Why do we have to pa in u.s money

[Flipadelphia26]

Actually Flip there is a strong theory that the oil price was engineered by the West(USA) to destabilize the Russian Kleptocracy created by Putin to overthrow the Oligarchs. But theories are cheap!!

Either way, the less I pay at the pumps the better!

:-D

[Captain Oil]

For our last reach in April 2015 we brought 6 newbies with us. We tried to indoctrinate them on how "things run" in Jamaica. Well, four of them listened and converted their $US to $JA as we had trained them ..........LOL. Within one day they were all experts in how the local economy and $JA works. For the next 10 days everything was No Problem. However the other two did not learn very well and kept switching between $US and $JA and constantly over paid and tipped up and down the beach. Since we tend to patronize smaller local owned establishments, most of our bar tabs or meal bills were in $JA. More then once they were chased up the beach or road by a bartender or waitress who concerned about the excessive amount of $US left for a round or drinks or meal. Most of the time the newbies were more then gracious (embarrassed?) and told them to just keep the change. They make a wonderful living so the money was not a big deal to them.

Even after all this overspending, these newbies could not believe how reasonable the entire trip cost ! ! Needless to say we are booking rooms for April 2016.

Here is a small primer on how to save money with a little smart money management:
Find a way to cheaply convert your US dollars into Jamaican dollars and pay for most things in Jamaican dollars. ATM's charge a service charge which can vary but $5 US or more per transaction is not unheard of. Your bank may charge a ATM fee AND a foreign transaction fee which can run from zero to 15%. The exchange rate you get at a restaurant or bar will always be less then a Bank or Cambio. For example, beers on the beach can cost $150 to $400 Jamaican But you only have US dollars? They will charge you $1.50 to $4.00US. Might not seem like much, but with an exchange rate of $115 JA to $1US you just paid $230JA for a $200JA beer. Total those savings and it is a easy 15% - 25% savings just in simple currency management.

http://negril.com/forum/showthread.p...969#post160969

Moral of the story: Read this message board religiously, learn how "things run", and convert you home currency to $JA.