Money for Iran, Pakistan
 

I am currently in Austria about to ride into Slovenia then in Southern Asia towards Australia, and need some help.

I think this subject has been covered before, but with the demise of the US Dollar, would I be better off taking Euros to change for local currency in Iran/Pakistan, or a combination of both?

I am still assuming that credit and ATM cards are of no use in Iran, or has that changed too?

Thanks in advance.

Kenny

I'd also be interested in this. Are there ATMs in Pakistan and Iran or not?
I'll be heading to Pakistan fairly soon so would be keen to find out what the deal is.

I used euros the whole way...
Still no ATM's in Iran
you need cold hard cash

money.
 

There are no facilities to use credit or debit cards or ATMs in Iran... the money you go in with is all you have, but plenty of people will change euros or dollars for you. Pakistan does have ATMs and the first one is in Quetta... which to me was a great relief as i was broke by that time! great countries, have fun.

I can confirm all of the above. However, to be on the safe side it's a good idea to have some dollars. You will need them in Laos, at the latest...

Thanks for the advice all. Now to stock up on the cash and find places to hide it......

Kenny

In Iran, we carried US dollars - I must reliterate to make sure you take enough as our friends bike broke down in Iran and the only way to get money in was by a money transfer company and it was a nightmare (think they were without cash for nearly a week)

In Pakistan there are plenty of ATM'S with the first being in Quetta as ktmwill said, but my card was only accepted by one bank (unfortunately i can't remenber the name but it was a green/blue sign if anyone can help) - all the other atms spat my card out.

"In Pakistan there are plenty of ATMs".

In the larger cities that is. Of which there are not many. Don't expect ATMs in towns. We were stuck in Larkana with a fistfull of plastic and nowhere to stick it. The nearest slot was a 300k round trip to Hyderabad. Things have changed since then perhaps, but I would never be caught like that again. Oh, lots of small bills is best unfortunately. You can often find a good exchange rate at jewelers.


Simon

I buggered about in Lahore for quite a while tonight trying various ATMs, none of which liked my cards. The only one I found that would even look at my Nationwide and RBS cards was 'City Bank'.

Hi all,

What's the situation of ATMs with debit cards in Iran Pakistan today? I am heading there in a few months and I would like to know if I can expect some ATMs in small towns.

Thanks!

Hi David

As far as Iran is concerned, there has nothing changed as of yet. It's all cash and no use for CCs for travellers, small or big town. We were there mid July to mid August.

Cheers
Thomas

Thanks! I will change enough money then. What about Pakistan? I read there are quite a lot of cash machines now, it´s more about getting money, not to pay.

Sorry David, I can't help you about Pakistan, unfortunately.

Pakistan and cash
 

David,

Just popped out of Pakistan a month go - Khunjerab, KKH, Kagan Valley, Islamabad, Lahore, Wagha - I used ATMs all the way through. Its worth having a Visa and Mastercard as some banks won't take one or the other. I used Mastercard mainly, only place I struggled to get cash was Naran in the Kagan Valley where the one ATM wouldn't accept any of my cards but I paid for the hotel in $.

Thank you, really useful!