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sksahni87
Joined: 06 Sep 2010
Location: Sangaal-dong,Yongin-si, South Korea
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 Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 12:58 am Post subject: Suggestions on the best way to bring money? |
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I am going to be leaving for Korea on September 20th and I am a little confused about the best way to bring money.
- Should I convert dollars to wons, here in the US?
- Should I take mainly traveler's checks?
- Should I do a mixture of both? If yes, how many dollars should I convert into wons to last me about a month?
This is all very new to me and I want to make sure I am not losing money when converting money, so if anyone has any suggestions and experiences, they would be much appreciated! |
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furtakk
Joined: 02 Jun 2009
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:22 am Post subject: |
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I just used my debit card at international ATMs when I needed cash, but my bank only had a service charge of like $3 per exchange.
If you don't want to do that, it would be best to exchange when you land at Incheon. |
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sallymonster
Joined: 06 Feb 2010
Location: Seattle area
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:27 am Post subject: |
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DO NOT BRING TRAVELER'S CHEQUES. It will be difficult and time-consuming to exchange them, and it will be impossible to exchange them when immigration holds your passport while processing your ARC application.
Bring US dollars in cash and change them to won at Incheon Airport. |
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spicy
Joined: 25 Oct 2009
Location: Sinchon / Ewha / Hongdae
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:31 am Post subject: |
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i brought 2k -- 1k in cash and the other 1k in traveler's cheques. i changed the cash at the bank when i first landed, and then after a few weeks, i changed the T/Cs. i'm not positive, but i'm pretty sure i've seen T/Cs having a higher value when changed into KRW at banks. i could be wrong, though.
i did just recover almost 1k in T/C that were stolen along with some camera equipment while i was in england last month, though, so i'm definitely going to bear that in mind when i travel in the future. i didn't recover the thousand dollars in cash.  |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:32 am Post subject: Re: Suggestions on the best way to bring money? |
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| sksahni87 wrote: |
I am going to be leaving for Korea on September 20th and I am a little confused about the best way to bring money.
- Should I convert dollars to wons, here in the US?
- Should I take mainly traveler's checks?
- Should I do a mixture of both? If yes, how many dollars should I convert into wons to last me about a month?
This is all very new to me and I want to make sure I am not losing money when converting money, so if anyone has any suggestions and experiences, they would be much appreciated! |
Unless you are bringing many 10s of thousands of dollars for a deposit on an apartment or something then you are going way overboard.
Easiest and CHEAPEST way to do it (assuming you are talking about less than $2000) is to just bring your Ben Franklins in your pocket and exchange them when you get here.
some notes:
DO NOT BUY WON FROM OUTSIDE OF KOREA- you will get killed on the exchange rate.
Exchange between $500-1000 to won at the airport in INCHEON. (the rate is comparable to the banks in the city).
This will get you through your first week or 4 (depending on your spending habits and drinking). You can exchange the rest at your convenience after you get settled into your apartment. Most banks have a foreign exchange desk and you shouldn't be too far from one unless you are headed for some remote island somewhere.
Skip the travelers checks. They are a pain to deal with.
The service charges on your US ATM cards will make their use cost prohibitive for transferring money to yourself here in Korea ($5 from your US bank and usually about $1.50 for the Korean bank PER TRANSACTION).
Use of a US credit card is hit and miss. Some places will take them (as will all major department stores) but many smaller places won't (or will charge you a premium for using it).
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sksahni87
Joined: 06 Sep 2010
Location: Sangaal-dong,Yongin-si, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:54 am Post subject: |
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So I will be bringing $1,000 and what I am getting is the best thing to do is bring it all in cash and exchange it at Incheon airport.
I also have a Citibank account and I found out that there are locations around Korea, so if I go through $1,000 before my first pay day, I can rely on the other $1,000 in Citibank.
This is the best way? |
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spicy
Joined: 25 Oct 2009
Location: Sinchon / Ewha / Hongdae
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 4:23 am Post subject: |
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my buddy came from japan expecting to use citibank, but there was some problem that prohibited him from doing it, having to do with it being a commercial bank account...
either the citibanks were commercial banks and wouldn't allow him to withdraw money from an account, or his account was a commercial account and he couldn't use it. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 5:00 am Post subject: |
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| sksahni87 wrote: |
So I will be bringing $1,000 and what I am getting is the best thing to do is bring it all in cash and exchange it at Incheon airport.
I also have a Citibank account and I found out that there are locations around Korea, so if I go through $1,000 before my first pay day, I can rely on the other $1,000 in Citibank.
This is the best way? |
Ya, for $1000 just change it all at the exchange window in the Incheon airport.
The best rates are usually at the window INSIDE the secure area (by about 0.05%)
AND you won't have the taxi touts staring over your shoulder as you exchange a million won. No sense advertising yourself as a target if you don't need to. Common sense is always good sense.
Be aware that Citibank in Korea is NOT Citibank USA. They operate independently of each other and run under different banking rules.
It is NOT the same as just popping into the Citibank in the next town for use of the ATM. The rates will still be killers but if it makes you comfortable and sleep easier, do it that way.
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sksahni87
Joined: 06 Sep 2010
Location: Sangaal-dong,Yongin-si, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:00 pm Post subject: |
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Ok thanks a lot guys. I think I will just bring $1,000 cash and convert it into wons at the airport customs area. Thanks!
Cheers,
Sumeet |
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DerJon
Joined: 30 Jan 2010
Location: Dongducheon-Si, South Korea
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| Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2010 10:55 pm Post subject: |
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Every time I travel, I call my credit union and let them know. They have been great for me in ALL 17 countries I have visited. The only fee I get hit with is the 1.5% charged by Visa, NOTHING from my credit union, and that includes everything from taking 5 Euro out of an ATM, 10000 Won at an international ATM, or 500,000 Won/ 500 Euro. NEVER ONCE did I have a problem, and it was TOTALLY cost effective! Credit Unions are the way to go. Mine is PSECU. If you went to or worked for the state or one of its public universities, you're in. Check it out.
www.psecu.com |
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sksahni87
Joined: 06 Sep 2010
Location: Sangaal-dong,Yongin-si, South Korea
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| Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Just for anyone coming to South Korea. I exchanged my money at the Hana Bank counter inside. It comes right after baggage claim and right before exiting into the airport area where non-flyers can be (by the double sliding doors). They have 2 stations by either sides of the doors. I got 1123 won per dollar and the actual wall street exchange was 1162 wons per dollar. |
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