$US in Mexico?

Question

I'm thinking of taken dollars to mexico but wondered if I would get ripped off. I've heard it's 10 mxn to the usd but sometimes venders use a 2.10 rate meaning that it's dearer to pay in dollars but if i'm changing £'s into $'s in the first place, even with the extra charge it makes it more economical to pay in usd as usd is worth less than half of sterling. Have any british people been to mexico in the past 6 months and experienced this, or have any suggestions.

Answer 1

Hey,

I am not British. I am Mexican but lived in the US and currently live in the UK. I travel between the three countries back and forth all the time. The best thing to do is to keep your sterling in your pockets and not change them to usd. The usd is sinking against any other currency including the Mexican Peso. At the beginning of the year it was 12mxp per $1 usd, and today is around 10 mxp per usd. In contrast, the sterling is strengthening against the mxp. The best thing to do is to take your debit/credit card with you and withdraw large amounts of money at the teller machine. You will pay a fee for the withdrawal but you get the best exchange rate (the GBP to the MXP is about $22mxp per pound). If you have your account with HSBC, there is a possibility that they may even waive the withdrawal charges depending on the type of account you have. Friends of mine who bank with HSBC told me that they are not charged for withdrawing money if they do it at a HSBC teller machine. Go and ask the bank. There are as many HSBC's in Mexico as there are in Britain so you won't have any problem finding a branch wherever you go. Even in small towns you will find a HSBC. Another problem about exchanging the sterling to usd are the commissions you will pay. At the post in Britain it's commission free. But it will not be the same once you arrive in Mexico. Every single place where you go to exchange money including banks will charge a significant percentage as commission. Plus you will be getting a not too good rate compared to the one you get if you withdraw it from your debit/credit card. Although It is true you can pay with usd in Mexico, you can only do so in border towns (along the US border) and major tourist places such as Cancun, Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas, etc. They still convert the usd to mxp at a very low rate though. For example: If the usd/mxp is 10.18mxp per usd as it is today, they will take your dollars at around 9.50 mxp per usd.  If you are going to Mexico City or any other place that is not a border town or big beach resort you will have troubles paying in usd. Only big supermarkets will take them and you will face the same problem of getting a very bad exchange rate. Conclusion: Withdraw from your British account directly once you arrive to Mexico. One more thing that you should consider is that, even though Mexico is not as dangerous as it appears to be in the news, there is a lot of petty crime. Carrying large amounts of money is not a good idea in Mexico; especially if you will be using public transportation in big cities. As a person who spent a few years living there, I can tell you that. Whenever I used public transit I always split my money. 1/4 in my wallet and the rest inside my shoes. I was never robbed but it is always better to prevent. With you debit/credit card you will always be protected against theft. I must say that traveling by coach service between major cities is very safe. If you visit the south use Cristobal Colon or ADO. If you go to cities north of Mexico city use ETN. The latter is cheap and offers the best service ever.  I hope this helps you. This is what I do whenever I go to Mexico and it always works.