patbro said:
What is the currency situation in DR - specifically Puerto Plata, Cabarete and Sousa? Can US Dollars be used or should I change most of my money? What about credit cards and ATMs. I will be in these 3 towns exclusively. Thank you.
US $ are not normally used to pay for items directly in stores and restaurants - in fact I avoid any restaurant that tries to price in US$. So you sell US$ at a cambio to buy pesos. Buy as little as you need for a day as the rate is really volatile and there is no sense buying a week's worth at 29 and then finding out the price later is 34.
ATM's are quite accessible - keep in mind they may levy a fee and your bank will certainly do that as well - for smaller transactions this could add 10% to the cost of the withdrawal. Some international ATM fees are $5 per transaction. Some people have complained about losing cards or non compliant machines. I go a lot and have never used an ATM nor do I plan to.
As for C/C's the advice to watch the bill is 2-fold;
1. Make sure, if you are paying a US$ priced location, ( like a hotel) that the rate they convert the US$ bill into pesos is that day's rate. The higher the rate they use the more pesos you are going to pay.
2. Make sure the printout from the credit card machine says RD$XXXX and not just $XXXX so you are not being billed in US$ and thus at 33X the actual price.
If it is a paper credit card slip used with the old imprinters add RD$ before the amount yourself if you have to before signing.
If you want to take traveler's checks you will likley need to show your passport - if so don't carry it all day, take it back to the hotel and put in back into the safe. I just carry a copy (color photocopy) and also I tend to use the same cambio so they don't usually ask.
But if you are shopping around you may need ID.