Chinese Currency

We thought it would be a good idea to have some Chinese Yuan on hand when we arrived to make sure we could hit the ground running when we arrived in the Beijing. I want to pick up a street map and a Time Out Beijing magazine when we arrive in the airport. I have read in numerous travel books that Beijing is changing so rapidly that the maps can’t keep up! Time Out Beijing has proven to be a fairly resourceful site so that we can have the most up to date listing of what is going during the Olympics.

I thought it appropriate that I was doing my small part to reverse the trend of China and USA’s currencies. Then I thought, I just brought Yuan into the country only to take it back to China. I bought $102.41 worth of Yuan. This translates into roughly ¥700. The formal name for the currency is Chinese Yuan Renminbi and the informal name is Kuai like “quid” in the UK or “buck” in the US. We used the service offered by eZforex on another super recommendation from Peace Frogs Travel. It only took 3 days to get our Chinese Yuan.

While it is not exact, the rough conversion rate is to divide everything we buy in China by 7. This will give us the value in dollars. This was interesting because my 2006 Frommers Bejing guide divides everything by 8. I guess this shows the appreciation of the Yuan and in the weakening of the US dollar. Here is an example of what things cost based on the 2006 Frommers Guide:

• Taxi from the airport to the city center: ¥70 or $10
• Metro Ride: ¥ 3 or $0.43
• Bowl of Noodles: ¥ 5 or $0.71
• Regular Coffee at Starbucks: ¥12 or $1.72
• Bottle of beer at a tourist bar: ¥30 or $4.29
• Entry into the Forbidden City: ¥60 or $8.58

Now I suspect that the prices for these items will be jacked up during the Olympics, but I hope we are not gouged on things. I am also relieved we won’t be victim to much of this as we have already purchased most of the large items, like hotels, some meals, guided tours, and tickets to 4 Olympic events. We do plan to use taxis and public transport to get around.