Travel tips from my trip to Sydney, Australia

It was my second time to Australia in two years but i have forgotten most of the tips i gotten the last time during which i visited Perth. I'm glad though i have blogged about some of my experience back then from my week-long trip.

So I have listed down all the travel tips I have acquired during this short trip to Sydney. I stayed at Travelodge Sydney along Woolsworth Ave.

Gifts and souvenirs 

• Tim tam,  macadamia nuts are my top recommendations to buy back from australia.

Taxi

• Use Uber. A ride to the city from the airport is about AUD 35-60
• Go to the "express pick up" area near p9 car park, there will be signs guiding you there.

Accommodation

• Hotel may not offer drinking water bottles
• Buy your stuff from supermarket, it will be much cheaper. Still, expect to pay about AUD2 for a 500ml bottle of water
• Convenience stores are expensive (3 bottles of water and 3 bottles of coke costed my AUD24.60... GAHHHH) 

Traffic

• Traffic is generally smooth even during peak hours. (Probably very smooth compared to the likes of Indonesia and Philippines)
• There was a prolonged rain during the afternoon on our way to the airport, but we managed to get there in under an hour.

Currency

• Smallest note is $5. Comes in 5,10,20,50,100
• The $2 coins are gold coloured and are the smallest of the coins. A 20cent is so much bigger.
• Refer to my previous post on changing SGD to AUD... It matters where you change!

Immigration

• Singaporeans will need an ETA to visit Australia, even for a short travel. 
• The process is fairly simple and can be done at the singapore airlines customer service area on the spot for $50. (Will verify if you need to be flying SQ to be able to apply through them) 
• And yes, we can use the smart electronic immigration gate.

Learn tips, share tips

EUFASS

Which number to see when changing money?

A beginner's guide to we buy we sell in currency exchange

Confused when comparing currency rates? 

Not sure how to interpret the two column of numbers : we buy , we sell?

I have not travelled for a while and found myself asking this question when changing to Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) in my recent trip to Jakarta. I thought it will be useful to share this information since I believe this question will be encountered quite frequently by people like me who does not do currency exchange often.

Click here for the best place to change currency in Singapore

Here are the 2 tips to remember when you are exchanging currency.

• Always look under "we sell"

>We sell is the amount that the money changer will charge you for 1 unit (or could be 100/1000 units) of the foreign currency.

• Then find the lowest number among the shops you are comparing

>Think as it from this perspective

: you are looking at the currency selling price and the smaller, the better.

Now, an example

I wanted to change SGD to IDR (Singapore dollars to Indonesia Rupiah) , there were 2 banks at the airport (Why change at the airport? Reason here )

So i looked under the "we sell" column

1st bank offered 0.109 the other offered 0.112. Which one should i go for?

I should choose the one offering 0.109, which means I will receive 1000 IDR for $0.109 SGD

To exchange for 1,000,000 IDR, I will hence need $109. (It will cost $112 if I went for the other bank)

So remember

look under we sell, and 

the smaller the figure, 

The better rate you'll get

Hope this was useful for you

EUFASS

Changing large amount of SGD to JPY in Singapore

So far, especially taking into consideration my numerous trips to Japan, my conclusion is transferring at a local money exchanger hotspot into cash is still the best choice.

My best friend is going back to Japan and is closing his SG account. Now there are 2 ways to transfer his money back to japan.

1. Directly through interbank transfer

2. Transfer to cash and bring it back

Telegraphic transfer

We went to UOB to enquire about telegraphic transfer.

I must give some kudos to UOB service, great service and we did not had to wait long despite having 20 people in front of us.

The charges were as such:

############ 

The indicative rate is 1.245 (which means 100 yen/ for SG$1.245)

Cable fee: $20

Commission: 0.125% (min $10 charge)

############

Assume for every SG$10000, he would get 800600 yen.

The Cash Way

Now to transfer the cash, you can change at the bank / airport, or change at the money changer.

Having previously written about where best to change SGD to foreign currency, I brought him to the arcade where I am familiar enough to help him get the best rate.

We got a better rate of 0.1230 after negotiating with the owner. 

At this rate, assume for every SG$10000, he would get 813000 yen

It was a savings of 12400 yen, which translate to about 1.5% savings for an amount of 10k.

Other Tips:

• Check your local limit of cash that you can bring through customs.
• Give your cash a good count before leaving the money exchanger
• Go for convenience if it’s a small amount

In our case, I guess the time spent justifies the savings we’ve achieved from this trip to the money exchanger!

Learn tips, Share tips

EUFASS

SGD to AUD: It matters where you change

My recent trip to Perth, Western Australia was fruitful and an eye-opener. In fact, given its relatively short travelling time of 5 hours away from Singapore, I highly recommend a trip down for a vastly different experience. You would be able to experience a different culture, decent cuisine, wonderful scenery and the best part is that you need not travel obscene hours and transit a couple of flights to experience a western environment like Europe or USA. 

Here are some tips to take note when travelling in Perth:

Skip the immigration queue

I think one of the first things to note is that YES, YOU CAN PASS THROUGH THEIR SMARTGATE with your Singaporean biometric passport (See article). I saw quite a number of Singaporeans join the long immigration queue, but there is absolutely no necessity in that.

Culture shock as shops close early!

In Perth, if you are expecting 24 hours shopping or restaurants like Singapore, I am afraid you will be disappointed. In fact, shops close as early as 5pm and most restaurants start closing at 8pm. Anything later than 8pm you will have to head to Northbridge where most of the nightlife congregates.

Best place to change SGD to AUD

My experience on comparing rates and places to change from Singapore dollars to Australian dollars:

• I changed at the ARCADE which offered me SGD1.074 for AUD$1
• My neighborhood currency exchange was offering in a region of SGD1.2 for One Australian dollar 
• The currency exchange in Perth had very unattractive rates as well
• My spending on the credit card (OCBC) offered a rate of SGD1.103

If I had paid my accommodation of AUD2000 in cash instead of through my credit card, I would have saved $58!

Do make sure you change enough AUD at the good places in Singapore(My recommendation is at the Arcade in Raffles Place) as this is one currency you can see the savings if you make the effort.

Hope this was useful for you
EUFASS

SGD to JPY: Credit or Cash and tips on how much to change for 1 week in Japan

Ramen, generous beef serving, onsen egg, tasty seaweed for 800 yen

In my most recent solo trip to Japan last month, a few things have changed with regards to currency exchange.

1) Singapore dollar to Yen is now at a bargain compared to 2 years ago.

2 years ago, I changed at 1 to 65. Last month, I changed at 1 to 90. Now imagine the happiness of a tourist in Japan as everything is basically at 30% discount!
Why? Abenomics, they call it, which is their Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's solution to their declining economy. He has introduced a round of quantitative easing since his political victory causing Japanese currency to drop and hence increase exports.

2) More outlets are accepting credit cards

2 years ago, cash is king as many outlets do not accept cards. Now, it seems that paying by cards is increasingly common as most eateries accept cards. This will greatly impact the amount you have to change, since you need not carry huge amounts of cash anymore.

If you are planning to go to Japan and thinking on how much cash to change, here is the right place.
If you need ideas on where best to change SGD to JPY, refer to my previous recommendation here.

The two key questions are -

How much minimum cash would I need for 1 week?

Lets break down the expenses that can be paid via cash / credit
Accommodation - credit
Better Restaurants - credit
Shopping - credit
Roadside shopping - cash
Other food/convenience store - cash
Transport - top up by cash

Lets say you spend 1000 yen (~$11) on food per day, another 1000 yen on miscellaneous at the convenience store, 800 yen (2 x two-way trip from shibuya to akihabara), you will need 2800 yen a day. For 1 week, having about 21000 minimally with you would be OK. 

The rest, I will recommend to pay by credit card (Remember to activate overseas usage!). 

The next question I investigated was:

Does it make economic sense to pay by cards? How much would bringing all cash save me?

My credit expenses for this trip were as follows:
I spent, per my credit card bill, $583.19 in restaurants and shopping.
If I had paid by cash, with the currency exchange rate I got at Singapore, I would be spending $578.86. Which means that for $583 of spending,  I paid about $4 for the convenience of not holding large amounts of cash.

Pretty worth it (<1% of spending), I would say. So bringing all cash might not save you alot after all!

In conclusion, Japan's ease of credit card use has improved these 2 years. If you are going to Japan,
1) have minimally about 3000 yen per day, carry more cash if you want to
2) pay everything in credit and enjoy the convenience of not holding cash at a small price


Hope this was useful for you
EUFASS

SGD to KRW (Korean Won) : Best place to change from my recent experience

Went on a trip to Korea last week. In terms of payment, Korean shops are generally well equipped with credit facilities and large sums of cash is not required.

For my trip, I carried SGD$300 for 4 days and it was sufficient to cover my food and shopping. I did a comparison with my friends exchange rates who changed their Won at various locations:

Comparison of exchange rates
Me ( I changed at The Arcade at Raffles Place) : 815 -817 Won / SGD.
Chinatown : 816 Won / SGD.
Neighbourhood: 815 Won / SGD.
Airport: 737 Won / SGD. ( Not sure if my friend made a mistake, but in any case as previously mentioned from my post on currency exchange tips, try not to change at the airport!)

I also swiped my card to buy my train pass. The bank charged me at a rate of 805.3 Won / SGD.

For where is the best place to change money in Singapore, read here

Tip: The price of convenience

In other words, if you have chosen credit payment, You will take a loss of ~1% due to the bank's inferior exchange rate to the money changers. Which means if you are expecting to spend about $1000 (Korean shopping is a fantastic experience, especially the facial masks, but that's another story!), that will translate to a loss of about $10. For the convenience of not lugging too much cash in the wallet, $10 might be a reasonable price to pay.

Travelling somewhere? Remember to check out my post for travel tips for the young adult! Hope this was useful for you!

Travel Tips for the Young Adult

Those who travel frequently will definitely know of tips and tricks that a younger traveler should know which can make their trip much more enjoyable.

I am a big fan of travelling, as the experience of visiting and understanding a new country and its culture never fails to bring new inspiration and food for thought. Travel, in my opinion, has evolved from the visiting the typical touristy attractions to a wholesome experience of interacting with the country’s people, understanding their culture and uncovering the best food and places which locals frequent.

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”

― Augustine of Hippo

Yet, to accomplish everything in a short span of three days to a week is impossible. Some people may stay longer and backpack for months. For both cases, preparation is key. The most beautiful and also the most crucial part of travelling is in fact the preparation phase. It is during this phase you form expectations of the country and also determine the success of how much you are able to get out from your short stint.

Putting my visits to several countries together, I have provided some tips for the young, adventure-seeking traveler in mind.

Tips for Booking the plane ticket

This is the first major step that you have to take to crystallize your trip. Booking the cheapest plane ticket is an art, and I have provided three tips previously. 

• Subscribe to mailers of budget carriers (eg. Scoot, Jetstar have weekly sale fares)
• If you are really hard up on cash, you can probably save tens of dollars by making use of price guarantees policies some carriers offer. Eg. Jetstar

Things to consider when booking the hotel

• Location, location, location
  (Things to look out for include convenience stores, nightlife establishments in the area, safety concerns)
• Always read reviews from tripadvisor, booking.com, etc
  (Customer service can make or break your day. You can still get really good customer service for cheap)
• Airbnb can give you cheaper rooms and a taste of the local neighborhood lifestyle.
• Hotel booking aggregators might not include promotional prices. Always check the hotel website.

Exchanging Currency

• Make sure to have some currency of the country you are going to for safety purposes. Do not assume that the airport will have stock.
• For best place to change foreign currency in Singapore, click here.
• Ask for smaller notes if available

Tips on packing

• You’ll be surprised by the amount of space you can save by using Ziploc bags to pack things air-tight.
• Plan properly your itinerary such that you do not need to bring more spare clothes than you should. Laundry can be done easily at the hotel.

At the destination country’s airport

• Get your phone up (look out for a service provider to get data connection)
• Always be sure of how to get to your hotel from the airport. The rest can wait till you are checked in.

General tips when travelling

• Your phone will be your best friend. Invest in a good one and it can act as your camera, map, information storage, etc. Make sure it always have battery.
• Admin: store pdf copies of your passport, flight itinerary, hotel bookings so that you can pull it out on your phone anytime
• Forgot your charger? Not to worry, you can almost surely get one from the hotel desk.
• With the google maps app, you can save your maps and refer offline by typing “ok maps” into the search bar. Do note that you cannot route places when offline though.
• When going through security, put your things in your pocket (wallet, coins, keys, phone) into your bag before placing it on the conveyor belt. Saves you the trouble of emptying your pockets and reclaiming your items.
• When you reach the airport, always check in first. 
• Know the price when taking the taxi.. be ready to haggle
• Learn the survival phrases of the local language. It is also more fun to interact with the locals.

Hope this was useful for you! Feel free to comment and add to my list!

Eufass

SGD to MYR - where to change

Further to my post on the best place to exchange currency, I decided to put my recommendation to test for my trip to Penang, as I need to change my Singapore dollar to Malaysian Ringgit. The penang laksa still lingers in my mind, but thats another story.

Essentially, there are 4 places to change your SGD to MYR

1. Money changers in town/neighbourhood.
2. At the airport 
3. At the destination airport 
4. Credit Card rate

My recommendation

My take is still as previously mentioned, 

If you have a substantial amount: 

Know your target rate and go to your preferred local currency exchange stall.

If you just need a small amount (eg. less than $500): 

Change at the airport. Why? The time you spend making a trip to and finding the best rate at your local currency exchange hotspot will not really justify your savings.

In fact, my experience this time further reinforced my recommendation.

• I went to Mustafa and got a rate of 2.45 MYR to 1 SGD.
• I could get 2.45 MYR from one of the currency exchange shop in my neighbourhood. (Mustafa might not be the best place for MYR it seems...)
• Airport rate was 2.41
• Destination airport rate was 2.40 (worst)
• Yet to receive my credit card bill

I had only $500 to change and I changed at the airport this time. My loss was a total of 0.04 * 500 = 20MYR , in which converted back to SGD, its around S$8, or 1.6% loss.

Personally, the time and convenience i could save with the $8 loss is something i consider not such a bad deal. I would not need to make a trip down to town, save the hassle of running around shops to compare rate and the elk. What about you?

Hope this was useful to you!

EUFASS

Best place to change foreign currency in Singapore:

UPDATE 20 Apr 2016: Changing Large Amount of SGD to JPY? View my experience here
UPDATE 23 Dec 2014: Cash or Credit in Japan? view my recommendation here
UPDATE 12 Nov 2014: SGD to KRW comparison of exchange rate here
UPDATE: view my currency exchange experience on my recent trip to Malaysia here

When travelling to Japan, one of my first questions was - Where is the best place to change Sing dollar to Japanese yen? From SGD to no matter which currency, be it taiwanese dollar, norwegian kroner or the US dollar, that is always the big question in a savvy's traveller mind.

I recently went on a trip to Norway and did a survey of 4 main sources of currency exchange - lucky plaza, at the airport and at the destination airport, just using my credit card.( Note: for my foreign readers, lucky plaza is one of the popular currency exchange hotspot in Singapore. ) I need to change SGD to Norwegian Kroner, and here are my experiences:

The rate from google was 4.65 kroner to 1SGD.

1. Money changers at lucky plaza : some carry the elusive kroner and some don't. For those which did, their range quote span as low as 4 to as high as 4.58.
2. At the airport : Only selected kiosks carry the kroner. Of the one I found which did, it offered a rate of 4.5.
3. At the destination airport (Oslo Gardenmoen) : The good news is all money exchange kiosks carry kroner this time (duh). The bad news is, the demand, or just the rate, for Singapore dollars is quite bad.
4. The rate at which the bank charges on my credit card was slightly better, at 4.52. 

My recommendation

If you have a substantial amount: 

Know your target rate, go to your preferred local currency exchange hotspot, I.e the Arcade, Mustafa, Chinatown, Suntec, Lucky Plaza, etc

If you just need a small amount (eg. less than $500): 

Change at the airport. Why? The time you spend making a trip to and finding the best rate at your local currency exchange hotspot will not really justify your savings.
(Advice from another reader on 27 April 2014: Some currencies like the saudi riyal(SAR) have limited quantities, so it is no guarantee that you can get your currency at the airport) 

For this trip, I only need to change SGD 500, thus it was an interesting experiment for me. Even though I was able to, and really tempted to lock in the 4.58 rate at the money changer, my greed got the better of me thinking I could get a better rate at the airport kiosks.

That said, my loss was a mere 0.07 x 500 = 35 kroner in other words close to S$8 (ok, not that mere after all, but still I spent 2 hours traveling and transport took $4). It is always a good idea to have some destination currency with you, even if you have your credit card.

The loss was minimal this time but I gained good experience on changing currency rates next time! Hope this was useful for you.

EUFASS