Playa Del Carmen money

[GeorgeG.]

The wife and I are planning to go to Playa the first week of Dec. For those that have been, what did you do for currency? I've been told that American dollars are accepted but you generally pay more since they'll round the peso up to the nearest dollar.

Other question, Are there ATM's over there? Will they work? Taking several hundred dollars in cash doesn't sound like the smart thing to do.

[Leah]

Yes, the ATM's work, yes they take American money and you can also do exchanged in town or with the hotel. I wouldn't go to a huge amount of trouble before getting down there.

I would take some cash to get you through tips and stuff, but most places take credit cards now, too.

[GeorgeG.]

awesome! thanks Leah

[talisman]

Just use American cash. And in the markets any time someone tells you the price of something, put your dfwm lowballing shoes on and offer them half. If you argue with them enough most of them will take it. I found an effective method was to play good cop bad cop with my s/o at the time. I'd want to buy the item but she would keep saying no on the price until they relented. It's how I got the mexican blanket seat covers for my 57 Chevy. What resort are you staying at? The Royale is amazing.

[GeorgeG.]

^^^lol. We're staying at the Sandos Playacar???

[BP]

Hoard $5 bills, the locals will almost never be willing to make change. It might as well be a $20.

[46Tbird]

The peso rate at your local bank sucks.

The peso rate at the ATMs in Mexico is a little better but you get charged a fee.

No fee for using plastic in Mexico and you get the full exchange rate.

My favorite way of getting money is to go to a Pizza Petron a week or two in advance and talk to a manager. They always seem to be willing to trade out $500 USD for pesos as long as you give them a few days notice. No shit.

Never use the ATMs or the "money exchangers" as you exit the airport in Cancun.

[inline 6]

Either way just have fun. I always just take US cash. I love the area and am going back in 14'

[bluecollar]

I just keep a safe and a armed guard in my plane. If I want cash, I just go get it. Done and Done.

ChoooooChooo$$oo$$$




But seriously, plastic is your best friend in this case.

[Treasure Chest]

Playa Del Carmen money

If your PIN begins with a zero, make sure you change it before you leave because it will not be recognized at an international ATM. I found that out the hard way.

[Taylor]

do you need to let your credit card companies / banks know that you will be traveling abroad?

[dangerous_sep]

do you need to let your credit card companies / banks know that you will be traveling abroad?

Yes that is one of the first things I do now if your going further that surrounding states I recommend it.

[KBScobravert]

The peso rate at your local bank sucks.

The peso rate at the ATMs in Mexico is a little better but you get charged a fee.

No fee for using plastic in Mexico and you get the full exchange rate.

My favorite way of getting money is to go to a Pizza Petron a week or two in advance and talk to a manager. They always seem to be willing to trade out $500 USD for pesos as long as you give them a few days notice. No shit.

Never use the ATMs or the "money exchangers" as you exit the airport in Cancun.

Concur on all the above....but not the Pizza thing, never done that.

We took $100 in ones for tips. Didn't even go through the whole stack.

We used plastic (bank debit) the whole time and didn't have an issue. Infact we did get a better rate doing it that way.

edit to add:
If going to Playa, you must, must, must do Xplor. It was the highlight of our trip. Be prepaired to get a workout though. To the tops of the zipline towers was hell on legs and the paddle rafts could work the shit out of your shoulders and back if you take the 45 minute route.

[mstng86]

If your PIN begins with a zero, make sure you change it before you leave because it will not be recognized at an international ATM. I found that out the hard way.

Say what? I thought Mayans invented the number zero.

[46Tbird]

do you need to let your credit card companies / banks know that you will be traveling abroad?

Absolutely. Might also look into a phone/data plan. AT&T used to have a good deal - five bucks for an international plan, where everything is a fixed rate and quite a bit cheaper than the 'roaming' charges you would otherwise get. This year it was $30 and the rates were higher. Not sure I would get it again. Just turn the damned phone off.