cruisintime26

According to the cdc a 95% 5% cruise is considered a fully vaccinated cruise. They are taking 5% unvaccinated on the Alaskan cruises. 

On 7/19/2021 at 6:00 PM, Ireallyneedavacation said:

We did this exact cruise with Carnival a few years back. I know you said you were not necessarily trying to save money, but we wanted to experience Alaska but be cost conscious. We ended up renting a car in both Juneau and Skagway. Both car rental locations are walkable from the cruise ship. In Juneau we drove out to Mendenhall Glacier. In Skagway, we drove across to Canada up into the Yukon Territory. I would not hesitate to do it again! 

Thank you so much. Great advice!

On 7/16/2021 at 9:33 AM, Coral said:

While there are things to do close, I often say the best things to do in Alaska is away from the port cities.

 

Not sure if there are mobility issues involved or not. Or if you are just trying to save money on excursions. 

No mobility issues and not necessarily trying to save money on excursions either. We will most likely do a excursion at one or two ports. I just wanted to make sure the port we didn’t do a excursion at would have something to do close to the port. Sounds like we can pretty much take our pick. 
 

Thanks a lot for all the advice! I greatly appreciate it. 

1 hour ago, TMLAalum said:

Lonely Planet Cruise Ports Alaska: A Guide to Perfect Days on Shore is a good place to get information.

Alaska is quite different from the Caribbean. And yes, you can walk to explore all the ports you will be visiting, but there are no Senor Frogs.

Thank you for the information!

We are taking our first cruise to Alaska. I am looking for information concerning the ports where carnival ships will be docked. Is there anything to do at the port or within walking distance? We will be stopping in Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. We are thinking about doing a excursion at one of the ports but I’m not sure if any of the ports have things close by that could walk to. If so I’d like to book a excursion at the port that has the least to do within walking distance. Thanks for any or all advice. 

We stopped by mega while we where in Cozumel. It's a large store with a good variety of items. I would say similar to walmart. Prices seemed to be a little higher than in the local shops. However there where a lot of local people shopping there. It was a good experience.

There will be locals dressed up on the pier wanting you to take pictures with them (for a tip of course). There was a little band set up one time we where there and they had someone playing maracas. We where there one other time and they wasn't there then. I'm not sure if they rotate on a schedule or not. There are several places you can purchase maracas in the port shops.

There is a store as soon as you get off of the ship. It's before you get on the bus to travel down the pier. There isn't anything where the bus drops you off at unless you walk into town.

We went out of New Orleans toward the first of Feb 2016. Weather was cold in New Orleans but it was fine in Cozumel and Progreso. We are going again this Feb.

Great, just don't waste precious time searching for the best rate, enjoy your time!

I don't plan on it at all. I'll exchange where ever I find and enjoy the rest of my time.

I emailed San Jorge casa de cambio and they emailed me back and said their current rate is 19.60.

If you are going into town just go to the Zocolo (square). Facing away from the water at the clock end of the park, walk straight 2 doors from the corner on the right. Not the corner with the 7/11 but the one with restaurants. There is a jewelry store , it may say black coral. Just go in there and tell him you want to exchange money. It is done behind closed doors because they have not taken care of the new ridicules government fees. Ask for Asolfo

Thanks so much for the info!!

Do you have a recommendation for a locals place to eat?

No, just look for the best rate without going out of your way or wasting time.

Enjoy your cruise:)

Thanks Blue_water. I plan on enjoying it very much!!

What cruiseline are you coming into? And what are your plans for the day?

We will be coming in on Carnival. We are planning on going downtown and shopping a little and looking around. We've never been downtown at Cozumel before so it will be a new experience for us. We really have no desire to go to a beach this time. The only thing I really have planned for Cozumel is getting Pesos. I would like to find a cambino downtown if possible. If not we could take a taxi to a cambino and then downtown.

PatyCake could you tell me how to get to the cambino? Can I just tell a taxi driver that's where I want to go? All we have ever done in Cozumel is go directly to a beach for the day. We are planning on checking out downtown this time and walking around a bit. Thanks so much for your help!!

Cozumel yesterday was 19.45 at Casa de Cambio and 1985 at bank.

Thanks so much for the information. I will definitely wait till I get to Cozumel. Thanks again for taking the time to check the price and post.

The current exchange rate at banks is about $20.15, at cambios $19.20. So the best option is to hit the cambio when you arrive.

Thanks so much for the info blue_water. I really do appreciate it. Is there a cambino in Cozumel that you would recommend dealing with?

That is way off, Casa de Cambio should be right about 19. I will check today when going out to pay bills...yuk

Thank you so much!! I really appreciate the information!!

When we went we paid at the hotel the day we where there. It wasn't crowded at all and the only people on the beach where from the cruise ship.

I've done some more research on exchanging here. Seems the best rate that I am able to get locally is going to be 17.41 peso per dollar. Can anyone tell me how that will compare to using a cambino in Cozumel?

Thanks again for all the advice and help. I really do appreciate it.

The exchange rate right now is $1 usd to 20.5 pesos

Yes but you will not get that good of a exchange rate at a cambino. I was wondering what the actual exchange rate was at a cambino.

Bank of America is no longer free of fees at Santander. You will save the 34 peso ATM fee and no ATM fee from BOA...BUT BOA now charges a 1-3% foreign exchange fee now. I have a Charles Schwab account because they do not have any fees and reimburse the local ATM fee.

 

Take note that we now have fewer Casa de Cambios on the island due to some new fees the government wanted to charge them. Many closed their doors as it was not affordable. They usually are open on bank holidays with the exception of Christmas, New Years, Easter

Thanks a lot. That's the answer I was looking for.

I'm really unsure about using my debit card in Mx. I don't travel very often at all and I don't think it would be worth the hassle of setting up a separate account just to withdraw money on the occasional trip to Mx. If I visited often I would certainly look into to doing so.

Does anyone know what the current rate is on exchange at the cambino? This will probably be the route that I go because with the limited amount I'm looking to draw I just don't think it's worth the risk to draw from a ATM.

I can order here through Wells Fargo. By the time you add in their fees with their exchange rate, it comes up to almost 18 pesos per dollar. I may just go ahead and order through them and already have it done when I get To Cozumel.

This! The solution is don't bring cash. Withdraw money at an ATM in Mexico and it will give you pesos along with the best possible exchange rate (better than any casa de cabio, those are a rip-off). BofA doesn't charge any fees to use ATMs from Santander bank, which is one of the biggest in Mexico, so you can usually find one. You don't need a passport. You stick your card in, put in your PIN, withdraw pesos, print receipt, leave. Done.

I'm assuming there are no charges as long as you have a Bank of America account. I don't have a account with BOA. I have been considering using a ATM there but I'm not sure I would get a better rate than using a cambino by the time I figure in ATM fees. I'm not looking to exchange a lot of money. $200 US max.

The last time we cruised I exchanged in Progreso. I did have my passport but I didn't have a copy of it. The whole transaction took around 30 minutes though. I still don't know just what the teller was doing. She would count money and then place it aside and get more and count it and place it aside. After doing this several times and moving money from one place to another she finally counted out what she gave to me. Seemed like a odd way of doings things and certainly took a little bit of time. I just assumed it had something to do with the way they kept up with transactions they made.

I'm stilll curious if the case de cambinos are open on bank holidays. We will be in Cozumel Feb 6th and apparently that is a national holiday for Mexico and banks are closed.

Does anyone know if the casa de cambinos are open when the banks are closed for a holiday? Also is there anyway to know the exchange rate you get at a ATM before the transaction? Thanks