I live in San Diego, and now less than a week away on our adventure to Baja Sur. We fly into San del Cabo and travel as north as Loreto. I will carry
my credit cards but want to use mostly cash. What is your advice on exchanging cash for the best rate? Where would (specific location) you recommend a
place (SJC, Cabo, Loreto) to exchange currency? Should I only bring 20s originally? What do you think?ehall - 7-14-2014 at 05:21 AM
My bank at home, chase, told me that could get me as much as I want at the current exchange rate.volcano - 7-14-2014 at 06:03 AM
at the airport there is an exchange business, it's very easy and actually a better rate than at the border exchanges
[Edited on 7-14-2014 by volcano]DENNIS - 7-14-2014 at 06:04 AM
Use ATMs while in Cabo, but be careful of the rate charged by the bank which owns the machine you're using. The amount per transaction will come up
clearly on the screen at the start of your transaction.
The charges can range from 20 to 90 Pesos.
Other bank fees......yours...theirs...I won't even get into, but, and sadly, this thread probably will before it's over.
One more thing....don't obsess over saving pennies at the ATMs. It will ruin a good trip......... Just have a good one.beachbum1A - 7-14-2014 at 06:35 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS[/i
One more thing....don't obsess over saving pennies at the ATMs. It will ruin a good trip......... Just have a good one.
EXACTLY!superbusydad - 7-14-2014 at 06:46 AM
I just want to make some good decisions upfront and enjoy the "Baja State of Mind" for the rest of the time!bajaguy - 7-14-2014 at 06:49 AM
Deposit your "vacation money" in a separate account and use your ATM card to withdraw what you need for 3 or 4 days at a time.
I wouldn't want to be carrying a wad of dollars or pesos around with me or leaving it in a hotel room
[Edited on 7-14-2014 by bajaguy]rhintransit - 7-14-2014 at 06:57 AM
I always think of Baja (my home for 9 years) as 'down the rabbit hole.' One needs to give up needing to be in control of the details. make yourself
as comfortable (?) as you need trying to anticipate everything, but it just ain't gonna work out totally like you expect it to.
Cabo and La Paz, and to a lesser extent Loreto, are relatively easy on a gringo's expectations of how things "should" work according to the pre-trip
research, but there will be surprises.Sandlefoot - 7-14-2014 at 07:00 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by bajaguy
Deposit your "vacation money" in a separate account and use your ATM card to withdraw what you need for 3 or 4 days at a time.
I wouldn't want to be carrying a wad of dollars or pesos around with me or leaving it in a hotel room
[Edited on 7-14-2014 by bajaguy]
Best advise you will find!!! And what Dennis said!! This place is to be enjoyed, have all the fun you can and make lifetime memories!!
Happy TrailsSlyOnce - 7-14-2014 at 10:04 AM
Exit San Ysidro Blvd. before crossing. Find a "sin comsion" cambio with the best posted rate. Remember you get the lower of the two numbers when
selling dollars (the easiest way to remember, is you always get the worst number). Right now its about 12.6
Don't take ATM cards you don't need.
Don't take your main home bank card.
I have a Credit Union ATM, I put my MX money in there.
Don't take a credit card with a high limit or one that's tied to your main bank account.
Don't carry all your cash in your wallet, hide the majority very well in your car.
I never carry my main wallet, I have a MX wallet with just my ATM card, DL, SENTRI card, and a few pesos for the day.
These are just normal precautions for any foreign travel, don't be overly paranoid.
Just this weekend I used the ATM card to pull 3000 pesos from a Scotia Bank ATM. I got a rate of 12.83 (slightly better than the cambios) and I was
charged $3 by Scotia Bank and $5 by the credit union for an international transfer.
If you add in these fees, I achieved an effective rate of 12.4 so that's not bad and it beats carrying all cash.
Make sure your bank will allow MX charges BEFORE you leave.Howard - 7-14-2014 at 10:13 AM
Been doing this for years.
Call you bank and give them the dates you will be in Mexico and that you will be using your ATM card and credit card in any emergency. Use your ATM
card to withdraw pesos as the rate you get will be fair. Don't sweat the ATM fee as it's just the price of a beer or 2.
One less thing to think about and take time away from your vacation with the kids.BajaUtah - 7-14-2014 at 11:40 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by bajaguy
Deposit your "vacation money" in a separate account and use your ATM card to withdraw what you need for 3 or 4 days at a time.
I wouldn't want to be carrying a wad of dollars or pesos around with me or leaving it in a hotel room
[Edited on 7-14-2014 by bajaguy]
This is what I do as well. I have a separate account through my Credit Union. Before heading south I on-line transfer vacation money to this account
AND tell the CU where and when I'm traveling. Then I hit bank based ATMs when I get in country - I try to avoid Bancomer based ATMs as they are the
most expensive but in Los Barriles there is no choice.
Different from bajaboy I usually carry a couple of hundred dollars in US small bills just as a back up. I usually return to the States with it
untouched but I just feel better having a few different bullets in the gun.bajabuddha - 7-14-2014 at 11:46 AM
Another thing to consider: if you carry cash, you're constantly trying to figure out the exchange rate in your head, and you're more liable to be
short-changed by a gas-jockey or someone giving you change back in pesos for your dollars.
Keep a 'stash' with for emergencies, but not the whole shebang. ATMs are the only way to go; you can draw up to $500 (dollars) worth a day, maybe
even more now (not sure). Far's the fees go, they're negligible. If you have to ask if you can afford it, you can't afford it. The fees are
chump-change.Martyman - 7-14-2014 at 12:57 PM
Take at least 2 ATM cards. Sometimes one won't work.bajabuddha - 7-14-2014 at 01:04 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by Martyman
Take at least 2 ATM cards. Sometimes one won't work.
Too true! Also, if one does get stolen or lost, you can cancel transactions with a phone call; cash is GONE-GONE. As mentioned by other posts, be
sure to just call your local bank and tell them you'll be travelling for x-# of days, otherwise they can block your withdrawals or transactions just
because it's 'out of the ordinary' routines.willardguy - 7-14-2014 at 01:25 PM
here's a seemingly obvious ATM tip that I never thought of till I had my card stolen. the number used to report a lost or stolen card along with the
card number IS ON THE CARD that you no longer have. also keep in mind there's a lot of places down here that you absolutely cannot dial an 800# using
any combination of codes, carry the banks non-800 number.
have fun!StuckSucks - 7-14-2014 at 02:02 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by Howard
Call you bank and give them the dates you will be in Mexico and that you will be using your ATM card and credit card in any emergency. Use your ATM
card to withdraw pesos as the rate you get will be fair.
Yes and yes. I bank with BofA and you can do it all online - tell them when and where you're going, contact information, and you're thru.
Also, I learned a few years ago in San Felipe how to kill you credit card. I made a mistake calculating how many pesos I needed at an ATM machine
(really small amount), so I went right back and asked for a big amount - the bank shut down my card, presumably I looked like suspicious activity.bledito - 7-14-2014 at 04:29 PM
bofa will let you do it all online as far as scheduling your trip so they won,t shut off your card. But in my experiances they sometimes do anyway.
they did this to me several times on past trips. you then have to call em international and straighten it all out. Now i do both on line and at the
bank as well. I also carry anouther card different bank just in case. Also carry some emerrgency cash as well.SFandH - 7-14-2014 at 04:39 PM
I had a Citibank credit card transaction blocked in Mexico even though I called the bank and told them I would be traveling there. The reason was the
transaction was over $1000. I called the bank and was told I had to call each time for transactions over $1000.Bajahowodd - 7-14-2014 at 04:57 PM
I absolutely agree with many of the previous posters in that using ATMs is the smart way, as long as you notify your bank in advance.
That said, if you are planning to spend time in Los Cabos, Loreto, and the places in between such as La Paz and Ciudad Constitucion, you really won't
need pesos. There is tremendous US tourist traffic throughout these areas, and dollars are happily accepted.baconjr - 7-14-2014 at 06:48 PM
Costco Chula Vista has a cambio and rates are competitive, no commision.
cash on hand
captkw - 7-14-2014 at 07:37 PM
after seeing card machines go down and other things happen (earth quake) I always carry enough cash for gas,,food,,beer for a week !!! guess I'm not
paranoid !!nbacc - 7-14-2014 at 07:52 PM
Be sure and call your bank and let them know how long you are going to be there..............even then things can happen but ............happens.
don't sweat the small stuff and have a good time. Oh......have the numbers to call credit cards you take in case of theft in a different place than
your cards...just in case.....happens. Again, enjoy and have fun. NancyTLBaja79 - 7-14-2014 at 08:12 PM
I've always stayed clear of the 'Cambios', however when dealing in small amounts the Cambios are much cheaper than the ATM. I usually just get a max
amount of cash at the ATM then the fees are negligible.
Cash is always good to have on hand, I usually stash it here and there in the car and bags and whatnot.
I'm with Chase bank and have never had a problem down there. Only a couple ATM's in Loreto, one in the bank at the Centro and the other in the hotel
Santa Fe.
Have fun!Mula - 7-15-2014 at 05:41 AM
There's one at the Ley Super Express in Loreto, too.SFandH - 7-15-2014 at 06:40 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by bajabuddha
Far's the fees go, they're negligible. If you have to ask if you can afford it, you can't afford it. The fees are chump-change.
The relatively new international transaction fee is a percentage of the withdrawal. The more you withdraw the larger the fee. One month I paid $50 in
fees on my "free" BofA checking account. Flat fees to the bank I was using and to BofA for using a non-affiliated bank ATM, and international
transaction fees (3% I believe) to BofA.
I don't call $50 a month chump change. To put things in perspective, that's around 60 beers at the Tecate Six stores!! Bajahowodd - 7-15-2014 at 05:01 PM
One last comment. The original poster stated that they were flying into SJD. They further stated that that were looking to visit places all the way
North to Loreto.
Just have to say that as someone who has been traveling Baja since 1983, and has never been involved in any sort of shakedown or robbery, The area
between Cabo and Loreto is relatively crime free.
Too many folks give the impression of a lawless land. But, with the exception of the immediate border zone, isolated surf camps, and vast, desolate
expanses of highway one, there simply is no crime.
We usually, when headed for a two week trip, driving to Cabo, bring several hundred US dollars with us ($20s as the largest), and stop at an ATM by
the turn off to LA Bufadora to get sufficient pesos to pay for things in small markets, tips and such.
The vast preponderance of hotels, restaurants in that Cabo/ Loreto area accept credit cards.
Pemex dealers in many locations are accepting credit cards.
In my opinion, with the exception of surfer and campers in remote locations, there is little to no need to hide your cash, if it's in your wallet.
Your biggest problem will probably be the ridiculous insurance charges you will see at your rental car company.
