Cheaper to Buy Rolex in Europe or Hongkong/Singapore

[H_tony11]

Hi folks

I am very much new here and this is my first post from Australia.
After sometime saving up my money, finally have enough fund to get my first Rolex.
I would love to get opinions from all the GURU here.

I have seen many post about cheaper place to buy Rolex, but most of them are from 2011 and I think the foreign exchange has change significantly.
The current exchange rate is €1 = Au$ 1.2.

I will be traveling to France, Italy, UK, Switzerland, Belgium and Netherlands and thinking to get one Submariner or GMT over there.

Where would be the best country to buy amongst all the six country(France, Italy, UK, Switzerland, Belgium and Netherlands)?
I have found the following link to Euro price list :
http://issuu.com/wristwatchfans/docs...list_june_2012

and the price is around Euro 6875, and assuming VAT is 19% and AD discount is 5%, the price would drop to €5290 = Au$ 6348

I have checked previously and the price in AD here in Sydney is around AU$9000. That is a huge different

Or should i just wait for my next trip to Hongkong (HK$62100 before discount )or Singapore (S$11000 before discount)?
Anyone can suggest please?

Thanks in advance
Tony

[Tools]

Welcome to TRF.. TRF isn't really a shopping service.

You seem to have done your own math and so I would think that you should be able to decide which approach is the best for you.. Don't forget to factor in any Duty or Customs fees you may pay when bringing the watch back home....

[J.jun]

Hi, I've the same question too!! Haha!! Personal input, there's little or no discount for sport models in Singapore as they are really popular. So that means that if ya really can find a sub or GMT (to be honest, they sell like hotcakes here!) it'll cost around S$11200 for a sub and S$10980 for GMT. The only discount ya can get is probably the 5-7% GST rebate.

[Swede00]

I bought mine brand new Deepsea from non ad in Hong Kong. Good price, compared to Sweden.

If you buy in Europe, i would not declare to customs at home. Put the box in check in luggage and wear the rolex. Has worked fine for me.

[kikker]

if you buy new then typically rolex prices are very similar wherever you buy in the world.. so the trick if you travel is to find the place where you get the highest VAT refund.. (typically the country with the highest VAT rates)

of course that benefit only applies if you "forget" to declare it when you travel back into your home country.. which is not legal.. there's some posts on the forum about a guy that got caught at customs and had to pay double or triple in fines..

people who are nervous about getting caught usually send the box, with extra links etc via mail to their own address and wear the watch when they travel so you don't have the full set when travelling in.. (I only heard this of course..)

agree with jun that there's not much discount on basic sports models.. if you go for the high end models you can get up to 20-25% off. but the basic models usually sell so easily that you'll only get 0-5% if you're lucky

paying cash might get better prices than credit card - ensure you are able to get cash out if you're travelling (ATM card day limits etc)

now re: location.. think scandinavian countries have crazy high vat and the netherlands just increased to 21%.. so those would be your first place to look.. keep in mind that some shops are connected with vat refund services which will make the process easier, but they also keep a % for their own commission, so this is something you need to check in advance..

I tried to get rates from gassan at schiphol airport before and they have poor service.. they'll give you prices, but wont reserve a watch (even if you down pay with bank transfer) I have a friend who works at a jewelry store in Germany who gets good rates and is helpfull getting the full VAT amount back, so for me that works very well when buying new..

After I bought my first Daytona new, I bought the following 2 (a sub and dssd) second hand for very good prices.. a good reference is chrono24.com.. check model and year and ensure the specs are the same.. second hand prices should range around the lowest prices you can get on chrono24.com for it to be a good deal.. when buying second hand of course there is risk.. so make sure you know what to look for.. buy from people you trust, people with good referral or buy the watch under the condition that you can get it cleaned/checked at a rsc (your expense) before committing to buying.. also ensure you get all paperwork, box and all links etc and look only for watches in mint / unworn condition)

with my sub and my dssd i couldnt tell whether it was used or new.. it looked as perfect as my new daytona..


hope that helps.. happy shopping..

[H_tony11]

Hi folks

thanks very much for the input

I am planning to buy a new one as this will be my dress watch and i intend to keep it for very long time
hopefully ill be able to get a good deal in Paris or Rome

Thanks again guys

have a great day ahead