Which currency works best for Hong Kong and Singapore?

A

Armada

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Hi Guys,

I'm heading off on holidays in early 2009. I'm visiting, Singapore, Hong Kong,Thailand and Malaysia.

Obviously I will be using cards but can anyone help me decide which currency is a good all rounder to bring as cash?

I am looking at both the US dollar and sterling - given the current exchange rate but are these acceptable in those areas or would I be better sticking to each country's own currency.

As an aside does anyone know if the Hong Kong or Singapore Dollar fluctuates much and if so are they now at a good exchange rate?

Thank you for your help.
 
You should check with your bank but in most cases the LINK or Cirrus system should allow you to withdraw money from ATM's in each country using your Irish ATM card. This can be very handy as you do not need to carry much cash, and also reduces the need to pre-order currencies in advance especially when you are unsure of how much you will need.
 
I don't think offering US dollars or UK pounds will be much use in those countries as cash. It's either local currency or cards.

No idea on the fluctuation of either currency but I'm sure google has the answer, you could hedge by buying US dollars now but who knows where that will be in a few weeks/months.
 
Armada said:
US dollar and sterling
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I think you will find that the euro is just as good, if not better than the USD (value not dropping as fast as they can be printed!) and as for STG I would not bother. The only advantage of USD is 1 doller notes are good if you want to tip! BTW Cards are all you will need, dont carry large amounts of cash.
 
Towger said:
I think you will find that the euro is just as good, if not better than the USD (value not dropping as fast as they can be printed!) and as for STG I would not bother. The only advantage of USD is 1 doller notes are good if you want to tip! BTW Cards are all you will need, dont carry large amounts of cash.
Click to expand...


Thanks for that, No we will not be carrying large amounts of cash but sometimes it is handy. I agree about the one dollar notes for tipping. Hopefully the tipping culture isn't as prevalent in The East as it is in The West!
 
Have not been to HOng kong but have been to the other 3 if you have cirrus atm card it works in nearly all banks so just take money out when there as exchanging money can be alot more costlier with regarding rates/commissions.
 
Just back from a trip to Singapore and Vietnam; I found that the best way is to withdraw Singapore Dollars from an ATM; from looking at the exchange places in hotels, side of streets etc, you were only getting at best 1.90$/€ while I was getting 2$/€ by ATM.

In Vietnam, I was amazed with the amount of people (non-Americans) who brought US$ with them as it is "easiest to use" in shops. That is nonsense, although a lot of local shops may accept US$, they will rip you off on the exchange rate; it is so easy to use the local currency, in this case the Dong which once you get your head around the exchange rate (26000Dong/€) is fine.

Six years since I was in Thailand, I brought some € traveller cheques and took ATM withdrawals as well and to be honest it was quite comparable.

Can't speak for Hong Kong or Malaysia sorry
 
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