cash or credit??

tomfish · 06-16-2004

going to playa del carmen on fri 18th for a week. is cash best to use or can i use credit cards at all restaurants and bars, shops etc. I was hoping to bring minimal cash and use mostly card. Should i convert cash i do bring to local currency or just use american $$?? also is there atm's readily available??

tommy · 06-16-2004

Cash is best...convert to pesos a little at a time..say 100usd ...atms are available and easy to find and use...it will only give you pesos...I havent ever tried to use a credit card other than renting a car so I would not recomend this....i would take some cash the pull from atm as needed....remember to take some small bills on the way down so you can tip if need be......

dymnback5 · 06-16-2004

I second that. We broght down some cash...but I also make great use of ATM's. I have heard some weird stories here as of late, but for me...its been no problem. Of course I only use the ones located at banks. My favorite is the one on 15th...I think at about 8th street? Its got the PapaJohns next door and the theatre and arcade upstairs? Anyways...if youneed to cash travelers checks or convert US to Peso, thats theplace to do it right now...best I've seen on the street is 11.17 to one, but the bank is giving 11.20 to 1 as of yesterday. Some shops and some restuarants do take cards....but I trust my ATM far more than I do getting my credit card number ripped off...as some places still use the old carbons...if you do this get ALL copies except the one the merchant gets...that is a big way for ID's toget stolen. Best bet is cash though...and its more fun!

**james** · 06-16-2004

You've seen places with carbon paper? Where?

c943 · 06-16-2004

cash works best. US dollars that is. its taken everywhere. use a safe for the stash and justget what ya need daily. i have plastic ,but never rely on it. Front gates of disney and i couldnt pay the fee!!luckily i knew my local banks phone number and they fixed whatever error.
I have seen atm and credit cards fail too often. cash is king.

dymnback5 · 06-16-2004

No carbons on this trip except at rental place for car. Some places like the motels, for example Hotel Maria Bonita want to imprint card and ¨keep¨until you leave...for ¨deposit¨purposes. I know a lot of the car rental places do this. Some of the smaller shops on Cozumel made imprints last trip and one place in playa. I just wont shop that way anymore. Never been burned, but I know some who have been.

**denisea** · 06-17-2004

Cash is definitely king, preferrably pesos since it is the local currency. It will be much easier to conduct transactions with pesos, especially at some of the smaller local establishments and if you venture off the beaten path at all. You will get a better exchange rate on goods and services this way. It also eliminates the need to figure out whether or not you've received the correct change which you will receive in pesos. It is also courteous to use the local currency.

Bumper · 06-17-2004

Definitely cash. Definitely pesos. ATM's work just fine, but watch the size of your bills. Try to keep them in smallest possible denominations for dealing with smaller retail establishments.

c943 · 06-17-2004

ha, anyone ever go to the ATM to withdraw maybe 200-300 dollars and get only 2-300 pecos. Did that on my first visit to playa about 10 years ago. Bloody menatality I/we have eh....thinking their machines are gonna kick out US dollars.

sunscreenaddict · 06-17-2004

Definitely convert your cash to pesos. I've read some conflicting information on this topic on this board, and I suppose it's really personal preference, but my personal experience is that just about all restaurants, shops, bars etc. stick with a standard 10 to 1 conversion rate if you used U.S. currency. With the current exchange rates your just giving money away using U.S. bills.

**ryberg** · 06-17-2004

Dunno if James is referring to carbon slips precisely there, which I don't think are around anymore, as opposed to the copies (now done without carbon slips in between) of an imprint voucher.

Quote:

Some places like the motels, for example Hotel Maria Bonita want to imprint card and ¨keep¨until you leave...for ¨deposit¨purposes. I know a lot of the car rental places do this.

Also not sure how to read the use of square quotes there, but that's a perfectly legitimate practice for the business, and a relatively common one here, still. The only ways to secure a deposit or guarantee legitimately on a card are to:

1. swipe the card and get a signature on the electronic voucher
2. enter the card info manually and get a signature on the electronic voucher
3. take an imprint of the card and get signature on the imprinted voucher

Since many clients have cards that won't scan properly anymore, method 1 may be out, and it can be difficult for businesses to go the route of receiving permission for method 2 (special applications, approvals and insurance are required). The only other way to properly secure a deposit or guarantee is to go with method 3, which anyway is always automatically supplied to every vendor by the banks as a backup in case the electronic system is down. So just because a merchant is following that system does not mean the merchant is up to something.

Steve

local8 · 06-17-2004

IMHO, my suggestion is a combination of pesos and credit cards. Just as at home I use dollars and credit cards. I wouldn't think of using dollars in Mexico, just as I wouldn't use them in Canada, France, Italy, Germany, etc. etc. Part of the experience of international travel is the different currencies one gets to use. I don't understand why one wouldn't want to use pesos in Mexico. Can't wait to spend my pesos again in August :o

06-16-2004	#1 (permalink)
tomfish sandflea Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 4	cash or credit?? going to playa del carmen on fri 18th for a week. is cash best to use or can i use credit cards at all restaurants and bars, shops etc. I was hoping to bring minimal cash and use mostly card. Should i convert cash i do bring to local currency or just use american $$?? also is there atm's readily available??

06-16-2004	#4 (permalink)
james beach geek admin Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: 10 year Playa resident lost in Sweden Posts: 12,278	You've seen places with carbon paper? Where? __________________ Get your own signature countdown image!

06-16-2004	#2 (permalink)
tommy Rastaman Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Austin Tx Posts: 12,845	Cash is best...convert to pesos a little at a time..say 100usd ...atms are available and easy to find and use...it will only give you pesos...I havent ever tried to use a credit card other than renting a car so I would not recomend this....i would take some cash the pull from atm as needed....remember to take some small bills on the way down so you can tip if need be......

06-16-2004	#3 (permalink)
dymnback5 ruined Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Southern WA coast Posts: 81	I second that. We broght down some cash...but I also make great use of ATM's. I have heard some weird stories here as of late, but for me...its been no problem. Of course I only use the ones located at banks. My favorite is the one on 15th...I think at about 8th street? Its got the PapaJohns next door and the theatre and arcade upstairs? Anyways...if youneed to cash travelers checks or convert US to Peso, thats theplace to do it right now...best I've seen on the street is 11.17 to one, but the bank is giving 11.20 to 1 as of yesterday. Some shops and some restuarants do take cards....but I trust my ATM far more than I do getting my credit card number ripped off...as some places still use the old carbons...if you do this get ALL copies except the one the merchant gets...that is a big way for ID's toget stolen. Best bet is cash though...and its more fun!

06-16-2004	#5 (permalink)
c943 life=playa Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 956	cash works best. US dollars that is. its taken everywhere. use a safe for the stash and justget what ya need daily. i have plastic ,but never rely on it. Front gates of disney and i couldnt pay the fee!!luckily i knew my local banks phone number and they fixed whatever error. I have seen atm and credit cards fail too often. cash is king.

06-16-2004	#6 (permalink)
dymnback5 ruined Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Southern WA coast Posts: 81	No carbons on this trip except at rental place for car. Some places like the motels, for example Hotel Maria Bonita want to imprint card and ¨keep¨until you leave...for ¨deposit¨purposes. I know a lot of the car rental places do this. Some of the smaller shops on Cozumel made imprints last trip and one place in playa. I just wont shop that way anymore. Never been burned, but I know some who have been.

06-17-2004	#7 (permalink)
denisea Forum Goddess Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: On the road to ruins... Posts: 7,207	Cash is definitely king, preferrably pesos since it is the local currency. It will be much easier to conduct transactions with pesos, especially at some of the smaller local establishments and if you venture off the beaten path at all. You will get a better exchange rate on goods and services this way. It also eliminates the need to figure out whether or not you've received the correct change which you will receive in pesos. It is also courteous to use the local currency.

06-17-2004	#8 (permalink)
Bumper Class Clown Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Winnipeg, Canada Posts: 14,212	Definitely cash. Definitely pesos. ATM's work just fine, but watch the size of your bills. Try to keep them in smallest possible denominations for dealing with smaller retail establishments.

06-17-2004	#9 (permalink)
c943 life=playa Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 956	ha, anyone ever go to the ATM to withdraw maybe 200-300 dollars and get only 2-300 pecos. Did that on my first visit to playa about 10 years ago. Bloody menatality I/we have eh....thinking their machines are gonna kick out US dollars.

06-17-2004	#10 (permalink)
sunscreenaddict way into it Join Date: May 2004 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 190	Definitely convert your cash to pesos. I've read some conflicting information on this topic on this board, and I suppose it's really personal preference, but my personal experience is that just about all restaurants, shops, bars etc. stick with a standard 10 to 1 conversion rate if you used U.S. currency. With the current exchange rates your just giving money away using U.S. bills.

06-17-2004	#12 (permalink)
local8 beachaholic Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Bronx, NY Posts: 374	IMHO, my suggestion is a combination of pesos and credit cards. Just as at home I use dollars and credit cards. I wouldn't think of using dollars in Mexico, just as I wouldn't use them in Canada, France, Italy, Germany, etc. etc. Part of the experience of international travel is the different currencies one gets to use. I don't understand why one wouldn't want to use pesos in Mexico. Can't wait to spend my pesos again in August :o

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