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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64857
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Dollars are accepted everywhere in Baja you are likely to need money. It is a dual currency peninsula. The gas stations near the border even give you
a better exchange for your dollars than the bank teller gives at the exchange houses. I saw 19.15/dollar at a gas station.
About the biggest extreme penalty for using dollars is probably 50 centavos per dollar. The going rate is 18.50 pesos per dollar and at the remote
location you may get just 18.00 per dollar.... you are shorted about 2-1/2 cents on that dollar purchase. A 2.5% tip can't ruin a gringo on a vacation
can it?
Feel good and get pesos, but don't panic if you don't have any or any left. I ran out in Santa Rosalia on my way home two years ago and asked if
paying in dolarés was ok... it was. You might get the change in Pesos, but a little solar powered calculator or your smartphone calculator will make
easy work of that. The local markets have dollars in their drawers, too. So what if you don't get the prime rate of exchange? Live a little, share a
little... they are making your vacation a reality and you are making tortillas and beans their reality!
[Edited on 3-1-2019 by David K]
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JZ
Select Nomad
Posts: 10572
Registered: 10-3-2003
Member Is Online
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Quote: Originally posted by David K  |
Dollars are accepted everywhere in Baja you are likely to need money. It is a dual currency peninsula. The gas stations near the border even give you
a better exchange for your dollars than the bank teller gives at the exchange houses. I saw 19.15/dollar at a gas station.
About the biggest extreme penalty for using dollars is probably 50 centavos per dollar. The going rate is 18.50 pesos per dollar and at the remote
location you may get just 18.00 per dollar.... you are shorted about 2-1/2 cents on that dollar purchase. A 2.5% tip can't ruin a gringo on a vacation
can it?
Feel good and get pesos, but don't panic if you don't have any or any left. I ran out in Santa Rosalia on my way home two years ago and asked if
paying in dolarés was ok... it was. You might get the change in Pesos, but a little solar powered calculator or your smartphone calculator will make
easy work of that. The local markets have dollars in their drawers, too. So what if you don't get the prime rate of exchange? Live a little, share a
little... they are making your vacation a reality and you are making tortillas and beans their reality!
[Edited on 3-1-2019 by David K] |
Still can't believe you make the rookie mistake of traveling around Mexico with dollars. You are getting short changed 30% min.
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KurtG
Super Nomad
Posts: 1205
Registered: 1-27-2004
Location: California Central Coast
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Mood: Press On Regardless!!
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| Quote: Originally posted by KurtG | | Quote: Originally posted by Alm | "The ATMs give the best exchange rates" - is there any proof of that?
My understanding has been that ATM - leaving fees and charges aside - would give you the rate of your NOB bank. If so, - this rate sucks, compared to
a good Cambio either NOB or in Mexico.
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It is really simple to check. After using the ATM I go to my bank's website to see what I was charged. My bank reimburses me for any fee charged by
the Mexican bank. I find the exchange rate to be very close to the xe.com interbank rate. This is better than the casa de cambios' rates.
I never have had a atm card "eaten" but I use bank atm's during bank hours as a precaution. While I always carry emergency cash I find it very
convenient to get pesos as I need them from the atm's. I have been doing it this way as long as atm's have existed in Baja.
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Update:
Recent experience, Feb 14 using the ATM in the Ley Market in Santa Rosalia my net net peso received rate was 19.01 when XE showed 19.31 rate. I know
that personal preferences are involved regarding using pesos or dollars but I prefer to use pesos to simplify transactions and, a personal quirk
perhaps, to show respect for our host country. Again, my bank rebates the ATM fee.
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sancho
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2524
Registered: 10-6-2004
Location: OC So Cal
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| Quote: Originally posted by JZ |
Still can't believe you make the rookie mistake of traveling around Mexico with dollars. You are getting short changed 30% min.
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I always use pesos, but how is using dll' s equating to
eating 30%? With that math, Pemex, Calimax, etc.
would have to have an exchange rate of 12.50 pesos to the
dll. Previous post has Pemex at 19p. Don't know what the typical length of trip BN take,
today's San Ysidro casa rate is 18.669, the Bloomberg
exchange rate, I believe is a trading, bank rate is 19.300.
One would have to spend a lot of $$$ to get caught
up with the small difference in dll' s or casa exchange rate
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64857
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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I find it odd that a couple people here can't understand such simple posts. I have made it so clear that I prefer using pesos but on the rare chance
you can't get them or you run out, life isn't over as dollars work everywhere. Geeze Luis, JZ. Can we post something else, and keep photos at 800
pixels max, too? LOL, rookie! No soup for you... NEXT!
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Alm
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2729
Registered: 5-10-2011
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And some other people can't understand that everyone's budget is different.
If you are a tourist, you come with intent to spend, spend, spend. People who live there wouldn't agree that being short-changed when you pay in
dlls, or $3 charge per withdrawal or 2.5% conversion fine is something to be ignored. Unless they are packed with money - though this happens too,
sometimes.
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 18393
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
Member Is Offline
Mood: Hot n spicy
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| Quote: Originally posted by Alm |
And some other people can't understand that everyone's budget is different.
If you are a tourist, you come with intent to spend, spend, spend. People who live there wouldn't agree that being short-changed when you pay in
dlls, or $3 charge per withdrawal or 2.5% conversion fine is something to be ignored. Unless they are packed with money - though this happens too,
sometimes.
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It’s only money!
You cant take it with you!
Woke!
“...ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America
will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”
Prefered gender pronoun: the royal we
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mjs
Nomad
Posts: 309
Registered: 2-20-2013
Location: Off grid in San Felipe
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I noticed a recent change with the hsbc atm in the San Felipe Calimax. In the past HSBC has always done the transaction with my bank in pesos and the
exchange conversion was done by my bank at a favorable bank rate. My last withdrawal HSBC withdrew the funds from my bank in dollars and did the
exchange on their side of the transfer. This amounted to a 5% commission for HSBC on the exchange rate (+ the atm fee). The local cambio and gas
stations had a better rate.
May not matter much to some but something to be aware of. This along with increased atm fees approaching $4 or more per transaction means we'll make
other arrangements to get our pesos.
[Edited on 3-3-2019 by mjs]
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Alm
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2729
Registered: 5-10-2011
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HSBC is a sneaky one. They posted a notice that their "foreign entities" are free to charge for ATM withdrawals whatever they find necessary, even if
you are hsbc.us customer. I understand that the exchange rate is normally still set by the US bank where your account is. Maybe this has changed too.
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norte
Super Nomad
Posts: 1163
Registered: 10-8-2008
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I find it amazing that when some people make an observation they immediately declare it fact. Had they gotten an education they would know the
difference.
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Alm
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2729
Registered: 5-10-2011
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Gotta love blanket statements like this one.
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