Which ATM Network?

[BrewingDiver]

Heading to Coz in April . I don't want to carry a lot of cash down with me so I want to hit the ATMs there. The back of my card says it uses Plus and Pulse networks. Does anyone know if one of these will definitely work in Coz? I expect it will as it did elsewhere in Mexico and Costa Rica but don't want to be caught without adequate cash.

We've done AIs in the past so I didn't need so much, but this time will be non-AI.

 

[deborahdelamar]

Yes, your ATM card will work here. If your bank charges a high fee for foreign currency exchange or or foreign country transactions (you should check this), don't hesitate to bring cash -- as long as you're prudent and don't flash a wad of money, you won't have any problem -- hotel maids, etc. are extremely honest and many times don't even pick up their tips!

 

[Sue Sue]

DH and I use the ATM at the banks and even the ATM at the Chedruai on occasion. There are reports of some problems out there, but, we have never had one...KNOCK WOOD ! We usually only take enough US $$ to get us started then withdrawl the hightest amount of Peso our bank allows as needed on a day to day basis for the rest of the trip. In fact, we like to have a little Peso left over to seed the next trip. We ususally only get a small fee attached to the withdrawal.

 

[BrewingDiver]

I've never had any problems in Coz, but I try to make it a point not to carry large amounts anywhere (even if I could!). I typically do leave some of it in the room even if there is no safe.

My experience too has been that the maids often won't take tips so what I do is either let them know when/if I see them, or put it right on the bed each day. Of course I guess I would leave the accumulated amount at the end of the week if they still didn't take it.

Part of the problem is I use a lot of singles mainly for tips, and as a result the stack is a pain to carry on the plane, etc.

Chedraui is near Blue Angel so I'll probably go there first. Thanks!

 

[Sue Sue]

We also found that the maids were not taking their daily tips. Therefore , I now have envelopes that I take that have the date and day written in Spanish with "Propina" written on it. I also write Gracias. Then before leaving the room I put it on the pillow of the bed.

 

[WOODMAN]

Sometimes the ATM networks can be finicky. A couple of times now I have had my ATM card refused by a machine down there, and then I have to find another and try again. :mooner: No idea why this happens. I almost always get success with the red ATMs on 5th av. north of the plaza, though. Also, you might want to temporarily increase the withdrawal limit on your card to get a bigger hunk of cash out at one time. Your bank should do this for you with no quibble. Just be sure to drop it back down when you come home. Good luck. Woody

 

[deborahdelamar]

Woody reminded me of an important point -- you should call the issuing bank & let them know that you're going to be in Mexico on such-and-such dates and that you will be using your card there. Sometimes US banks refuse Mexican ATM transactions and pre-advice prevents unhappy surprises and international phone calls.

 

[Daz]

I used the Santander Serfin ATM on 10th and 5th. My homebank is Bank of America and they have an agreement with SS. The only charge I had for using the SS ATM was a 7.5 peso transaction fee - No out of network fees from my bank at all. The exchange rate ranged from 13.5 to 14.2 over an 11 day period this past January.

 

[mstevens]

Our ATM cards have generally worked fine on the island. For some reason, on nearly every trip there has been some period of time when they did NOT work. My impression is of a network outage or something. These periods have ranged up to a day (or as close to a day as we were willing to keep checking) and seem to be associated with very heavy rain. The upshot is that I'd recommend not waiting until the last minute to get cash you need.