Thorn Tree travel forum

1

I would take travellers checks only as a secondary backup measure. As you noted there are ATMs all over Thailand (thousands of 'em). Laos is the trickiest of the other countries, as ATMs are very limited - a handful in Vientiane and 1 or 2 in Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng which may or may not accept your card (or even be working). Assuming you're entering Laos from Thailand, just grab about 10K baht and that will do you for a while and then get more in Vientiane (where ATMs dispense Laos "Kip" at 1 million Kip/transaction). Your main alternative in Laos should be a Visa or Mastercard which allows you to get cash advances in many towns. In Cambodia there are reliable ATMs in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Poipet, Battambang, and Sihanoukville so you should be OK there and if not do a cash advance. Vietnam has quite a few more ATMs than Cambodia but again use a credit card at a bank or exchange window to get cash otherwise. Having TC's is a good emergency option if your ATM and/or credit cards disappear or malfunction. Having $100-200 in checks might save your trip in a worst case scenario - up to you how concerned you want to be.

2

Regarding Laos, I always enter with about 20K worth of Baht, since I usually stay for about 3 or 4 days, this is more then enough to cover the whole trip. 1000 baht is more or less 270.000 kip just to paint the picture. In Vientiane baht is readily accepted, change is usually given in KIP. Indeed there are just a few ATM's that would accept credit card/debit card for money withdrawal, you might find them along Lane Xang.

3

Just to add my "good ol' days" anecdote, in '97 I travelled in Laos for a whole month on 10K baht ;-)

4

I generally think it's a good idea to keep a back up of travellers cheques to whatever country you go to.

A mix of ATM cash card, debit card and travellers cheques is probably the most sensible approach. You lose any one of them, you always have the other two as back up. Also a couple of hundred US dollars maybe as emergency.

5

I used to use TC's but seldom use them these days. On my last 4 or 5 adventures (usually about 6 weeks each), I carry mostly U.S. currency. It's very negotiable and incredibly easy to hide. New, large denomination bills are the best and often fetch the best exchange rates. With some careful thought, you can sew some really clever hiding spots into your clothes. I always have a credit card and bank card, as well, but I hide them, too.

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