Hi! This is information that might be useful for those attending Hive Fest 2023 or someone else traveling to Mexico.
First of all, know our Money
Here in Mexico we use Mexican Pesos and is abbreviated as MXN. The exchange rate as I write this post according to google is:
1 USD = 17.22 MXN
1 EURO = 18.36 MXN
And good news if you are into numismatics, our notes are nice and a good addition to your collection. Currently we have 2 families of notes that are 100% valid but might confuse you a little. The F family is the old ones and the G are the new ones.
In the old notes the 20 and the 50 are plastic. In the new the 20, 50 and 100 are plastic. The rest are traditional security paper.
Image taken from https://www.banxico.org.mx/
Now, about coins. Coins are easier, we have .5, .10, .20, .50, 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20. The .5, .10, .20 are rare now, but you might encounter some of them. .50, 1, 2, 5 and 10 are the most common and you’ll be dealing a lot with them while buying cheap stuff in convenience stores o in the street. Here is an image of them.
Source: https://www.ebay.com/itm/125553293236
You need to be careful with the 10 and 20 pesos coins. Some time ago the $20 coin was clearly bigger than the $10. But now they are almost the same with the difference the 10 is completely round and the $20 has sides. Also the $10 has always the image of the center of the Aztec calendar and the $20 has different images. Also if you’re a coin collector, the $20 coin is a good addition because every year we got 2 new designs that are not coming back.
Exchanging money
If you are wondering what’s the best currency to bring here to exchange, Dollars or Euros are fine. If you bring another currency it most likely be exchanged for Dollars and then to Mexican Pesos.
Where to exchange money?
That is a little hard. But try place with an exchange rate not to far from the one official. Also, here in Mexico many exchange places have no commission. So that’s good. If you find a good exchange rate in the airport, go for it.
Also it would be good to try the ATM’s from big banks like BBVA, HSBC and City Banamex. They might charge you a fee for using their services, but the exchange rate is usually not bad.
Avoid the little and very convenient ATM’s in very touristic places. They are usually a scam with big fees and bad exchange rates.
Locals might accept you dollars, But the exchange rate might be a little bad. I wouldn’t be surprised if it is 1 USD = 12 to 14 MXN. That’s because officially you can’t pay anything with USD here, so the locals might end up selling those dollars cheap.
Exchange crypto to Mexican Pesos
I use Bitso, a Mexican exchange that is pretty safe and easy to use. But because I’m Mexican I just transfer the Pesos to my bank account. I think you can withdraw in some convenience stores in cash, but I’m really not sure how to make that.
Maybe @eddiespino can help you out with that, because I know that he’s using this platform to pay some expenses for the Hive Fest.
Card Payments
You can pay with cards in many places and it is generally safe. I usually pay with a card whenever I can and it is usually OK. Visa and MasterCard are accepted almost everywhere you can pay with a card and AMEX is also usually accepted, but some places might not like it.
Also, many places the use little terminals like the ones in the pictures. And they are also safe I think even safer than the bank ones. Just look at the screen to be sure that the amount is right. There are many of this kind of terminals
But just to be sure, monitor your accounts and payments.
Tipping
In restaurants and bars, tips are expected but it’s not mandatory. The standard tip is 10% and 15% if you liked the service. Also, you can tip the maid that cleans your hotel room. If you get a massage, you can also tip the therapist.
Safety
In general, Mexico is safe. But as in any other country, you can get mugged. Usually, the general safety measures work just fine. Be aware of your surroundings, don’t let your belongings out of sight and don't go around showing money off.
To give you context, the minimum wage here in Mexico is a little over $6000 pesos (325 USD) and most of the people live with a salary around $600 USD. A nice job pays you around $1500 USD. And also, there are many people that makes a lot more.
But keep that in mind before you exchange a lot of money or when you withdraw from the ATM. Also try not to leave money out in hotels, restaurants or in lounge chairs by the pool or the beach. Most of the time inside the hotel will be fine, but sometimes if someone see $300 USD misplaced or just hanging there out of sight of the owner, you might lose it.
Also, phones and computers are stuff you might be careful. If you lose your brand new iphone you might never see it again.
Convenience stores
You can find a lot of convenience stores in Mexico including 7-Eleven. But the biggest one by far is OXXO. There’s a lot of brands, but this is the biggest.
Here you can find food, beverages, candy, snacks, alcohol and in some of them a full meal (not great). You can also buy a cellphone chip in this store.
Health issues
It might be a surprise for you, but if you have some kind of medical emergency in Mexico, our health system is not that bad. I think is even better than Canada or USA.
If you have a minor incident you can go to some Pharmacies and find a General or Basic Doctor that could prescribe medicine for a cold, some stomach issues, some infections etc. and it is very cheap, sometimes they just charge you for the medicine.
An example of that kind of pharmacy are: Farmacias Similares, Farmacias Roma, Farmacias del Ahorro.
It would be a good idea to have insurance, so you can have access to a hospital. But you don’t have to go to a hospital for a minor incident. And even if you don’t have insurance or money to pay a hospital, there are public hospitals that might help you for free. But you’ll have to wait and they are not pretty.
I thinks that's it for today. I hope you enjoy the Hive Fest and your visit to Mexico.
If you have a specific question, I’ll try to respond but this weekend I’ll probably be a little disconnected. So, sorry if I couldn’t respond you in time.
See you soon Eduardo from @elteamgordo
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