IF you are lucky enough to be leaving for mexico soon, here are the current exchange rates: Dollar and Peso Currency Converter - Yahoo! Finance Canadian Dollar v Peso Currency Converter - Yahoo! Finance British Pound v. Peso Currency Converter - Yahoo! Finance Remember this is ONE unit of currency and how many Pesos it takes to be equal. Or reversed it tells you how much a peso is worth in your own currency. Simply divide the number of pesos into one unit of your currecy. For example, with USD take 12.2 and divide into ONE and get about 8.2 cents. Better yet print the pocket guide and put it in your wallet before you leave!
Todays official exchange rate is 12.18 pesos to the dollar, but the best you are going to do at a downtown "casa de cambio" is around 11.55 (it is probably less if you exchange your money in a hotel). Walmart has the best exchange rate but you need to purchase enough items to make it worth their while to accept a $100 (usd) bill. I don't evn think you get the 12.18 by using your credit card either due to the fees that the CC company will charge you.
You cannot exchange a $100 bill at Wal Mart. The highest bill they take is a $50. And you can buy a small pack of gum for a couple of pesos and they will exchange the $50 or less no problem. But make sure you count the change since sometimes the cashiers are not good at giving back the proper amount.
Is it really worth it to bring pesos on a trip? I only had pesos, zero USD and I was sooo pissed to realize I couldn't get what my money was worth for. This year I'm def. coming with only USD (i'm from Canada and the exchange rate is equal these days)
Best online currency converter is XE - The World's Favorite Currency and Foreign Exchange Site easy peasy. As to why use pesos? Well, number one, it IS the currency of Mexico, this is not the USA. Number two, there are new laws with limits on USD transactions. Number three, with fluctuating rates, trying to convert in your head from pesos to US to CAD is going to complicate matters. Number four, with prices listed in pesos, paying in pesos only makes sense. Vendors are not going to give you the best exchange rate, you will always lose using USD. I have said it before, I think it's ridiculous that USD are accepted here, this is not the USA. If I were to go to the US or Canada, could I use pesos? I highly doubt it. I wouldn't go to Japan with anything except yen, same thing applies here.
My experience I am also Canadian. I bought Pesos from the Royal Bank in December to have a working amount when I arrived here. The rate of exchange I received was 11.21 Pesos to the Canadian Dollar. Even exchanging U.S. dollars at local banks now you get 11.75 to the dollar(as of yesterday) while Walmart gave 12.06 to the U.S. dollar today. I always carry pesos, but for a large shopping at Walmart, Chedraui, etc. I offer U.S. $50's. and am given a good exchange rate. Note: HSBC bank in Plaza Kukulkan's ATM will dispense either Pesos or U.S. Dollars.
Today at the casa de cambio, the dollar was only 11.15. Walmart gives you 11.90. A few months ago, the dollar was 12.10. So, if you were to change $100 usd, you are getting about 100 pesos less than a few months ago. That is almost a 10% difference.
I went to our bank today and bought some pesos. The exchange rate was a little over 9% plus I had to pay $6.50 to have it mailed to the bank. OUCH! I should have cancelled the order but I wanted some pesos when I landed in Cancun.
OUCH is right. Even at the worst rate, at the Airport, the rate yesterday I was told was 10.7 to 1. Everywhere I go, it's been 11.1 and the highest is 11.5. But to get the "highest" rate, those places ask for your passport. But the dumbest thing you can do is walk around with your passport just to get a few extra pesos.
Any problems exchanging US $100's, have not had any in the past years, but I thought I read somewhere that it could be a problem now.
