BajaNomad - Visa or Mastercard in Baja?

Visa or Mastercard in Baja?

Fiddybear - 10-27-2007 at 08:36 PM

Which credit card is better to use in Baja, Visa or Mastercard? Has anyone had any trouble with either?

suggestion

bajaguy - 10-27-2007 at 08:37 PM

Call your card holder and tell them when and where you will be. Might save you from having your card blocked.

Gadget - 10-27-2007 at 09:12 PM

Neither,
Leave em at home, take your passport, DL and an ATM card. Put however much cash you might need into an accessed account and just take out what you need as you go. You can pull out 5,000 pesos max at a time for a $1.25 service charge. Your bank may vary on the SC. Then you have pesos to spend and don't have to deal with conversion hassles. We only take a CC with us if we are going to stay at some high dollar place and don't want to burn up our pesos. But .... many ATM cards will also work as a credit card if the cashier tells the machine that is the desired transaction, but you can't use a CC to get cash from an ATM. Be safe and stash you cash in different locations as you travel.

capt. mike - 10-28-2007 at 06:26 AM

disagree. take VISA. sure, use a debit card for cash - but if you have trouble and need to rent a car, buy a ticket etc.
only credit will save you. plus i do not like to carry a lot of cash in baja. and when i use credit i get the best exchange rates.
many do not take mastercard.

i do a lot of biz entertaining in mexico too, client junkets so i like a lot of verified receipts for my acct. :saint:

805gregg - 10-28-2007 at 08:04 AM

I got pesos at the Costco in Chula Vista, and used Visa at the larger more reputable hotels. No problems.

David K - 10-28-2007 at 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Fiddybear
Which credit card is better to use in Baja, Visa or Mastercard? Has anyone had any trouble with either?

Are you doing the (a) Cabo or Rosarito area resort thing or (b) going to the 'real' Baja to enjoy the country and its people?

If (a), then a credit card would make sense
(be sure to photro copy both sides of the card to ID and report it, in case it is lost or stolen)

If (b), bring cash... ATM machines are not in many places in the 'real' Baja! Pesos are good, naturally... but dollars are accepted gladly, everywhere! It is a way to give them a little extra tip as exchange rates are posted to favor the business slightly.

vandenberg - 10-28-2007 at 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by bajaguy
Call your card holder and tell them when and where you will be. Might save you from having your card blocked.

Very good suggestion. We had trouble several times in Constitution's Ley's with our card not accepted even with the bank notified that we live in Baja. If several charges come in they are under the impression that it is either a stolen card or there's some other reason that it's illegally used in Mexico. :no:

DonnaMare - 10-28-2007 at 12:12 PM

Quote:

Yes, it is important to remember to tell your bank (your credit card institution) that you'll be in Mexico and make sure the card is set for international withdrawals.

capt. mike - 10-28-2007 at 03:24 PM

Me thinks there are plenty of "real" peoples and "real" country around/close to/within the confines of the Cabo, san jose and Rosarita resort areas et al.

to say otherwise i think to be a bit supercillious doncha think? :rolleyes:

Why do so many think to be "real" baja it has to be off the beaten track so far? do i need to 4WD myself to some godforsaken ranchito in the middle of BF mountanous baja to find the real stuff? :lol:

David K - 10-28-2007 at 05:17 PM

YES! :lol:

(these are the same places that almost were entirely visited by pilots because they were so remote and hard to reach by land in the pre-pavement days!) There were airstrips everywhere in Baja, over 200!

capt. mike - 10-29-2007 at 06:13 AM

ha! i knew i'd get ya going on that one DK.
now lets take this, extrapolate it, to exponentially the next level.

i say to get to the so called "real" baja you can't do it w/ 4WD. That can only take you to a starting place.
From which you'll need to go on horse back or mule or WALK to get to the most remote of ranchitos and such. :bounce:

that's where you'll find a few folks who will tell you they don't get to cabo much anymore. :biggrin:

chances are you'll run into a red haired writer with an accent.

David K - 10-29-2007 at 07:49 AM

Perhaps!!!

I did put the word 'real' inside the two ' marks to indicate it was real in my special meaning for this post. Naturally, the entire peninsula is Baja California... But to those of us who either experienced Baja before 1973's Hwy. 1 paving was completed or today venture off the beaten path in search of adventure and solitude, the 'real' Baja has NOTHING to do with fancy hotels, paved highways or condos!! :light:

Too often I hear someone at a gathering say, "Oh, I've been to Baja!" like they have seen a boojum tree only to hear the next line: "Yes, we flew to Los Cabos and stayed at the ..."

Pretty much my VivaBaja.com web site is dedicated to those in search of 'The Real Baja'... :yes:

So, in summary: Going to Rosarito or Los Cabos bring a credit card to use and some cash for the 'little people'... Going to the 'real' Baja, bring cash for everything and a card for emergency use only.

[Edited on 10-29-2007 by David K]

jeffg - 10-29-2007 at 07:49 AM

Back to the actual subject of this thread...

I always bring a credit card to Baja, or anywhere else I travel. I might not use it, but for emergency or large purchases it can be very helpful. I don't think you'll find any difference between VISA or MC, if they take one they'll take either.

As others noted above, be sure to let your card company know you will be in Mexico so they don't reject the charges.

Some places charge a surcharge on payments by credit card, that might make it less than cost-effective vs. getting cash from an ATM. I think Costco in Cabo is one that charges a couple percent more. Also beware of a "foreign transaction fee" that your credit card company may charge, my B of A VISA was charging a ridiculous 3%. I did a little research to find something better, found a Capital One card that doesn't charge the fee at all.

Jeff

Barry A. - 10-29-2007 at 09:03 AM

Jeff-----

I may be wrong, but I think that ALL credit cards now charge a "foreign transaction fee", and you are right it is usually about 3%.

USAA MasterCard only charges a 1% "foreign transaction fee", and that is the cheapest one I could find when I did the research a couple of months ago.

Also, if you use your Credit Card to withdraw money from an ATM the fees will eat you up, relatively speaking-----use an ATM card in an ATM machine----much better cost structure, I believe.

All the other suggestions are excellent, I believe.

jeffg - 10-29-2007 at 10:21 AM

Barry,

I'm not sure if it's still their policy, but when I got the Capital One card a few months ago they were not even passing along the 1% Visa/MC fee. I just got a bill with a charge I made last month, zero fees. So far so good, but I doubt it will last forever.

Here's a link with some info about the various cards:

http://www.indexcreditcards.com/internationaltransactionfees...

Jeff

capt. mike - 10-29-2007 at 11:24 AM

Who are the "little people"?? Do they know they are little? :barf:

Are they the ones who pay the taxes too?

Lets add ethnocentricity to your eccentricity.

Have you been hanging around Leona Helmsley perchance....before she died last month?

a credit card is always a good idea when traveling if you're a true Scout. :lol:

Barry A. - 10-29-2007 at 01:21 PM

Capt Mike-----

I am surprised you don't know who the "little people" are-----

They are hoi palloi, country folk, the hard working locals, who make "things" work, and are often found in the hinterlands where some of us like to go. Nothing wrong with that and we love them.

Are you going PC on us??

By the way, what is a "fiddybear"?

barry

[Edited on 10-29-2007 by Barry A.]

capt. mike - 10-29-2007 at 03:03 PM

naw......i ain't PC - just like to poke a little fun and start controversy.
slow day here in my office today waitin on the guvmint to respond to some of their re dick you louse red tape on a deal we're looking at.

one of these days i gots ta finger out a way to stop all this work shiii ite. :yes:

SkyMedBarbara - 10-30-2007 at 07:07 AM

I just applied for a Captial One Card yesterday...to use in Mexico they DO NOT charge an out of country fee.... all my other cards charge 3 %. You can do it right over the phone...
Barbara

Fiddybear - 11-4-2007 at 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Barry A.
By the way, what is a "fiddybear"?

barry

[Edited on 10-29-2007 by Barry A.]

Hi Barry,

Fiddy is part of my last name and my first name is Amanda (Amanda-Panda --> Panda Bear --> Fiddybear).

Very few people ask the significance of my screen name, thank you for being curious.

Amanda

vacaenbaja - 11-4-2007 at 03:13 PM

I have found that the police will take either. However they
prefer cash as there is no service charge.They do not like anyone to put the "bite" on them!