Mexico / Money rules

Mexico money rules

Eight things worth remembering while you are there, each linking to the fuller explanation.

Open it, then press and hold to keep it in your photos. Works with no signal.

1. 1That dollar sign on the menu means pesosPrices are written with a $ and they are not dollars. If a terminal or an ATM then offers to bill you in actual dollars, turn it down: the rate baked into that offer takes 5 to 10 percent.Paying in pesos, not dollars
2. 2Take cash out inside a bank, never at the airportMachines in arrivals halls and on tourist streets carry the fattest fees and see the most tampering. Use a BBVA, Banorte, Santander or HSBC lobby, in daylight.The money traps that keep recurring
3. 3You will want pesos in your pocket every dayHotels, resorts and city restaurants take cards happily. Taxis, market stalls, taco stands and tips do not, and some places add 3 to 5 percent to accept one anyway.How much cash to carry
4. 4Tipping is real here, and it wants to be cashAround 10 to 15 percent in a restaurant, more at a resort. Give it in pesos: dollars leave the staff to go and change them at a rate that costs them.What to tip, and to whom
5. 5Read the bill before you add that tipResorts and tourist restaurants often print propina or servicio on it, which means the service charge is already sitting there. Add your own and it has been paid twice.The resort double-tip trap
6. 6Your US car insurance stops at the borderMexico insists on its own liability cover, sold as TPL or seguro de responsabilidad civil, and no US policy or credit card counts instead. It is the gap between the number you booked online and what the desk actually charges.What a rental really costs
7. 7Uber cannot pick you up at Cancun airportThat run belongs to the taxi union, so settle the number before the door shuts. Once you are in town the apps quote the fare up front, which street taxis do not.Uber, DiDi and the airport catch
8. 8Heading to Cancun or Tulum? Pay Visitax firstIt is a Quintana Roo state charge, paid online before you travel, and the QR code gets scanned on your way back out of the country. Leaving it to the airport is the expensive route.Visitax and the FMM tourist card

These are the rules that do not really change, which is why they are worth carrying. Exact fees, rates and prices do move, so check the Mexico guide for anything current before you rely on a number.

truetripcosts.com/mexico/rules