Travelling to China, What's the best way to exchange money? (1 Viewer)

Rohanco

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So I'm planning a 3 or 4 week trip to China leaving mid January next year. I was wondering what's the best way to exchange my cash, lowest fees possible of coarse. Would it be better to exchange my money here or wait until I'm in China for that?

Thanks :)
 

SylviaB

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wait til you're in china. All official places to exchange currency have almost identical rates so there's no point shopping around.

dont exchange currency with unoffficial individuals; its illegal, you might get counterfeit notes and you might get otherwise scammed
 

Newbie

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correct. counterfeit notes are a huge problem.
i almost never use 100 dollar bills when i travel in china.
 

asadass

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go to an atm whilst you're there
 

Alexis Texas

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lots of places accept Visa and mastercard debits cards and they all work in atms over there.

i just took my visa debit and used it on 'credit' with a pin or sign or whatever. some places don't (I tried to buy bubble bath in sephora in Wuhan and they wouldn't accept my visa card so i just paid cash) but just get money out at an atm.

don't do it at the airport the exchange rate is poo poo.
 

amandada

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get a citibank plus debit card or the 28 degrees credit card

no international transaction fees, no exchange commission, no anything

both have either visa/mastercard fraud protection and you won't have to carry stacks of cash.

best way to get money overseas imo
 

wantingtoknow

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I've been taught to exchange it here and then put it into a bank account in China. I don't know if it's illegal though haha or whether you'd get the best rate from doing that
 

EpikHigh

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When I went to China for two weeks I exchanged it at the airport before my flight also I think hotels can exchange because my hotel in shanghai were exchanging currencies
 

OMGITzJustin

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Get a citibank 100% 0 fee card, transfer money into it
 

douglas65

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Hotels and banks are really good to change currency. Inside china, all bank have very good rates but it is agonizing to hang on the range. It may be a bit quicker if you don't look like a China. It is the most secure place to get cash.
 

SylviaB

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Actually the best thing to do is get a Travel Money Card. I got one from commonwealth, not sure if other banks have them, but at CBA if you're a student they're free.

You cna put as much money onto it as you want, and they load it onto your card as US dollars with a fixed exchange rate. Then you can use it in almost any atm or as a credit card in stores and it will work like having Chinese currency. Sooooo much easier than getting it exchanged every time you need some cash.
 

Drongoski

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1. changing money (cash) in Australia is ridiculously expensive - sometime the spread is as high as 15%!! (in Singapore, with its vast network of muslim Indian money changers, the spread is often less than 1%). When I was in China last year, I found even in the hotels, you get a better rates.

Whilst on the subject of visiting China - I went on one of those really ridiculously cheap tours: if you share room, travel as a pair, a 1 week Beijing tour was $99/-(< $100 for the whole 1-week tour) per person + about AUD$65 tip for the tour guide. You have to buy your own air ticket to arrive, usually, 1 day before tour begins. You'll be met at airport and, on completion of tour, sent off to the airport for your departure (unless you ae planning to stay on a few days or weeks on your own). In Beijing, the extensive subway network is really something - 2 RMB (about 35 cents Aussie)per trip - be it 1 stop or 18 stops. No timetable - because if you miss a train, the next one is maybe 5 to 10 mins later.

For the $99 - we get BLD (breakfast, lunch, dinner) We stay in arguably 5-star hotels. Where in the world do you get such a deal? You are taken to various popular sight-seeing places + you are taken shopping (but you are not forced to buy)You can book such tours (mine was NEXUS Tours) - at one of those many small Chinese Travel companies in the suburbs (e.g. Eastwood) or Chinatown. I was on another $99 trip earlier - the Jiangnan Tour (1 week visiting Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, Wuxi & back to Shanghai). You can take one tour after another to better use your one airfare & visa (about $90 single entry) I don't know for how long more such tours will remain available.
 
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On the aspect of money: it is nearly always cheaper to go on a TOUR (meals+hotel+tourguide) than to stay in one hotel for one night. So keep this in mind - tours are good and cheap!!
 

Ringor

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Best card ever hands down, have recommended it to like 10+ mates now. GE Money's 28 Degrees card, basically 0 international transaction fees and no fees either!

I sound like a salesman, lol but I'm not.

I'd also recommend just converting a few hundred bux to have on hand ready so you wont fret trying to find an ATM or find a retailer who accepts CC's
 

Rowan2020

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Best of luck especially for travelling to china and dude you must have exchange your money in to the dollar east.
 

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