whats the easiest way to get currency?

what does everyone find the easiest way to get by? do you take travellers cheques? english money then convert to baht when you get there? or just use the cash points? or just taken baht with you?

whats the easiest way to get currency?

some good info here:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g293920-i5037-k812鈥?/a>

whats the easiest way to get currency?

I find that cash is the easiest option with many places in the street to change it. If you take tc%26#39;s then you will need to carry your passport with you if you change money when you are out and about.

No problem with cash and good rates at all the bank%26#39;s that have booths everywhere...Cheers.

whatever you do... don%26#39;t change money before you arrive.... bring cash... Travellers cheques... Credit card. debit card.... your Mums old ration cards...

whatever.. just don%26#39;t buy the baht before you arrive... plenty of places to exchange your hard earned currency for baht.. don%26#39;t you worry about that....

I want to support mosegrisen%26#39;s contribution! Sine you are going from Britain it%26#39;s worth remembering that the foreign exchange rates are horrendous.

By all means bring cash and/or travellers cheques and change in Thailand, but compare rates.

It is preferable to use cash (baht) in restaurants and for purchases: there have been several reports of credit card scams. Don%26#39;t let the card taken out of your sight! It%26#39;s alright to use it to pay your hotel bills, because you have a comeback

Good luck!

I had no trouble with American Express tc%26#39;s, plenty of exchange booths along beach rd. You will need your passport with you. What I did was walk up and down Beach rd checking out exchange rates as they do vary and you might as well get more Baht for your $$$.

I used my visa card only a few times for duty free and at hotel for security deposit. My bank (Savings and Loans Credit Union) as soon as I got home phoned me asking if the visa transactions were me and sent out a new card regardless.

I did bring $100 AUD worth of Baht with me to get me by until I was comfortable with the area to get mre cheques cashed in.

ATM versa Travellers cheques argument;

probably about the same... usually you get marginally more Bath per currency unit when using ATM or TC compared to cash... but do look at the fees...

Apparently the post offices has a promotion on ';free'; American Express TCs... in the UK and Australia.. I still have to figure out where ';the catch'; lies..... as there rarely is such a thing as a free lunch... and especially not any free ';money'; from Banks...

From the UK I understand that ';Nationwide'; building society has a card that doesn鈥檛 charge foreign exchange fees or ATM fees.

For Australians.... Wizard ';Clear Advantage'; Master card promises the same...

I haven%26#39;t tried it and don%26#39;t know how the exchange rates compare.

The TC%26#39;s given for ';free'; from post offices only means no fees not free money probally saving you a couple of bucks a cheque. Banks also do free TC%26#39;s as well as long as member of that bank.

WazzaTroy.. ok, ok... :-)

Wasn%26#39;t expecting that the post office would give away a free holiday or anything like that.

Guess they are counting on some cheques not being cashed in or returned....

surely they don鈥檛 do anything for nothing?

I figure that there is a balance to all of this. You do get better rates for cash, but is slightly messier to deal with and there is also the security aspect. TC%26#39;s and ATM have their respective charges and you could always go to the bank or the reception desk (about the worst rate).

Back in the past I%26#39;ve travelled with cash %26amp; TC. Now I always use the ATM. This is by far the easiest and rates high on security. You pay with the exchange rate %26amp; international transfer fees but, what the hey, that easily compensates for the advantages for me. I don%26#39;t run around looking for the best rate or trustworthy dealers either, although I have always been lucky in this respect, friends have had trouble and it%26#39;s just not worth it for the few dollars saved.

Each to their own.

HI, if you go to your local Nationwide building society and open a Flexaccount and get a card and then use it in Thailand you will get the official bank exchange rate, Thailand has plenty of ATM%26#39;s and there are no charges or commission on the transactions using a Nationwide card, whatever you do dont change money in the hotel they will give you the worst rate going, change your cash at a bank but avoid 12 to 1 p.m. as thats when all the Thais take lunch and go.