South American Cruise - what currency should I take

[karenburrows58]

We are heading to South America - Santiago to Beunos Aires on a Princess Cruise in 2 weeks.

 

What currency should I bring.  Do I need Aregentinian, Chilean, Uruguay money???  Can

I use British Pounds in Falkland Islands?

 

We are from Canada, should we take Canadian or US dollars?

 

Help.

 

Thanks.

 

Karen

[clo]

You can use credit cards at most places. If you need a small amount of local currency you can use ATMs. Argentinian businesses will frequently accept US$ because their economy is in such bad shape.

[Lunenburg]

1 hour ago, karenburrows58 said:

 

 

We are from Canada, should we take Canadian or US dollars?

 

Help.

 

Thanks.

 

Karen

Karen,

No one down here knows or uses Canadian dollars. Bring USD and several credit cards. Not everywhere accepts all types, and some cards just don't work in some ATM's or stores. If necessary you can also drop in a Cambio to convert USD to what you need. They carry most popular currencies.

[clo]

32 minutes ago, Lunenburg said:

Karen,

No one down here knows or uses Canadian dollars. Bring USD and several credit cards. Not everywhere accepts all types, and some cards just don't work in some ATM's or stores. If necessary you can also drop in a Cambio to convert USD to what you need. They carry most popular currencies.

https://vamospanish.com/discover/pesos-vs-dollars-vs-credit-cards-argentina/

 

[TeeRick]

Karen- we did this exact cruise in January.  We did not take any local currency from home (in the US).  I would not advise using Canadian dollars- bring $USD with you from Canada if at all possible.

 

When you get to Santiago, there are both ATM's and exchange bureaus  (casas de cambio) in the airport.  Note that the ATM's are in Spanish.  Credit cards are good for most purchases.  In general cash in $USD is accepted and even preferred in all three countries.   There is very little need for local currencies.  But if you need a little bit use an ATM or go to the cambio. The amount of Pesos you can get from an ATM in Argentina is very limited.  Most here report only 2000 Argentine Pesos (Currently $32 USD) and that was our experience too.   Not sure what ship you are on but they did not have local currencies on our ship (Celebrity Eclipse).  Also we were able to exchange $USD to Pesos in our hotels in Santiago and Buenos Aires too.

[TeeRick]

12 hours ago, clo said:

https://vamospanish.com/discover/pesos-vs-dollars-vs-credit-cards-argentina/

 

Great and useful link- thanks for posting it!

[karenburrows58]

thanks for the info.  I will get USD, and worry about local currency there, if we need it.

 

I will get lots of small USD bills, if they will take it, that would be much easier.

 

Karen

[Arubamoose]

On 2/17/2020 at 6:10 PM, karenburrows58 said:

thanks for the info.  I will get USD, and worry about local currency there, if we need it.

 

I will get lots of small USD bills, if they will take it, that would be much easier.

 

Karen

 

Read this article:

 

https://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-for-your-dollars-in-buenos-aires

 

They recommend bringing bigger bills...….and be careful as to their wear and tear.

[LocoLoco1]

6 hours ago, Arubamoose said:

 

Read this article:

 

https://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-for-your-dollars-in-buenos-aires

 

They recommend bringing bigger bills...….and be careful as to their wear and tear.

Well.... Ecuador did NOT accept USD $100's anywhere on Feb 11th, 2020. Period. At minimum, I take a coupla Hundred USD's in crisp $10's and $20's. No rips, no missing corners, no marks. Use your DebitCard at a bank's ATM inside that banks lobby as soon as you spot one.

[karenburrows58]

thank you for your info!

[samiam99]

It seems to be a South American thing to not accept anything but perfect bills. They will look them over and any small tear or even folded money will be rejected. I was in Peru and had a stack of what I considered good 100 dollar bills and had trouble finding enough to be considered usable. I was fore warned but didn't take it seriously. Hope you can benefit from my experience. 

[iancal]

We are Canadian.  We don't bother taking USD to foreign countries any more.   The exchange rates we get on CAD are just fine. 

 

We spent time touring in Chile, Uruguay, and Argentina.  We used local currency in all three.  We drove outside the main cities and needed local cash for B&B's, restaurants, etc.    

 

We found it advantageous to change our Uruguay money and buy Argentine currency in Uruguay as we left.  Changing money in Argentina can be a pain...you need passports etc. Beware, lots of street FX vendors waiting to rip you off or pawn off fake bills in BA tourist areas.     We used ATM's to get local cash, then changed it as we left the country.  Lots of bank ATMs in the airports in Santiago and BA.

 

I forget what we used in the Falklands.  I would not worry.  These tour guides are used to various currencies.

 

As others have said, do not take high denomination bills, ie $100. and have bills in good condition with NO writing on them.   They are nervous about fakes.  

 

CAD is actually better because the bills are not paper, have a fair amount of security features built in that are not present in standard paper type bills. Much, much harder to make DIY bills! Or so several FX stores in SE Asia informed us.

Edited June 27, 2021 by iancal