Withdraw dollars in Thailand. What money to take to Thailand

This post will be dedicated to money and tourists. Namely, we will answer the popular question of how much money to take to Thailand for 10 days, give recommendations on what currency is best to bring, where it is profitable to exchange it for Thai baht, how to withdraw money from local ATMs with the greatest benefit and what is the Thai baht exchange rate for today.

We live in Pattaya, so everything stated below in this article applies specifically to this city.

Thai baht exchange rate for today

Let's start with the Thai baht exchange rate for today (updated daily). In the most profitable exchange offices in Pattaya (yellow and red), the baht exchange rate to the ruble and dollar today is as follows:

1 rub = 0.543 baht.
1 dollar = 32.36 baht.

First, let’s talk about where you definitely shouldn’t change money:

At the airport (the most unfavorable rate). That is why it is worth ordering and paying for a taxi from Bangkok to Pattaya while still in Russia. In terms of money, it will cost even less than if you take a taxi on the spot.
At local bank branches;
In exchange offices at shopping centers.

You will find the most favorable rate for exchanging rubles and dollars into Thai baht at the red and yellow exchange offices located on the first line of Jomtien and in the center of Pattaya. They look like this:

How to withdraw money from ATMs?

You can withdraw money from debit cards (including ruble cards) at any Thai ATMs. The maximum amount for one transaction is 20,000 baht. Cash withdrawal fee - 200-220 baht. To minimize the loss of money due to paying commissions, it is better to immediately withdraw the maximum amount. The best place to do this is at the yellow ATMs of Krungsri Bank.

What currency should I take to Thailand?

Definitely dollars, if you have them. If not, then buy it. It makes no sense to go to Thailand with rubles at all.

Let's calculate together how much more profitable it is to buy dollars in Russia and then exchange them for Thai baht. All figures in the calculation are accurate, taken as of October 22, 2017.

You can buy dollars in Novosibirsk today for 58 rubles. You can exchange them in Pattaya for baht at the rate of 1 dollar = 33.07 baht. Let's say you bought 1,000 dollars (58,000 rubles) and exchanged them in Pattaya for baht. As a result, we received 33,070 baht.

If you immediately exchange the same 58,000 rubles for baht (without buying dollars), then you will receive 32,248 baht in your hands (at the rate of 0.556). So it’s definitely more profitable to travel to Thailand with dollars.

How much money should I take?

To calculate how much money you need to go to Thailand for 10 days, two weeks or any other period, you just need to navigate the prices and have some idea of what you plan to do here. We will help you with current prices for 2017-2018, otherwise everything is in your hands.

Prices in Pattaya:

Bike rental: for a day 150 baht, for 3 days 450 baht, for a week 750 baht;
Car rental: for a day 650 baht, for three days 2500 baht, for a month - 12,000 baht.
Food in street cafes: 40-60 baht per dish, in tourist places: 80-120 baht per dish, at food courts in shopping centers: 40-80 baht;
Coconut - 20 baht;
Fruit cocktail - 25 baht;
Ferry to Koh Larn: 30 baht;
Travel by tuk-tuk: 10 baht;
Massage: 150-200 baht for 1 hour;
Minimum prices for excursions;

On average, to have a good holiday in Pattaya, for 10 days you will need $300-500 per person. This includes visiting excursions, including quite expensive ones. If you don’t go too fancy, then $500 is enough for two. It all depends on your preferences. If you have breakfast at the hotel and hang out with the bass all day, then you practically don’t need money at all.

In this article we will talk about these frequently asked questions: “What should I take with me to Thailand, dollars or rubles?” And “Is it better to go to Thailand with cash or a card?”

So, let's start with the first question: dollars or rubles? I’ll say right away that in Thailand you can easily exchange both dollars and rubles for the local currency, which is called baht. However, with what currency, with what currency, will it be more profitable to do this, let’s figure it out. Of course, in Thailand, as in most other countries in the world, the dollar stands apart (it is still an international currency), and change dollars accordingly ( especially in denominations of 50 or 100 dollars) baht is more profitable than rubles. But is it worth it to first change rubles into dollars, and then dollars into baht, or is it better and more convenient to directly change rubles into baht? Let’s look at an example and see:

Let's say we have 30,000 rubles that we want to take with us on a trip. Converting this money into dollars at the current rate (rate as of 07/22/2016 dollar - ruble: 1 - 64), we get approximately 466 dollars, and converting this money into baht (rate as of 07/22/2016 dollar - baht: 1 - 35), we get approximately 16000 Thai baht. And if we directly convert rubles into baht (rate as of 07/22/2016 ruble - baht: 1 - 0.55), we will also get approximately 16000 Thai baht.

Of course, these calculations are approximate, since each bank changes the currency according to its own conditions, but still, if there is a difference, we think it is not so significant. As we have seen, it is not at all necessary to run, panic, look for which bank to change rubles for dollars, but you can just take your rubles and go to Thailand!

Now let's look at the second question: “Is it better to go to Thailand with cash or a card?” In Thailand, as elsewhere, ATMs charge a certain percentage for withdrawals, and it varies depending on the ATM and bank. So, those who don’t particularly need to use a card, and who are going for a short vacation, then take cash and relax in peace, without bothering yourself with searching for ATMs. But if you are going to Thailand for a long time or traveling in general, like us, or using a card is necessary for you, then you need to seriously consider choosing cards that would meet all your conditions.

Now we will tell you what cards we introduced and why.

Asking the question “what cards should I get?”, we identified for ourselves the main functions of the cards that we will need on our trip:

Free withdrawals from any ATM in the world;
Free card replenishment;
More interest on the balance;
Convenient mobile application and web banking with 24/7 support.

After long-term monitoring and analysis, our choice fell on two banks (respectively, two cards): Tinkoff Bank and Rocket Bank. Now let's talk about each card.

Tinkoff Bank:

Here our choice fell on the map "Tinkoff Black PLATINUM world", here is information on it:

Use this link to order a card Tinkoff Black PLATINUM world and receive many bonuses as a gift from us.

Rocket Bank:

Here our choice fell on the card with the tariff "Cozy space", a little about the tariff:

So, in fact, we discussed these questions with you. I hope that everyone who read this article emphasized something useful for themselves. In conclusion, I would like to say that we are always happy to answer and advise you on all your questions. To do this, write comments, add yourself to our social networks, we will be glad to see everyone! Oh yes, we almost forgot! We are giving you a link from Rocket Bank, by clicking on it, you can order a card (the same as ours), and at the same time immediately receive 500 rubles into your account, a trifle, but nice)

Before traveling to the Land of Smiles, tourists are interested in the question of whether it can function Sberbank card in Thailand, is there an opportunity to take advantage of it? This issue should no longer be a cause for concern - even though Sberbank in Thailand no, their cards Visa Classic And Master Card They work great, so withdrawing cash or paying with it will not be difficult for you. Concerning, Visa Electron And Maestro- they are unlikely to work.

By the way, a huge advantage is that going to Thailand with a Sberbank card possible without performing additional procedures - it does not need to be changed or updated, you do not need to create a separate card, but you can use a standard ruble card Visa Classic or Master Card. Currency conversion is carried out at the ATM itself, without any human intervention, so the tourist receives Thai baht, translated according to the current one.

How not to lose your money

To be safe, it is better to take a couple more cards with you on your trip, belonging to other banks. This is due to the fact that during operations accepted by technology as "suspicious", card or "swallowed" equipment, or is blocked by the bank itself. Similar "illegal" Even a double withdrawal of money in two countries on the same calendar date can be considered an operation. The system assumes that a person cannot be in different countries almost simultaneously and blocks the card to prevent money from being withdrawn from a duplicate, which is what scammers did.

That is why it is worth warning your bank before traveling and asking its employees not to block the card within the specified time frame. By the way, speaking about fraud, it is worth saying that it is better to use those ATMs that are located inside banks or any large stores, and not street equipment. This is all due to the same fraud that is often found on the streets of Thailand ().

Cash withdrawal fee

When using a Sberbank card in any city in Thailand, money will be withdrawn from your account for any transaction performed. This amount includes 150 baht, a certain bank rate and even a commission for automatic currency conversion from rubles to local baht. Therefore, it is better to use those ATMs that do not have a commission for withdrawing money. For example, AEON ATMs. In the same one, beloved by tourists, they are located in popular stores called « Carrefour" And "2 Home work Pattaya", as well as in Thai large stores "Tesco-Lotus".

The card also allows you to make cashless payments in any markets, boutiques and shops "Duty free", making it an excellent travel companion.

Instructions

First, you should decide how it is more convenient for you to import currency into Thailand. This can be done in two ways: cash or plastic cards. There is also a third way - traveler's checks, but it is not very popular in Asian countries; it is not recommended to bring such checks to Thailand, since exchanging them for money can be very difficult.

Rubles. Oddly enough, in Thailand it is quite possible to make purchases using Russian rubles. But this will not be possible to do everywhere. Rubles are accepted in some places in Pattaya and Bangkok. They can be exchanged for baht at the country's main airport - Suvarbanahumi in Bangkok. However, the course is extortionate, so this method can be considered extreme.

In general, if you fly to Bangkok airport, you can take with you almost any currency of a major country in the world. Right at the airport, even before passport control, you will see exchange offices, and the list of currencies in them is impressive, as are the rates, which are very far from the real exchange rate ratio. You can find exchange offices that accept a variety of currencies in all major cities in Thailand. The rate there is usually a little more favorable than at the airport, but it depends.

Thai baht. This option seems the most obvious and reasonable, but not everything is simple with it. Finding a bank in Russia that issues Thai currency is very difficult, even in Moscow. If you have little time in the capital, for example, you are making a short transfer in Moscow, then it will be unrealistic to exchange rubles for baht in advance.

Dollars or euros. If you are going to travel with cash, then this option is the most profitable. Dollars and euros are accepted at any exchange office, the rates are usually acceptable. A strange feature of Thai exchangers: the larger the dollar or euro bill, the higher the rate at which it will be exchanged for you.

If you take a plastic card, make sure that it is international. Some Russian banks issue cards that are accepted only in Russian banks. It is best to have a card of at least a standard Visa Classic or Mastercard Standard. One or more accounts can be linked to; their currency does not matter: conversion when withdrawing money through occurs automatically.

When withdrawing money from a bank card, you should keep in mind that conversion usually occurs through dollars at the bank’s internal rate. So, if your account is in rubles, then there will be two conversions, rubles-dollars, and then dollars-baht. Sometimes conversion is carried out through euros if the account is in euros. If your bank charges a fee for using someone else's ATM, they will charge it. There is also a commission from the Thai bank itself, usually it is at least 150-180 baht. It turns out that it is better to withdraw money less often, but in larger amounts.

Another way to receive money from a bank account: you need to come to any Thai bank with your card and passport. Some banks allow you to withdraw money without commission. It happens that the branch does not have a device to service the card, then they will recommend that you use an ATM.

In one of our previous articles, we already answered the question: is it worth taking a credit card with you to Turkey? Another quite popular holiday destination among Russian tourists is Thailand, so in this article we will highlight the features of using bank plastic in this kingdom.

Card or cash?

So, at almost every step in Thailand there are ATMs where you can withdraw cash. At the same time, a commission of 150 - 180 Baht is charged for cash withdrawal (this is in addition to all commissions charged by the Russian issuing bank, which we will discuss below). There is also a limit on cash withdrawals from ATMs, so you can withdraw no more than 20,000 Baht at a time. If you want to withdraw cash without an additional commission of 150-180 Baht, you can contact a branch of any local bank. They do not charge a commission, but, however, they do not always provide service. There are times when they are sent to an ATM, for example, if you decide to withdraw a small amount. That is, there will be no problems with receiving cash from a card in Thailand.

As for non-cash payments, everything is not so rosy here. The fact is that in Thailand there are quite a large number of small private cafes and restaurants, shops in which, as you yourself understand, only cash is accepted. You can use the card to pay in supermarkets, pharmacies, large shopping centers or restaurants. That is, you still can’t do without cash in Thailand.

Thus, you can transfer money on the card, and then withdraw it from an ATM or bank.

Which card should I choose for my trip?

You can choose any card of the international payment systems Visa, MasterCard or American Express of the classic category and higher. It is better not to take electronic cards such as Visa Electron or Maestro, since in Thailand due to frequent rains there are communication interruptions, and it will not always be possible to make cashless payments using such cards (electronic cards require mandatory confirmation of the transaction by the bank - mandatory authorization).

700,000 rub.
on the day of treatment
55 days
according to your passport
23.9-39.9%
18-70 years
1890 rub. / 1890 rub.
by mail/courier
390 rub.
Master Card
OneTwoTrip
2% of purchase amount
The new Tinkoff credit card - OneTwoTrip allows you to receive bonus points for non-cash transactions and spend them on the travel portal OneTwoTrip.com to pay for air tickets and book hotels. read review

300,000 rub.
on the day of treatment
50 days
according to 2 documents
22,9-32,9%
22-60 years
1450 rub.
by mail/courier
4.9%, min 490 rub.
Master Card
Yes
Yes
1.5 select for 30 rubles
Bonus points for Selecta purchases can be exchanged with partners for miles, discounts or cash back. In addition to 1.5-2 selects per dollar spent, you receive welcome and annual bonuses. You can arrange an "installment plan" at a rate of 13.9-29.9%. read review

350,000 rub.
3-7 days
50 days
according to 2 documents
29,9-36,9%
21-70 years
990 rub.
5.9%, min 290 rub.
1 mile for 30 rubles.
My bonus
Production discontinued
When you sign up for a card, you will be credited with 2,000 welcome miles; when you use the card, for every 30 rubles spent you will be credited with 1 S7 (OneWorld Alliance) mile. Discounts and bonuses of the S7 Privilege program. There is a similar card in the Gold category - it earns 1.25 miles and also gives 4,000 welcome miles. Gold card service - 2990 rubles. As part of the “My Bonus” program, purchases in bonus categories are awarded up to 3% of the amount spent on classic cards or up to 5% on gold cards. read review

You can also use any card currency; in any case, you will have to pay approximately the same for the conversion. We wrote in detail about how the currency conversion procedure works in the article. In a nutshell, the chain of operations will look like this: the currency of your account is dollars and baht. That is, 2 conversions for which you will pay a commission. We recommend that you still opt for cards in rubles, which you can later use in Russia.

Taking into account the fact that in Thailand you will mainly use the card only to withdraw cash, it is better to opt for a debit card, since the commission in this case will be lower than when withdrawing from a credit card.

Commission for card transactions in Thailand

In addition to currency conversion fees (given that there will be two conversion transactions, you will pay approximately 3-4% of the amount), some banks charge additional fees, for example, a cross-border transaction fee (if you make transactions in foreign currency , different from the account currency). The amount of this commission is set by the issuing bank, so in Sberbank it is 1.5%, in Alfa Bank - 1.7%, in VTB24 card commission is 2% for Visa cards (for payments in a currency other than the dollar) and 0 % on MasterCard cards. Also zero commission on MasterCard cards at Tinkoff Bank and Renaissance Credit.

Well, and, of course, we must not forget about the commission for cash withdrawal - 150-180 baht + commission of the issuing bank.

You can find out about the size and availability of all the above commissions from your bank or from the tariffs on the bank’s official website.

Fraud

Thailand ranks first in the world for card fraud. Therefore, when traveling to Thailand, you need to be extremely careful.

First, notify the bank that you are leaving for Thailand, otherwise, at the very first transaction, I will block your card on suspicion of fraudulent activities.
Secondly, connect remote services, such as Internet banking and SMS banking, in order to always be aware of your balance.
Thirdly, do not forget to follow basic security rules when using your card. Read more about the most popular methods of fraud.