Withdrawing money in Vietnam or paying on card can be quite expensive and difficult if you do not know the correct way. Most of the ATMs in Vietnam limit you to just 2-3 million VND and charge a fee, making it hard to withdraw a large amount of money. While card payments usually have a 3% fee if allowed at all.
If you are renting a bike in Vietnam and need to leave a money deposit then there is a few options to get large amounts of cash without paying lots in fees.
Withdrawing Money in Vietnam
To withdraw cash when you are already in the country you can use TP Bank. TP Bank lets you take out 5 million VND at a time with no fee. You can withdraw up to 3 times a day so a total of 15 million VND. You can find TP Bank ATM’s in some big cities. The locations can be found here
Bringing Foreign Currencies
You can bring foreign currencies to Vietnam and change it here. The best currencies to bring are USD and Euro although GBP and AUD are ok as well. You can exchange in many places but the exchange rates used will change alot. Below is a list of some of the best places to change.
When you are changing USD to VND you will usally lose about 1% whilst with Euro you could lose about 2%.
The good ones to exchange at are as follow:
HCMC: Cua Hang vang Kim Mai – 84C Cong Quynh
HN: Quang Huy Gemstone & Jewellery store – 130 Hang Bac
HA: Kim Hong Phuc Gold – Hoi An market
Hue: Tiem vang bac Loc Hoa – 80 Nguyen Cong Tru
HG: Better to exchange in HN
If you rent and return from the same shop, we accept the deposit equivalence in any foreign currency. We just refund what was given in the first place. If you extend you rental or need to pay for damages in the end, you can pay in VND.
Card Payments Instead of Withdrawing Money In Vietnam
You do accept card payments, but there is a 3% card fee. We only accept Visa and Mastercard. Regardless of paymemt method, the deposit will be refunded in VND cash as it is the only currency we can guarantee that we will have. On the off chance that we have USD or Euro, you can take them. It doesn’t happen often so VND is the easiest.
Throughout Vietnam a 3% card fee is standard practice and Visa and Mastercard are usually accepted. Maestro is not and only a few ATMs will accept this. American Express is rarely accepted due to the high fees. In the countryside or at some small shops card is not accepted so you need to ensure you are carrying cash with you.
How Much Cash Should You Carry
Travelling in more rural region means a lot less traffic and a lot more scenic, however, you won’t be able to find many ATMs. The majority of business like hotels, restaurants, etc. prefer cash and some don’t even have the option to pay with card. Carrying extra cash will make your life a lot easier. Below is some details which will help you work out how much cash you might need.
All of our rentals require either a money or passport deposit. You can have a look at the bikes we offer and the deposit that follows.
On a daily avarage, per person , food could be from 150k. Fuel is 25k / litre. A litre might get you 40km so full days ride could do 150k. An mediocre guest house is 250-300k but you could spend much more depending on where you choose to stay. An additional 200k for drinks, and entrance tickets to tourist sites. You will need 800k for a normal day’s travel. It is recommended to keep some extra hundred thousand on for unexpected cost (like a flat tyre, oil change, etc.) Having a budget of 1 – 1,5million vnd a day will cover your daily expenses.