Exchanging US to J

[aram]

Hello! One Love to Everyone. My very first, and long over due trip to Negril. Is it better to use USD? If not is there better
places to exchange US to J. I will be traveling from Alberta Canada which is -35 below at the moment ( Or is it better to exchange
here in Canada.

Peace

[Slightly Stoopid]

Use the Cambio to exchange your $$$ .. better bang for your buck..
no reason to shift your Canuck bucks to US ..the current rates are roughly $100.00 J to each US & $95.00 to each Canadian dollar ..
Don't exchange @ airport in Mobay .. there are a couple of Cambios in Negril & are easy to find ..you'll need a passport to exchange ..
We exchange a couple hundred Canadian every couple of days ..You will be quoted prices in both US & Jamaican dollars ..
Easy to use Jamaican ..( smash your larger bills up as some smaller local places ..may have a hard time with change )

[Big_frank]

Do you have American money? If not, why would you bring it to Jamaica.
Just take your Canadian money and change it to Jamaican when you get there at a Cambio which change all the foreign money including dollars both U.S. and Canadian, U.K. pounds, Italian Lire, Marks etc., etc. The Cambios, licensed money changing places, give excellent rates. (except at the airport)
Wait till you get to Negril to do this.
There is no sense in paying for American dollars in Canada to spend in Jamaica when you can change Canadian to Jamaican money after you arrive and get a good exchange rate.
I know; some resorts, restaurants etc do price in U.S. dollars; but they also must price in Jamaican dollars and you will benefit by patronizing places that price in J's.

[Big_frank]

I guess Stoopid was posting while I was still writing. Sorry but happy you have two solid opinions on this.
A driver's license will also suffice to change money at the Cambio. Don't need to show your passport.
Let us know where you are staying, Beach, Cliffs, etc and someone will point you to the nearest Cambio.

[aram]

Thank you to everyone that replied to my post. I was just reading that the USD was more excepted! and just wanted to clarify which currency was better.
I will be staying at Samsara Cliffs , when I fly in on Sunday

Peace & Respect

[Big_frank]

The closest Cambio would be Banmark, which is further up the cliffs toward the lighthouse. Maybe a 10 minute walk from Samsara, or cab it to the Sunshine Plaza and change your money at the Cambio there or Scotiabank. Do not change it with the touts offering to change it for you on the street.
You can just use your credit card at Samsara until you can get to the Cambio and change your Canadian for Jamaican dollars.
On the other hand, you can go to Scotiabank ATM and withdraw from your own bank account and you will receive Jamaican dollars.

[wrtiii]

This may be out of date, but a couple of years ago, one of the ATMs at ScotiaBank gave JMD and the other gave you your choice of USD or JMD. Is that still the case?

If planning to use the ATMs, let your home bank know you'll be traveling and check your daily limit, which you may want to bump up.

[nutz4travel]

This may be out of date, but a couple of years ago, one of the ATMs at ScotiaBank gave JMD and the other gave you your choice of USD or JMD. Is that still the case?

All the Scotia ATM's I've been in at the bank location give you a choice of JMD or USD. The Scotia ATM at the MegaMart in MoBay also did as did the one at TimeSquare in Negril. They probably all give you a choice now??