hi we're coming from Australia..far I know! weve been before and from memory we only really needed money for smokes, excursions and a few extras...? how much is stuff now like smokes, drinks at restaraunts etc and are we better to bring them with us or buy there- last time the atm cost heaps to take out cash so we want to be prepared also usd or we'r need to get it changed? tia!
A pack of smokes, depending on brand, is like $8-15 USD from the giftshop/across the street. Drinks are inclusive at the bars/restaurants, unless you want to upgrade your wine, in which case it's by the bottle starting around $20/25 USD ($400 pesos) Please don't forget to tip the staff, whatever amount that is. Other than that, we bring cash for massages on the beach ($50 USD an hour) USD$ is fine, but if you're converting AUD$ anyways, convert direct to MXN Pesos. You usually get a better conversion, and the staff you tip USD don't have to go and convert themselves (they likely lose a bit in the exchange process). Also, better to bring extra, than not enough, because as you mentioned, the ATM costs a lot and there's always risk of card fraud I find when I use it on the resort...
We bring an average of ~$15 to ~$20 per day for tipping the tenders, maids, etc. That's how we do it...
We bring 100 USD a day, or 1400 pesoes for us from Canada. We also go to scotia bank, or banko de mexico to withdrawal funds, we don't use any ATM type machines. Credit card is also an option in a lot of cases, just call them and let them know your going to mexico so they dont freeze your card.
