The Law on Tourists Paying for Hotels in Venezuela
According to information from the Exchange Agreement No. 36 published in Official Gazette, No. 40,881, published on April 11,2016: every foreign tourist, who stays for more than 1 night and does not have a Venezuelan work visa, is in the obligation to pay for services to the hotel, with a credit card or foreign debit. The amount will be traded according to the complementary exchange rate Dicom BsF. 11.311 (eleven point three). [URL]https://dolartoday.com[/URL] US $1 = BS. (BSF) 112,800 . The minimum monthly wage at that rate comes to $2.50 .
This law negates the advantage of using black market exchange rates, or cash, for tourists. I see it applies for 'more than 1 night'. Without local contacts, a tourist would need to pre-book a room by card in order to show immigration they have somewhere to stay. Once checked-in, I expect some hotels will accept cash or bank transfers at nearer the realistic black-market rate. Any advice on how to handle this issue for a good hotel like the J W Marriott in Caracas? Going in green, without contacts, is going to expose the newbie tourist to security issues, cash shortages and money exchange at the terrible official rate.
Someone suggested that competition from Venezolanas in Colombia had depressed the commercial rates for sex there, especially in border areas like Cucuta. Is it worth the compromise, given the safer environment?
AirBNB Apartments in Caracas
[URL]https://www.airbnb.co.uk/s/caracas/homes?allow_override%5B%5D=&s_tag=Qy00y7gA[/URL]
This could be a cheap route in for the newbie without local contacts. Prices are closer to the official DICOM rate than the black market but, once in, the host will likely help out with money exchange in return for an extension. It provides an address to give to the embassy / immigration. Use discretion if bringing back girls -- some hosts could be offended -- possibly ask first. £1 = US $1. 33 . Most apartments seem to be in the better areas of Caracas.
Caracas tops most-dangerous cities table.
[URL]http://uk.businessinsider.com/most-violent-cities-in-the-world-2017-4/[/URL]#22-tijuana-mexico-had-5306-homicides-per-100000-residents-29.
Is it easy to call taxis by cellphone, as in Colombia? For those staying longer-term, are there freight-forwarders shipping from USA to Venezuela at reasonable rates? I can get mail-order goods shipped from Miami to Colombia for about $3. 50 per pound weight, including customs clearance, but they don't ship to Venezuela. With all the local shortages, a reliable shipper is essential to maintain a good quality-of-life.
I thought its cheap stay but its not why?
I checked Airbnb too but its not as cheap as I thought. I went to Ukraine and its a little cheaper than Venezuela. I stayed in fine area for like $20 to $25 a night but Venezuela is like $30. I thought its cheap. I was thinking buying a huge house there for 20 K NO?