In Hanoi as well as elsewhere in Vietnam, using US Dollars for payments is widely acceptable. However, prices are converted from Vietnamese Dong to USD at less favorable rates so exchanging your foreign currency is recommended. Looking for the best money changer in Hanoi? Our experience of finding the best currency exchange rate in Hanoi might be helpful.
Exchange Rates at Hanoi Airport
Noi Bai International Airport (HAN) is the second busiest airport in Vietnam after Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. A significant part of Vietnam’s international flights land at Hanoi Airport so there’s a big chance that you will start your Vietnamese adventure there. As Noi Bai Airport is located about 35 km northeast of downtown Hanoi, you might need some local money right at the airport for getting into the city or buying local SIM card.
Currency exchange rates at Noi Bai Airport are not the best you can get in Hanoi. You can get better exchange rate in the center of Hanoi so exchanging just small part of your money at Noi Bai Airport and leaving the rest to exchange in the city might be the best option.
Hanoi Money Changers
Finding a place to exchange foreign currency in Hanoi is not difficult as most of hotels and travel agencies offer the service. You will find money exchange being offered together with various tours, transport tickets and SIM cards. Take a closer look at signboards you will be passing by and you will find “money exchange” literally on every corner of Hanoi Old Quarter.
As a rule, there won’t be exchange rates displayed and you will need to ask about them at the tour agency. However, don’t expect to get a really good exchange rate there. We would recommend skipping all these places unless you need Vietnamese Dong right there.
Hotels in Hanoi are also offering money exchange services but currency exchange rates there are also far from good. For example, our hotel in Hanoi was offering 25,200 VND for 1 Euro. As the market rate at that moment was 25,790 VND for 1 Euro, the exchange rate was about 2.3% lower than that. Not the exchange rate you would be expecting to get in Vietnam as the country is known for having money changers operating with some of the lowest exchange margins.
Best Exchange Rates in Hanoi
Where can you find a really good exchange rate in Hanoi center?
If you are planning to exchange US Dollars, you can try to go to one of the banks found in the city. Exchange margins of US Dollars are really low at all banks when exchanging 50 USD and 100 USD bills so the difference between exchange rates of different banks will hardly be noticeable.
For getting the best exchange rate for other currencies or exchanging money after bank opening hours, your best bet is finding one of Hanoi jewelry shops / gold shops, as they are known to be offering the best exchange rate in most cases. Unsurprisingly, we’ve got the best exchange rate in one of places like this.
Best Money Changer in Hanoi
After checking several money changers around Hanoi, we’ve found a place that was offering really good exchange rate that was significantly higher than the exchange rate at Hanoi Airport, tourist agencies or our hotel.
The best exchange rate in Hanoi was offered by the money changer called Giang Son Jewelry Shop, which is located close to the famous Bia Junction in Hanoi Old Quarter at the address: 130 Hang Bac, Hang Buom, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi. This gold shop can be contacted by the phone number +84 24 3826 7333 as well.
The best money changer in Hanoi offered us 25,600 VND for 1 Euro when the mid-market exchange rate was 25,790 VND for 1 Euro. As the exchange rate offered by Giang Son Jewelry Shop was by just 190 VND or by about 0.7% lower than the mid-market rate.
If you will be looking for the best place to exchange money in Hanoi Old Quarter, we would recommend checking Giang Son Jewelry Shop as during our trip around Vietnam we haven’t found many places offering better exchange rate for Euro than there.