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we have been going to Negril for 7 years now, we usually stay at Rooms, but after our dollar has been taken a **** kicking, and having to pay in U.S. this sucks, this is why our next trip will be at a place that books in canadian , Fun Holiday does it, soon come
Wow, didn't know Fun Holiday or anywhere books with CAD. Did you have to call them? It would be great if some places looking for more business would do that, at a decent rate.
That would be great if more places accepted CDN at booking.
I exchange my CDN in Negril and pay in J$ Not sure if it makes much difference but it seems to .
My stay is booked and paid in CAD at rooms always
If you have never stayed at Fun Holiday before; I would advise you to not pay for their all inclusive package. I stayed there and if you were not in the initial line for the buffet your selection was very minimal and most things were not refilled. If you were later than 45 min. from the start of the buffet you had to piece together what you could from what was left from the start. The bar gave out as little as possible and a lot of the time had no vodka rum or whiskey. The staff were nice and as a cheap basic place to stay I would say go for it but as an all inclusive this place failed. You can book room only . Location is good.. rooms are basic but fine for a budget trip.. balconies are all in row with no privacy .
Anybody ..know any other hotels that offer a "pay in Canuck bucks " ..situation
What difference does it make? You still pay the going exchange rate. The is no money savings at all. If u book on any of the booking websites u can pay in any currency u like.
no way mon, when we book for Rooms we are told that we have to pay in U.S. now being a Canadian you should know that our dollar is less than the U.S. dollar, about 25 percent, now when i pay for our resort we pay 25 per cent more which adds up over a couple of weeks, and paying for meals and drinks at other places in Ja in U.S. us Canadians are getting ripped off,we get a better exchange rate at our Canadian bank to change our Can dollars to Jamican dollars, you should be able to do the math, soon comeQuote:
Originally Posted by slimjim
Some Negril establishments will accept payment in Canadian dollars. Do not for a minute think that someone will take $100 Cdn for payment, if you owe them $100US. They may accept the equivalent amount in Canadian dollars. These days the equivalent amount of $100US is approximately $132 Cdn.
jamaicarob, if Fun Holiday quotes you a rate in Cdn. dollars, I have to think they base that rate quote on an equivalent amount of US dollars. Say for example a one night stay is $75 US (they would quote around $100 Cdn per night).
The US$ is the most stable currency and most tourist business in Jamaica follow this trend. With our cdn dollar fluctuating the way it does we would have to change the rate daily.
JAYS HIDEAWAY web site is shown in US$ ( as are all the other resorts) but we will welcome cdn. Dollars.
J Rob, in your world Americans could exchange to Canadian and pay 25% less ??? Wish it were true man. I don't think I can pass Rooms without looking at your balcony. Stay where you prefer man, there ain't no magic exchange rates. The Banks have it covered.
I think JRob's point is valid. It costs a fee to convert currency. Someone who has already paid a fee to convert to JA will pay another fee to convert that JA to U.S.. That being the case it makes sense to have some US currency to use at those locations that insist on charging in US dollars.
On a side note --- I spent a week with my Canadian family in Punta Cana and they showed me their Canadian money....it's plastic which is a really neat idea!
Hahaha.... it is cool but it doesn't do so well in the dryer - ask me how I know!Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamerican71
I thought the plastic made it "indestructible" in the washer and dryer??Quote:
Originally Posted by NikkiB
The fact that the currency of choice in JA is the mighty US buck has been a pet peeve of mine for many years. I don't go to the bars/restaurants that charge in US $$.
I usually go to Negril for 6 weeks, the difference in the exchange rates over 45 days really, really adds up (virtually all accomm. is charged in US).
It cost me $132CDN for $100US last week.
Because of this, it pains me to say, for the 1st time in 20-odd years, we are giving Negril a pass in lieu of a destination that charges in Euros.
The easiest way to book Fun Holiday in Canadian Dollars is to use one of the various websites its on for booking. That way you don't have to worry about American vs Canadian. We stay at the NBCC as we prefer rooms with a kitchenette but we are getting killed by the exchange rate this year. If the dollar is this bad in the future I think we will be looking at other alternatives. Its pretty expensive the way this is.
I agree. I think there may be fewer Canadians in Negril this year. On principle, I avoid places that charge USD (when not in the U.S.). Many restaurants in Negril are now pricing in USD only and don't take JMD on par (1/100). Of course you can use JMD but at whatever rate of exchange (based on USD) they give you. If I wanted to pay in USD, it's a lot closer to go to the states!
I purchased the new livingsocial deal for Treehouse. https://www.livingsocial.com/escapes...le-beach-perks
Paying in USD negates a lot of the savings, but still better than regular prices elsewhere and the inclusions of a hearty breakfast and transfers is a good value, especially as it can be used for many high season dates.
Better move fast Kahuna the CDN $ has dropped vs Euro€ about 15 cents since April!Quote:
Originally Posted by Kahuna3
I've gotta agree with Kahuna ... Our travel plans this winter ..might also be altered & Yes, I've been going to Ja. (since 89)
Our dollar is just taking a beating .. All those Westjet & Air Canada flights ..might be a little more empty
I don't know about any of my fellow Canucks
..but this one can't afford to pay an extra 32%
And the talk of lower airfares....haven't seen that. Westjet came out with 20% off for reward members yesterday. It's still $50-$75 more, each way, than the "jump on" price I'm looking for.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slightly Stoopid
I got a nice email from westjet a few weeks back telling me that my formerly direct flights now have to connect because they no longer offer direct from Winnipeg. With the sargassum issues in the rest of the Caribbean, I can't see them not offering direct for very long. Still, not the most pleasant news. However, they offered $300 I credit for each of us, and if they're now offering 20% off for rewards members maybe I can request a little more?
Cancelled my Euro trip because of this...it's still waaay cheaper to travel to Jamaica thankfully.Quote:
Originally Posted by dash
Hopefully Canada will get this resolved soon...we've all been dealing with the Canadian dollar fluctuations forever...it's an aspect of life...I choose to find ways to be more creative with the spending when the dollar sucks :) as obviously these fluctuations aren't going to stop in my lifetime. One global currency anyone? :)
When my flights got changed from PHL > Cozumel direct to a connection thru Charlotte, I got nothing in the way of remuneration from US Air. No money, no miles, nothing. :(
It is illegal for any Jamaican business to "insist on charging in US dollars." They MUST accept Jamaican dollars. As a convenience, they can accept other currencies, but they can in no way insist on charging in US dollars.Quote:
Originally Posted by Craig123
The reason some businesses use US$ prices is that the US$ is currently the most stable currency. As Mangogirl pointed out, if they had their prices in CND$ they would have to change it daily (probably a slight exaggeration, but it does make the point). Same is true for the Jamaican dollar. The JA$ fluctuates to the point that prices would need to be changed too often for most businesses. I am sure that frequent visitors have seen menus in the smaller places that have chalk board prices or printed menus with the prices taped over with the new prices. Their menus are often printed with no prices and the prices are just "taped" in....
This is insane. The world runs on the American dollar standard. Oil prices commodities almost everything. I just paid for my Vietnamese Phu Quoc bungalow in Canadian dollars that were processed based on American dollars and reimbursed to the hotel in Vietnamese Dong. You can pay in almost any currency that you like but for similar products (hotels) in the same country (Jamaica) there is no advantage to paying the devalued Canadian currency, or European Euro. There will be fewer Canadians travelling, period, due to the low Canadian dollar, worldwide. Just as there are fewer Russians travelling after the fall of the Ruble. Interestingly flights to Jamaica are running 95% full. In the summer!
That's very true Rob and thanks for pointing that out. What I should have said was they insist on PRICING in US dollars. My point is that another "conversion" will happen when changing the US price to a JA price. You can bet the tourist will come out on the short end of that "conversion" every single time.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rob
That's weird as they are still offering those options on their website on Saturdays?Quote:
Originally Posted by Jerms
The only way for this to improve in Canada is by increasing the main lending rate and for oil prices to improve. Both of which will cost Canadians more money than the extra costs for travel we are experiencing. We made the decision to not have a summer vacation as we usually would do a weekend in Vegas and concentrate on getting our funds together for Negril. There really is no other place I would rather be in January. So we are going to suck it up, wait until sometime in mid September to start looking at flights(that's when they went down last year) and hope we catch a break on the flights. If not we will take our medicine and eat more in the room.
They've restarted direct flights on Saturdays starting Nov 28 through April, apparently. I'm going Nov 7th-21st. Ah well, $300 towards my next trip is alright.Quote:
Originally Posted by Crusher
Tourist rarely if EVER come out on the short end of the conversion rate. The current rate at the Cambio today was 114.7 to 1 (JA$ to US$). For ALL the places charging LESS than 114.7 to 1, the tourist as well as Jamaicans are receiving a "local discount" by paying in Jamaican currency. I know of no restaurant, bar or hotel charging even 114.8 to 1 or more. The tourist, by paying in Jamaican, is ALWAYS getting the LONG end of the "conversion" every single time.Quote:
Originally Posted by Craig123
Yeah can't complain too loudly about a refund at least they just didn't change it and tell you to stuff it. I used to love the direct flights out of Regina but they only lasted a couple of years. Now we fly through Toronto down but gonna see if we can come back through Winnipeg in January. If you are forced to overnight it might as well be where you have friends! :)
I love connecting through Winnipeg vs Toronto. Such a small airport, in and out and the flight home to Saskatoon is just over an hour.
Jerms, don't forget to get in on the Nov roll call.
Despite apparently knowing the cambio rate, for some reason establishments don't bother to post the current cambio rate. Why not a little full disclosure? Just saying:)Quote:
Originally Posted by Rob
Hey Crusher. Not sure about pricing but air Transat does fly direct from Regina to Montego Bay. I think its about $900 return per person.Quote:
Originally Posted by Crusher
I have a 1000 dollar credit with WestJet so kind of locked in with them this trip. I know Sunwing has direct as well but they want like 1500 bucks. About two weeks before flights leave that comes down a lot but just don't want to play that game as losing would suck!
I booked early in the year for this winter, and selected a non-inclusive. I probably should have gone all-inclusive. It appears you can still get a decent deal in Canadian dollars. I have to save a little more then I planned for this time around. I'm not very happy about that, but I'm surely not cancelling.
Craig123,Quote:
Originally Posted by Craig123
The average business in Negril is not a Cambio, and does not and cannot legally operate as one. Their only requirement for "full disclosure" is to let you know what rate, if any, they are giving for foreign currency. They are not required to accept foreign currency at all. It is done as a convenience to their clients.
The current Cambio US$ rate is 114.7 to 1 - so a us$10 dinner, if paid in US$, in current cambio rates would be Ja$1147. If the restaurant has an exchange rate at 110 to 1, which many are doing to keep the conversion simple, you are paying Ja$1100 for that same dinner. Ja$1100 is LESS than Ja$1147. The tourist and local paying in Jamaican currency are getting the better deal than paying in US$, although it only works out to be about 47 US cents.
To make it very simple, a popular bar on the beach charges us$2.50 or Ja$250 for a beer. Exchange your us$20 at the Cambio and you get Ja$2294 back. US$20 at the bar will buy you 8 beers with no change. Ja$ will buy you 9 beers and have Ja$44 left over. Once again, paying in Jamaican currency comes out ahead for both tourists and locals.
I have never heard any tourist or local getting a "worse deal" by paying in the local Jamaican currency at any bar or restaurant.