HK Trip Tip: Money Exchange (Philippine Peso to Hong Kong Dollar)

27 Comments

Exchanging your pesos to Hong Kong dollars needs a wise decision. You can't just exchange anywhere, otherwise you may lose a big chunk of your hard-earned money from poor conversion rates. Don't worry though. I'm here to help you out. (Do finish the entire article because I saved the best for last. LOL.)

During our HK trip this June 8-11, I've decided to exchange all our pocket money here in the Philippines instead of upon arriving to HK. I already know that airport rates are bad so I didn't want to exchange our cash there. Anyway, I need HK $ upon arrival because we need to purchase Octopus cards for the bus and train rides.

So I inquired from both Czarina and Sanry's, two of the forex shops here in the PH with the most competitive rates. I ended up going to Sanry's cause they offer the best rate and it's closest to me (Trinoma). Czarina only does selling of foreign currencies at their main office in Makati.

So yes... In this case, you would want the lowest PHP to HKD conversion rate. It means that that is the amount of peso you have to surrender to get 1 Hong Kong dollar. We exchanged PHP 19,977.50 and got HKD 3,050 (6.55 peso per HK dollar).

Czarina - 6.65 PHP per 1 HKD
Sanry's - 6.55 PHP per 1 HKD  (Winner!)

I also checked the rates at NAIA Terminal 3 and yep, as expected, they really are terrible.

NAIA T3 before Immigration (Forex between aisles C and D) - 6.95 PHP per 1 HKD
NAIA T3 before Immigration (Forex between aisles D and E) - 6.75 PHP per 1 HKD
NAIA T3 after Immigration (near Bo's Coffee) - 6.95 PHP per 1 HKD




Of course, I also had to check the rates at HK airport and maaaan you'll lose a lot of money if you plan to exchange here.

HK Airport outside Arrivals - 7.26 PHP per 1 HKD (or .1377 HKD per 1 PHP)



When you've reached your hotel at either the Kowloon or the Central islands, you'll be swarmed with forex shops left and right. We stayed at Asia Travel House and the forex around Yau Ma Tei and Jordan shows 7.14 PHP per 1 HKD (or 0.14 HKD per 1 PHP).

By the way, when you've arrived in HK, you'll see that they reversed the presentation of the rates. So instead of seeing 7.14, you will see 0.14. It means you get .14 dollars per peso you give them. You always look at the lower rate on their boards.

The best and most competitive rates though are... drum roll please... AT CHUNGKING MANSIONS in Tsim Sha Tsui. I saw this info from many forums over the web but I thought it would still be better to exchange in the Philippines versus in HK. But damn, I was wrong. The 3rd forex at Chungking Mansions exchange 1 HKD for just 6.35 PHP! Imagine that. If we had exchanged our pocket money there, we would have gotten HKD 100 more! That's about 600 pesos and good for a meal for 2 already. Oh well...

Forex in Chungking Mansions, Tsim Sha Tsui - 6.35 PHP per 1 HKD (GRAND WINNER!!!)

 

So there you have it. If you're going to Hong Kong, exchange a few pesos at Sanry's before leaving, then exchange all your pocket money at Chungking Mansions when you've arrived.

You're welcome! :)





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27 comments

  1. AnonymousApril 9, 2018 at 7:44 PM

    what is the name of the forex in chunking mansion?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Zeng DariaJune 26, 2018 at 1:19 PM

      hi sorry i can't remember. but once you're there, just look for the one with the lowest exchange rate. there are many forex there.

      Delete
  2. UnknownJune 18, 2018 at 10:36 AM

    Thanks for sharing...

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownJune 24, 2018 at 11:52 AM

    did you bring pesos or USD for pocket money?

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousJune 27, 2018 at 4:44 PM

    nice, this helped a lot. we'll be flying tomorrow and good thing i read your article, ill go to chunking mansions. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousJuly 4, 2018 at 9:59 AM

    This is really helpful! Im actually staying in a guest house in mirador mansions which is right beside chungking mansions. Thanks for writing about this :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. AizaAugust 6, 2018 at 7:52 AM

    Good read. Thanks for giving me a hint :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousSeptember 5, 2018 at 1:52 PM

    hi ms. kriezel, u mean they exchange Peso to HK $ in Chungking?
    thanks..

    ReplyDelete
  8. lalyOctober 16, 2018 at 8:49 AM

    Your article is a gem. Thank you! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. GOctober 23, 2018 at 1:02 PM

    This article is a great help. Will be flying tomorrow and i'm planning to exchange my money in HKIA, good thing i was able to read this. Many thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  10. AgnesOctober 29, 2018 at 9:59 PM

    thank you so much for this info! I was about to change here, but will take your advice

    ReplyDelete
  11. UnknownNovember 2, 2018 at 8:37 PM

    Hi what if I change my money in peso to us dollar then to hkd?? Is it good way? Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  12. UnknownNovember 6, 2018 at 10:54 AM

    Wow this helps a lot! We're going there this friday.
    And I'm now currently searching now where to buy Hkd with best rate.
    Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  13. UnknownNovember 21, 2018 at 11:00 PM

    So far, chungking is where the best rates are in TST. But its more expensive than the rates in manila. BDO is selling HKD for 6.7++. Best rate in chungking is .1445, php to hkd which is around 6.9++. Unless my math is wrong:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousApril 10, 2019 at 2:54 AM

      At 0.1445 conversion it is around 6.4++ pesos.

      Delete
  14. AnonymousNovember 29, 2018 at 11:47 AM

    Thank you so much! Really helpful! Just curious if it's better to withdraw from ATMs in hong kong. I've also read it in a few blogs.

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  15. UnknownApril 8, 2019 at 9:56 AM

    Hi just like to ask if i will be going to HK i will look at the SELL column PHP TO HKD? So it means the higher the Sell rate the better? Sorry im quite confused. haha..

    ReplyDelete
  16. YuehApril 8, 2019 at 7:59 PM

    Big thanks to this since we are going there this year. This is an awesome tip from you! Thank you sooooo much!

    ReplyDelete
  17. AnonymousJune 5, 2019 at 4:23 PM

    I bought mine from Tivoli at 6.95 pesos per 1 HKD. Sanry's was selling theirs at 6.75 but they ran out of HKD. :((
    Never again will I buy foreign currencies from Tivoli.

    ReplyDelete
  18. ArabellaJune 26, 2019 at 1:59 AM

    kakatuwa 1 min lang from our hotel, will try pagdating doon

    ReplyDelete
  19. AnonymousSeptember 7, 2019 at 1:45 AM

    Does this still apply today, especially with the ongoing protests?

    ReplyDelete
  20. UnknownNovember 4, 2019 at 5:45 PM

    I badly need help guys,im from philippines and planning to have vacation in hongkong this friday,i did exchange philppine peso to hkd dollar already here bfore i leave,if ever i have extra hkd dollar where can i go to change it in a philippine peso?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agasshi18November 10, 2019 at 12:42 PM

      Where did you exchange your peso to hkd in Manila? How much is the conversion? Say 10,000php to hkd? We're going to HK tomorrow and I'm also looking for the best place to exchange php.

      Delete
  21. UnknownDecember 12, 2019 at 11:41 PM

    Do they exchange philippine peso to hkd in chungking mansions? Tnx.

    ReplyDelete

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