The two booths in 2nd Road near Boyztown have been a godsend. I wonder why their exchange rates are so much better than others in Pattaya? The Bangkok booths don't compare.
The two booths in 2nd Road near Boyztown have been a godsend. I wonder why their exchange rates are so much better than others in Pattaya? The Bangkok booths don't compare.
"My UK high street bank charges a flat fee irrespective of amount. I transferred £10K prior to the Brexit vote and it cost £30. Would SAT be cheaper?"
Yes, because the High St banks shaft you on the exchange rate as well as charging a fee.
Not in this case because I transferred the sterling amount. The exchange was done in Bangkok at preferential rates.Originally Posted by Old git
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You can add me to that list too.
If I am on my usual December to March stay I change it as soon as I arrive.
I've noticed over the last 10 years that the amount of baht I get reduces from December onwards. It has happened every year since I've been coming.
I used to think that the Thais were doing it deliberately in high season! However I may not be far off the truth as the Baht must strength during high season.
Just look at the Baht/Pound this year since December and it's not just Brexit!
You can get an outstanding rate in the airport, just downstairs in the SRT rail station. About 8 booths, very competitive.
I know that I'm not smart enough to figure out which way it will move, short term, but I am smart enough to know where to find a good rate on the day. So I change it all in 1 go. Over my lifetime, this will even out.
Whilst I have no clue about the short term, with a little more confidence, I predict a weakening pound over the long term, just due to all the imports and debt we're rolling up.
I think you mean the yellow TT booths. They are a competitive independent and the other more expensive places survive because most tourists are too idle to keep their eyes open and spot a good exchange rate.
Bangkok booths DO compare, but you just need to look out for something like SuperRich. The one by the Subway/KFC at Sala Daeng didn’t seem to be open, but there are other locations which you can find on their website. Convenient enough, but not so many that you are constantly walking past them.
Last edited by goji; January 19th, 2017 at 01:56.
Re: Money exchangee wondered
Just to demonstrate why we should NOT use a UK high street bank, I transferred £4500 from the Nationwide to a bank in another ASEAN country last week. The first time I tried that method & probably the last. I wanted to move a modest sum.
There was a transaction fee of £20.
A 2.5% loss on the exchange rate.
Plus a fee to the receiving bank.
Total losses = 3.06%.
My losses for changing cash to that countries currency and manually paying in when I was there were 1.1% (thanks to google, I believe I may have used very competitive forex booths in that country).
My losses for changing cash to Thai baht at Superrich and paying into a Thai bank account were under 1%.
About a week earlier, I applied on line for a currency transfer service at one of the known forex specialists, but the on line application process fell over and some incomprehensible person from their call centre phoned me. I shall not be using them, but need to find one I can trust.
I believe money transferred by this type of company is not protected, however the FCA authorised transfer specialists are supposed to ring fence the money so no one takes it if they go bust mid transaction.
Last edited by goji; January 19th, 2017 at 04:26.
I opened a forex account at Moneycorp & got a quote on moving £5000 to a SE Asian country.
Total loss = 2.28% on Moneycorp side (including fees).
Slightly better than Nationwide, but nowhere near the benchmark provided by Old Git. Also not as good as taking a wad of cash.
Needless to say, I shall not be using Moneycorp.
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