it happens. Eg minimise risks. 

[Chivas]

2 hours ago, phantomfiddler said:

Your best rate would be obtained by bringing cash (new notes) and changing them at the money changers. Best rate and no ATM charges ! Whatever you do, do NOT change your pounds into Thai Baht while in U.K. or you will drop a savage 30% in one fell swoop !!!

They are not quite as bad as 30 % lol

 

I noticed Post Office in uk was just shy of 39 yesterday so roughly around 10% give or take but as I have told 1001 people over the years utterly pointless to change even £1 in the uk as even just £50 at airport cartel rates (for taxi etc) are better than uk rates let alone the the rates at changers down by the rail link

Edited June 24, 2017 by Chivas

[james1995]

I don't bother much with atms anymore.  I take currency notes mostly.  100k baht maximum but if I need more then I use my atm debit.  I don't like using the atm because there is a risk of carding fraud and they can drain your bank account very quickly if they wanted.

[mattk1]

Hey everyone, 

 

First off thank you to everyone who has replied here with advice and I am most grateful for it! :-)

 

Having read through it would seem that bringing GBP cash is the way to go but it is risky in case of loss. The link that robcar posted sounds interesting but how can from reading it their fees are higher than Transferwise, is that right?

 

(Just had a look at Transferwise and they are currently showing 43.14030)

 

Cheers again everyone :-)

[jacko45k]

On 24/06/2017 at 3:40 AM, sanemax said:

Use your UK ATM bank card to make withdrawals in Thailand ?

There are charges at both ends which make this an expensive option. It should just be a back up only.

 

As to original question. Away from the airport cash can be exchanged at a very slightly better rate, than a transfer will give you, and of course no issue if you have cash left over, as you can take the £ back. Disadvantage, the risk of carrying large amounts of cash. 

I would make a transfer.

 

[jacko45k]

2 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

 

Over the counter ATM withdrawals are refused in some banks.

Edited June 24, 2017 by jacko45k

[JamJar]

20 hours ago, theoldgit said:

The jump the queue promotion in that link has now expired and you have to join the queue now.

 

 

I don't have any idea as to why you would assert that. I get this when I click through;

 

Quote

Welcome! Let’s get you set up

We’re working with MoneySavingExpert.com to give you priority access to the Monzo app. If you sign up before 3:30pm, your card will be posted by first class delivery the very same day. Sign up here and skip our queue of thousands!

 

[theoldgit]

6 minutes ago, JamJar said:

I don't have any idea as to why you would assert that. I get this when I click through;

 

Quite simple really, when I clicked on your link I got a message that the promotion had ended, seems that it's started again.

Hardly the sort of thing I would make up.

[JamJar]

11 hours ago, Arandora said:

Banks that do counter or in bank exchange with a debit or credit card and passport don't charge but the rate used is less than the ATM charge and you still have to pay your bank's fees. The best UK cards for this are Halifax Clarity Credit Card, no charge by Halifax and great rate of exchange but interest charged straight away until full amount cleared. On-line banking will do this. Nationwide Flex Plus Account Debit Cards, no charge by Nationwide and great rate of exchange. 

No charge on Halifax Clarity or Nationwide Flex Plus Credit Cards for purchases and great rate of exchange. 

 

 

There is no Nationwide Flexplus credit card and your assertion about the rate being less is just not true in all cases. Some dodgy banks do  have their tricks. You just have to avoid them.

 

Some really strange advice on this thread overall.

 

The best ways are actually to bring cash or to take over the counter with the likes of the Halifax Clarity.

 

Once you begin with bank to bank transfers, you are dealing with the Thai banks TT rate, the UK bank's fee and the Thai bank's receiving fee.

With Transferwise, only the fee. So the third best option.

 

Since they likely don't have fee free plastic, their best options are cash and Transferwise.

 

Even taking cash out of an ATM with the right plastic is better than a bank to bank transfer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JamJar]

8 minutes ago, theoldgit said:

 

Quite simple really, when I clicked on your link I got a message that the promotion had ended, seems that it's started again.

Hardly the sort of thing I would make up.

 

My thoughts exactly...why would he make up such a thing?

 

Anyway, now we all now that it is back up and they will send the card out on the same day.