Before friday, I need to get some usd and laotian Kip. Have any you want to get rid of? I'll buy it off you for hard rmb at the current exchange rate according to Google.

Alternatively, where do I change some? I heard banks don't trade rmb for usd for foreigners?

S

You can buy USD with RMB at the Bank of China on Dong Feng Xi Lu just west of Nan Ping Jie. You can buy $500 with your passport.

If you have ATM receipts you can get more. I have bought $2,700 USD with my ATM receipts.

No questions, no hassle, just the normal form to fill out. Bring your passport.

went to Laos in Nov. I bought usd with rmb at the Bank of China on Dong Feng Xi Lu before going. bought kip when arriving in Vientiane with rmb. I think it's cool if you only have rmb at hand cuz you can buy kip with it when you're in Laos. the exchange rate as I had in Laos were: Vientiane 1rmb=1230kip Luang Prabang: 1rmb=1150kip

Certainly in northern Laos, RMB can be changed directly for kip and at Boten the Visa on Arrival can be paid for in RMB.

You will inevitably find black-market money changers on the Chinese side of the border, but with unfavourable exchange rates made worse by little tricks like folded-over kip in the large stacks of notes you get when even just changing 100RMB.

Better avoid them and wait until Luang Namtha (you can pay the transport from the border in RMB) where there are several banks and ATMs. The ATM I tried even took my Bank of China card and returned kip.

Returning overland, make sure you get rid of your kip before the border as the official bank shack on the Lao side of the border is often closed or has no interest in giving you any hard currency. The money changers know that once across the border kip are worthless and will once again take advantage of you. However, the banks in Luang Namtha change kip back to RMB with surprisingly little loss.