Rio de Janeiro Reports

[QUOTE=Bravo;2318755]Hotrod, they won't listen, you are wasting your time. For years I have been telling people on this board to NEVER EVER use a credit card or debit card in Brazil!! Every time I give the warning, immediately, someone else comes on the board saying "I've never been robbed! My father always said that a hard head makes a soft ass, so you guys keep using your bank cards in Brazil Just don't get pissed when I say "I TOLD YOU SO![/QUOTE]I use a USA origin chip and signature (Citi) MasterCard credit card frequently in Brazil for purchases and have yet to have any issues; I do this because the card has no foreign transaction fees, gets an excellent FX rate (I just got 3. 98 per USD for a restaurant purchase made on May 7th) and I get 2 x AA miles per USD spent at restaurants.

That being said, NEVER use an ATM in Brazil to get cash; years ago I had two separate USA debit / ATM card cloned at the GIG airport HSBC ATM. There are black market currency exchanges in the major cities that give excellent FX rates for your cash needs.

[QUOTE=Bravo;2318755]Hotrod, they won't listen, you are wasting your time. For years I have been telling people on this board to NEVER EVER use a credit card or debit card in Brazil!! Every time I give the warning, immediately, someone else comes on the board saying "I've never been robbed! My father always said that a hard head makes a soft ass, so you guys keep using your bank cards in Brazil Just don't get pissed when I say "I TOLD YOU SO![/QUOTE]Using cash is better, it's safer and more benificial but credit cards must be used as a last resort. It's not dangerous to use credit card in Brazil unless you lose it, you are drunk etc. Cash is better than credit card.

[QUOTE=RockHarders;2318818]That being said, NEVER use an ATM in Brazil to get cash; years ago I had two separate USA debit / ATM card cloned at the GIG airport HSBC ATM. There are black market currency exchanges in the major cities that give excellent FX rates for your cash needs.[/QUOTE]This board is crazy. Don't bring cash because you will get robbed by street people. Don't use ATM because you will get robbed by the machine. Don't use credit card because you will get robbed by the staff.

When I was in Brazil 2 weeks ago (Porto de Galinhas and Recife) I still had 600 reais left from my last trip. I did not have to get money from a machine and I did not bring dollars from home. Other than the reais I already had on hand, all I did was use my Amex Platinum. Rental Car, hotel, restaurants, gas station. I think the only thing I did not use that card for was tolls, buying a refrigerator magnet for R$6 and having a tire rim fixed on the car for R$10.

Before I have brought cash and exchanged it on the black market, but mostly I have used ATMs. For now I will be sticking with my no fees and great exchange rate credit card and still using ATMs when I need cash.

It's Brazil! There are higher risks of credit card and ATM crime. A lot of countries have this problem. That's why my credit card company will freeze my account if I don't make them aware that I am in Brazil and other countries before-hand.

Everyone has to make their own decisions on how to travel. I'm fine using my credit card and my cash debit card at ATMs. I check my activity on-line every few days. I have never been held responsible for unauthorized transactions. If all your cards are stolen or hijacked abroad, the major credit card companies are amazing. They will reissue you a new card and send it to you anywhere in the world in a few days. If you're tight on money, they will arrange for you to pick up emergency cash locally until your new card arrives.

I personally don't like traveling around Brazil with lots of cash. Ironically, the guys who like to rely on cash when traveling are likely depending on their bank cards as their emergency plan.

[QUOTE=MrEnternational;2318883]
Before I have brought cash and exchanged it on the black market, but mostly I have used ATMs. For now I will be sticking with my no fees and great exchange rate credit card and still using ATMs when I need cash.[/QUOTE]I agree!

I operate the same.

I'm in Brazil every week, for about 15 years now.

Regarding using cash or card in Brazil.

I usually bring a larger amount of cash that I'll change within the first days when arriving in Brazil. Always getting a very good rate for neat 500 Euro bills. After that I'll use ATM's to get cash, mainly Bradesco which allows R$2500 withdrawals. I never had any problems with ATMs in Brazil.

I have never payed with card in Brazil. Partly because of the risk of frauds and also because I like to use cash.

There is a big advantage of paying with cash instead of card in Brazil: you almost always get a discount/better price when paying with cash. No matter if you pay for a hotel/clothes/p*ssy etc you'll get at least a 10% discount. When paying just ask what price you'll get when paying with cash.
Hotels often gives even more than a 10% discount when paying with cash, on a 3 months trip those discounts means quite a lot.

This issue of the ATM and or Credit Card usage comes up all the time. My suggestion is avoid all ATMs if you can help it.

Reposting my response to similar comments in Jan /2019 in this forum for the same issue:

Be careful with sticking your card in any machine. I know at least 3 people who used ATM machines (doesn't matter the bank) an got taken. The checking accounts got cleared out. Two of my friends got their accounts blocked and upon returning home got their respective funds back quickly within days of reporting incident. The third got money back but had to file a police (in USA) report before the bank would initiate an investigation, got funds back a month later. Best to take cash and exchange at Cambio. Try to avoid ATM but if you want to go that route make sure what your bank fraud policy is and notify they you will be using ATM card.

Also most ATMS have Daily amount restrictions (regardless of what your USA Bank withdrawal amount is) generally around 500 are per day or less. I will just bring reasonable amount of cash for my stay and exchange at Cambino.

Update:

If you have to use ATM do not use ones that accessible from outside. Only the ones inside the bank facility.

Credit Cards I had no problem using (Retail-Shopping mall / Restaurants / Subway ticket purchase) just try to have a card that doesn't charge Foreign Transaction fees.

I've read that the best strategy is to stick with ATM machines in bank lobbies (never machines facing the street) during normal business hours. Anybody know of any good bank ATMs near the Pestana Hotel or anywhere else in the Copa area? I've always used cash only before in Brazil, but may be willing to give the ATMs a try. But not at the airport! And not a machine on the street either. Well, I have paid for hotel bills with credit cards before and never had a single problem, but other than that have always settled charges with cash.

[QUOTE=AbcCool;2317743]Are most Rio hotels against sexual tourism / bringing working girls in hotel?

I checked with hotel Canada in copacabana saying, I will stay for 5 days and maybe bring some guest for 1 day in middle. Reception guy says when you check in you should tell both guest name. You cannot bring some girl in middle and he shows the board "sexual tourism not allowed".

Same board is there in portobay, Windsor group of hotels etc.

Please help me with some girl friendly hotels in copacabana area (Hilton Marriott etc is too expensive for me).

I need to stay in that hotel for 3-4 days and bring girl in middle for a day.[/QUOTE]Instead of Hotels why not Apartments or Airbnb and avoid the Hotel hassle. My first time I stayed in a Hotel in Rio, during that time I got the lay of the land I never stayed in a Hotel again. (for First timers or Work / Job paying, stay in a Hotel).

[QUOTE=UniversalX;2319270]Instead of Hotels why not Apartments or Airbnb and avoid the Hotel hassle. My first time I stayed in a Hotel in Rio, during that time I got the lay of the land I never stayed in a Hotel again. (for First timers or Work / Job paying, stay in a Hotel).[/QUOTE]Because hotels clean and change the sheets everyday and sometimes they are even cheaper with more amenities. I have only used airbnb 2 or 3 times around the world. Seems okay at first, then they add that cleaning fee and service charge and I am like might as well just get a hotel.

[QUOTE=MrEnternational;2319418]Because hotels clean and change the sheets everyday and sometimes they are even cheaper with more amenities. I have only used airbnb 2 or 3 times around the world. Seems okay at first, then they add that cleaning fee and service charge and I am like might as well just get a hotel.[/QUOTE]Hotel is way better, if you plan to stay for a short time. It's very cheap to stay in a hotel. But if you live in Brazil, better to have an apartment with a one year contract.

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3-4 years back after using us cash only and using a cambio to convert to reams I saw many tourists using credit cards for all purchases, here in Rio OK so it must be safe. Next trip I didn't bring much us cash and I used my debit card. At that time if you are traveling to certain countries you need to notify your bank that you were going to an international country. I called my bank told them of my travel dates to Brazil and all was well. I can't check my bank transactions out of the country so when I returned and I made my first check of my checking account I found $5500.00 Had been pulled from my bank account and all on the same day. I called my bank and they referred me to VISA. VISA notified me in a day or so that it was fraud and I was covered for a full refund. I asked why they did not detect this as all 55 transactions were on the same day. They said (this doesn't make sense) when a customer says they are traveling to certain countries like Brazil There fraud program that watches for obvious withdrawals like this is shut off for the dates you specify.

I could be wrong but I thing if I could use my debit card in a bank ATM I think I would be safe. Any comments.

I would have thought that some big Brazilian broom had swept all the bordellos away, a long defunct bar called HELP was the epicenter of all punting in Brazil, and prostitutes in Rio were elusive. Fortunately, I didn't and discovered the biggest problems were: a) who and where to choose at any particular time. B) an epic flood on April 9, from a night of continuous heavy rain that trapped me inside my AirBnB apartment almost all day and apparently all options for hobbying took the day off. That day was a bummer.