Moalboal is a small town in Cebu, Philippines. which is attracting increasing numbers of tourists. The town is mostly used as an entry point to Panagsama Beach, which is a very popular spot for divers. If you will be looking for a money changer there, you will find currency exchange options in Moalboal quite limited.
Gaisano Grand Moalboal
Gaisano Grand is a big shopping mall in Moalboal. The shopping mall is located on the main road of the town and is well known by all locals so getting there isn't difficult. When looking for currency exchange in Moalboal, in most cases you will be directed to Gaisano Grand as the only alternative to this place is pawn shops that might look not that reliable. However, pawn shops are known to be offering better exchange rates than the currency exchange booth at Gaisano Grand Moalboal.
Money Changer in Gaisano Grand Moalboal
Money changer in Gaisano Grand Moalboal is found on the first floor of the building. After entering the mall, you need to walk to the left end of the building where the green counter with a name "Currency exchange" will be easily noticed. As the note on the window says, the counter closes at 6:30 PM.
Foreign Exchange Rates in Moalboal
With an exception of big US Dollar bills, foreign exchange rates in Moalboal were really bad. You can get much better exchange rates for all currencies in Manila and even the greedy Cebu Airport money changer offers better rates for less popular currencies such as EUR, JPY, GBP, SGD (exchange rates at Cebu Airport are really bad!).
Let's check, how bad are the foreign exchange rates in Moalboal.
USD to PHP exchange rate in Moalboal
The official USD exchange rate at the time was 52.04 PHP for 1 US Dollar, so the rate offered by the money changer in Moalboal (51.61 PHP/USD for big bills) was by 0.43 PHP lower than the market rate. For every dollar exchanged here you’re losing about 0.008 USD or 0.8 USD per 100 USD. That's actually the only exchange rate that we could call fair in Moalboal. Smaller USD bills are exchanged at a significantly lower rate.
USD exchange rate here was much better than at Cebu Airport (about 49.20 PHP/USD), so if you will be flying to Cebu Airport and traveling from there to Moalboal, better exchange your US dollars in Moalboal.
EUR to PHP exchange rate in Moalboal
The official EUR exchange rate at the time was 64.42 PHP for 1 Euro, so the rate offered by the money changer in Moalboal (58.00 PHP/EUR) was by 6.42 PHP lower than the market rate. For every Euro exchanged here you’re losing about 0.1 EUR or about 10 EUR per 100 EUR.
Even when compared to the exchange rate offered at Cebu Airport (60.70 PHP/EUR), Euro exchange rate at Gaisano Grand Moalboal looks more like a robbery!
Exchange rates of other currencies in Moalboal
Don't expect much better exchange rates for other currencies.
The official GBP exchange rate at the time was 73.93 PHP for 1 Sterling Pound, so the rate offered by the money changer in Moalboal (68.00 PHP/GBP) was by 5.93 PHP or about 8.0% lower than the market rate.
The official AUD exchange rate at the time was 40.52 PHP for 1 Australian Dollar, so the rate offered by the money changer in Moalboal (37.00 PHP/AUD) was by 3.52 PHP or about 8.7% lower than the market rate.
The official SGD exchange rate at the time was 39.72 PHP for 1 Singapore Dollar, so the rate offered by the money changer in Moalboal (37.00 PHP/SGD) was by 2.72 PHP or about 6.8% lower than the market rate.
If you are traveling to Moalboal and have a plan to exchange your foreign currency at fair rate there, bring big US Dollar bills!
Tips
Foreign exchange rates in Moalboal and at Cebu Airport are significantly worse than you can get in Manila. If you will be flying to Cebu from Manila, better exchange your currency there. For more details about foreign exchange at Manila Airport check:
More tips for traveling in Philippines can be found here: Philippines Travel Tips.