daniel flores
Travelled to 14 countries / regions
Written 10 briefs
Lived in Hong Kong on work secondment in 2018-2019
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Useful Info
Updated on Jan 19, 2020
Useful Info
Best place to exchange money in Hong Kong
- In general, the best way to get cash in Hong Kong is to use the ATMs because ATMs in Hong Kong do not charge fees for using foreign bank cards (however, your bank back home may still charge you a service fee)
- But if you still prefer to bring foreign currency with you to exchange, the best place to exchange cash in Hong Kong are at one of the many mom-and-pop exchange shops located all over the city
- If you go to the main streets of any major commercial areas in Hong Kong (like Tsim Sha Tsui, Mong Kok, Sheung Wan, Central, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay), you will see lots of small corner stores with the word "Exchange" prominently displayed in their signs, like this:
- These shops are usually located in clusters. For example at the Wan Chai MTR Station exit, there are probably 10 of these stores within two blocks. The rates are usually identical among them for major currencies like USD, EUR, and CNY, but if you're exchange smaller currencies you may want to shop around a little
- It's pretty common knowledge that the mom-and-pop exchange shops inside Chungking Mansion (located here, in Tsim Sha Tsui area) have the best exchange rates anywhere in Hong Kong. That being said, the rates between the shops in Chungking Mansion and other commercial centers in HK aren't THAT significant (maybe by around 0.5%-1%), so unless you're exchanging more than USD$5000 worth of money don't make a dedicated trip to Chungking Mansion just to convert money. For a specific shop in Chungking Mansion, Kin Shing Money Exchange (https://www.ksme.hk), located on the ground floor with a huge green sign, has been around for decades and consistently provides some of the best rates in the city with good service
- Outside of Chungking Mansion, here are some specific shops elsewhere in the city that have good rates:
- Berlin Company Exchange: located here in Central, on the 17th floor of Hong Kong Chinese Bank Building. They're open Monday to Friday between 9:30am and 6pm, and Saturday between 9:30am and 2pm. Their website is: http://bcel1985.blogspot.com where they publish their rates everyday. The site is in Chinese but so use Google translate
- Ngau Kee Money Exchange: located here in Sheung Wan on the ground floor of Champion Building. They're open from Monday-Saturday between 9:30am and 5:30pm (5pm on Saturdays). They've apparently been around for 80 years. You can check their website at http://www.nkcl.com.hk for the current rates
- Expro Limited: located here in Sheung Wan, on the 6th floor of Tung Ning Building in unit 605B. They're open Monday-Saturday between 9:30am and 6:30pm. Website is https://exproltd.com.hk where they update the rates everyday
- Loyal Company Money Changer: located here in Tsim Sha Tsui on the 5th floor of Sands building in unit 508. They're open Monday-Friday from 9am to 6:30pm, and Saturday from 10am to 2pm. Their website is http://www.loyal-company.com where you can check the current rates. The site is in Chinese so use Google translate
- If you're in a crunch and can't find any mom-and-pops, banks usually offer fantastic rates too, frequently even better that mom-and-pops. But banks typically charge service fee of HKD$50-$100 per transaction, which can make them uncompetitive for smaller amounts. So unless you're in a rush, only use banks if you're exchanging more than HKD$5000-$10,000 (USD$645-$1290)
- Where to avoid: the worst rates are the ones at the airport. Definitely avoid Travelex as they charge a very hefty service fee. The banks at the airport are ok but still not as good as the ones in the city. And compared to the mom-and-pops, the rates are really bad. Also don't exchange money at your hotel, they give highly terrible rates
- What to bring with you: ID is only required if you're exchanging more than HKD$80,000 (about USD$10,000). So you don't to bring anything with you aside from your cash if you're exchanging less than this amount