Best currency for use in Mexico

Hi all,

What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy them?
I'm in the UK, btw.
Thanks! j.

Mexico is definitely on the Peso. You can get some from a booth at the
airport on arrival. In tourist areas there are kiosks and such that will
give you somewhat better rates-of course banks. Stores will generally accept
US$ and give you Pesos in return often at acceptable rates. Don't know about
Pounds. Your right, however, in some latin american countries US$ are about
as good as the local currency, Costa Rica, for example and some are
completely dollarized. This is the case for Ecuador and Panama. No local
currency except for hard change.

PB







..
"Jeff" <jeff.clarke@fireflash.org> wrote in message
news:1133869063.624452.119020@o13g2000cwo. o...
> Hi all,
>
> What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy them?
> I'm in the UK, btw.
> Thanks! j.
>

Minor correction: Costa Rica DOES have its own currency, the colon
(plural: colones). But if you are in tourist areas, you won't need any.
The US dollar is widely accepted. Matter of fact, the resort gift shop
was always surprised I had colones. They routinely quoted prices in
dollars.

In Mexico, I needed pesos for the most part, however. A few places took
dollars, but at not-so-great exchange rates.

Carolian Songbird

jeff.clarke@fireflash.org (Jeff) wrote in
news:1133869063.624452.119020@o13g2000cwo. o:

> What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy
> them?

Generally, use Pesos and get them from an ATM taking the money from
your bank account. You should probably talk to your bank to see if
they have any special policies or service charges though.

Lots of places take $US but give terrible exchange rates. The
currency exchange at your hotel or on the street might be acceptable
in an emergency.

Make "major" purchases using a credit card. Again, contact your card
issuer to see if they have any special policies or charges. US Visa
and MasterCard recently added foreign currency exchange charges
beyond the straight exchange rate they use.

--
Bert Hyman | St. Paul, MN | bert@iphouse.com

"Jeff" <jeff.clarke@fireflash.org> wrote in message
news:1133869063.624452.119020@o13g2000cwo. o...
> Hi all,
>
> What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy them?
> I'm in the UK, btw.

You want pesos, the places that take dollars generally give a terrible
exchange rate. For the best rate use your plastic to get pesos from the ATMs
available at just about any bank. As long as you are taking out reasonable
amounts, even with whatever transaction fees you should still get the best
available rate.

TB

"Jeff" <jeff.clarke@fireflash.org> wrote in message
news:1133869063.624452.119020@o13g2000cwo. o...

> What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy them?
> I'm in the UK, btw.

Pesos, without a doubt.

Get them at any ATM (cashpoint) in Mexico.

Take out at least 100 pounds' worth of pesos at a time, since your bank will
likely charge a fee per transaction. But even with the fees your bank
charges, you'll still get a better exchange rate than you would if you were
to exchange your money elsewhere.

The problem with using US dollars in Mexico is that although many stores
accept them, they set their dollar prices using an exchange rate that
heavily favours the merchant since they're the ones who have to wait in line
in a bank to buy pesos with whatever dollars they've collected.

That may not be a huge issue for an American; but for you, it means getting
hit with exchange fees twice - once in the UK to buy USD and again in the
store/restaurant/hotel in Mexico.

Richard

Richard wrote:
> "Jeff" <jeff.clarke@fireflash.org> wrote in message
> news:1133869063.624452.119020@o13g2000cwo. o...
>
>> What's best to have in Mexico? US$ or Pesos and where best to buy
>> them? I'm in the UK, btw.
>
> Pesos, without a doubt.
>
> Get them at any ATM (cashpoint) in Mexico.
>
> Take out at least 100 pounds' worth of pesos at a time, since your
> bank will likely charge a fee per transaction. But even with the fees
> your bank charges, you'll still get a better exchange rate than you
> would if you were to exchange your money elsewhere.
>
> The problem with using US dollars in Mexico is that although many
> stores accept them, they set their dollar prices using an exchange
> rate that heavily favours the merchant since they're the ones who
> have to wait in line in a bank to buy pesos with whatever dollars
> they've collected.
>
> That may not be a huge issue for an American; but for you, it means
> getting hit with exchange fees twice - once in the UK to buy USD and
> again in the store/restaurant/hotel in Mexico.
>
> Richard

sometimes ATM will give you 2000 pesos
sometimes 4000

I have never had more than that. and with additional commissions

I second (third, fourth...) the recommendation for pesos. Get them
from an ATM, not from a cambio. You get a much better exchange rate
that way. Use your credit/debit card as much as possible; again, you
get a better rate.

One piece of advice I have is to see if there's a chart in the ATM
cubicle that shows the denominations you get for X amount of pesos.
Avoid bills over $200MP; taxi drivers, merchants, restaurants, and even
smaller hotels often can't make change for them. If you do end up with
$500 bills, use them for something that will cost at least half that.
Occasionally I've had to sit in a restaurant much longer than planned
while the waiter was dispatched to find change for a large bill.

Enjoy your trip.

Maggie