General Reports

[QUOTE=Rainman306;2941436]Planning to bring $1,000 cash for 3 nights in Tijuana for my upcoming September trip. I can already see its going to feel like I'm on a Budget.

Let's review required costs first. Of the $1,000 - $50 will be in $1's from the get go for all the needed tipping & $150 will be traded in for pesos, so we're down to $800 in cash. Tropical VIP card is $50. Down to $750.3 nights, 1 weekend night & 2 weekday nights is 88,72, 27 total 187. Down to $563. Deposit is I've heard now $40 even for single room though you get it back it isn't money you can spend while there, minus $40. Down to $523.

I plan to at least have 1 bargirl each night. Say at $120 each, $360 total. Down to $163. Which is what remains for all my drinks (outside of free one each day with VIP card) and all the lady drinks & any additional tipping. I do plan to make full use of VIP card benefits & coupons. I'm still looking at maybe 12 lady drinks which is 4 a night. No fucking way shook 1 of these HK girls try to order a vino.

Yeah, I could bring more $ or stay shorter length of time, but 3 nights & 1 grand cash seem to be just the right time & number.[/QUOTE]Well on top of the $163 you would still have the $150 that you traded in for pesos. So effectively still $313 unless I'm not following your math all the way. Another way to have a bit more cash on hand is to pay the hotel fee and the VIP card with a credit card instead of cash, much preferably with a credit card that doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee and gives you cash back / rewards on hotel expenses. I've been paying my hotel at Cascadas (HK) with a credit card for several years now with no issues. Used to pay hotel in cash but paying with a credit card has reduced the chance I have to run back to the ATM for more cash, which I hate doing. At least at Cascadas you can also pay for the VIP card with a credit card, though they do make you pay the deposit in cash.

While you obviously can't take the drinks inside the club, you can save on drinks by going to OXXO or one of the grocery stores within walking distance (I usually buy from the Soriana on Revolucion.).

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2941454]Well on top of the $163 you would still have the $150 that you traded in for pesos. So effectively still $313 unless I'm not following your math all the way. Another way to have a bit more cash on hand is to pay the hotel fee and the VIP card with a credit card instead of cash, much preferably with a credit card that doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee and gives you cash back / rewards on hotel expenses. I've been paying my hotel at Cascadas (HK) with a credit card for several years now with no issues. Used to pay hotel in cash but paying with a credit card has reduced the chance I have to run back to the ATM for more cash, which I hate doing. At least at Cascadas you can also pay for the VIP card with a credit card, though they do make you pay the deposit in cash.

While you obviously can't take the drinks inside the club, you can save on drinks by going to OXXO or one of the grocery stores within walking distance (I usually buy from the Soriana on Revolucion.).[/QUOTE]When you use a credit card, how does the exchange rate measure up, better or worse than what you can find in person? I am assuming they have to do some type of conversion.

[QUOTE=Zenduka1;2941461]When you use a credit card, how does the exchange rate measure up, better or worse than what you can find in person? I am assuming they have to do some type of conversion.[/QUOTE]Not sure to be completely honest, it's a good question and something I should be verifying. Last time I was at Cascadas a few months ago I stayed 4 nights (Tue, Wed, Thurs, Fri) in their most basic room and bought the $60 VIP card. I was charged exactly $310 for everything total per my credit card statement which I just re-checked now. That includes the application of the discounted hotel rate for VIP members.

[QUOTE=Zenduka1;2941461]When you use a credit card, how does the exchange rate measure up, better or worse than what you can find in person? I am assuming they have to do some type of conversion.[/QUOTE]I think marginally the best is to: use a US debit card like Schwab that refunds foreign bank fees, withdraw cash from any ATM, Decline the conversion.

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2941465]Not sure to be completely honest, it's a good question and something I should be verifying. Last time I was at Cascadas a few months ago I stayed 4 nights (Tue, Wed, Thurs, Fri) in their most basic room and bought the $60 VIP card. I was charged exactly $310 for everything total per my credit card statement which I just re-checked now. That includes the application of the discounted hotel rate for VIP members.[/QUOTE]The credit card company is the one that converts the price to dollars not the establishment. From my experience since I never used a CC in HK but always do when traveling in Mexico. So when I pay with the CC you pay everything in pesos and that is what the receipt shows. So when I get my CC statement later I match the price and on mine it shows the peso price and what the conversion works out to. This is why many CC charge a foreign transaction fee. But mine doesn't so it saves you a good amount if you travel often.

This also goes for all the Ubers I use since it's automatically charged to my CC I get the email for the charge immediately in pesos but it's just converted to dollars on my statement.

So BM I imagine HK charges you in pesos and you should have the receipt for that price and your CC converts it. If this isn't the case and HK is converting the price to dollars then charging your card I'the bet they are giving you a bad rate. So just something to double check next time you go. Since the CC will usually give you what the going rate is on that day. At least mine is always favorable.

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2941465]Not sure to be completely honest, it's a good question and something I should be verifying. Last time I was at Cascadas a few months ago I stayed 4 nights (Tue, Wed, Thurs, Fri) in their most basic room and bought the $60 VIP card. I was charged exactly $310 for everything total per my credit card statement which I just re-checked now. That includes the application of the discounted hotel rate for VIP members.[/QUOTE]I calculated $267 (rooms)+$50 (deposit)= 317.

This is close enough unless you tell me you put down the deposit in cash. If you did then you paid too much for the rooms. I am assuming the deposit then was $50. Not sure what it is now in Cascadas. If you paid $60 for the VIP with the card and not the deposit then you can switch $50 for $60 I that addition.

[QUOTE=Zenduka1;2941482]I calculated $267 (rooms)+$50 (deposit)= 317.

This is close enough unless you tell me you put down the deposit in cash. If you did then you paid too much for the rooms. I am assuming the deposit then was $50. Not sure what it is now in Cascadas. If you paid $60 for the VIP with the card and not the deposit then you can switch $50 for $60 I that addition.[/QUOTE]The deposit for the room I did pay in cash. I'm not remembering the exact cost for the deposit (it was $30 at one point but may have went up as of my last trip) but they always refuse to let me put that on credit card. You do always get the full deposit back on checkout though assuming you kept the receipt and that everything is good with the room, including same number of drinks in the mini fridge. I've never had any issues getting the full deposit back.

But my $310 credit card payment for the room included the $60 HK VIP card. I've always paid the VIP card with my credit card at Cascadas the past several years when I've checked in, assuming my VIP card expired and I was needing to renew. I think there was maybe a point a long time ago when you had to pay the VIP card in cash but they changed that.

So the math comes out to $267 + $60 = $327 that I was supposed to pay but I only paid $310 per my credit card statement. So it seems I actually paid 5% or so less than I would've paid had I paid in cash, plus the way my credit card works I got a few percent of that $310 cost back in cashback rewards since it was a travel expense.

The charge comes up on my credit card statement as "JOVIMIA". No clue what "Jovimia" is but when I google it some Hong Kong and Cascadas stuff comes up in the search results. That's just a heads up for those needing to keep their visits to HK discreet, LOL. Another thing about paying by credit card is they do make a copy of your photo ID to keep on file. I personally don't care about any of that stuff but a lot of folks here on these boards might.

[QUOTE=Sol12;2941481]
So BM I imagine HK charges you in pesos and you should have the receipt for that price and your CC converts it. If this isn't the case and HK is converting the price to dollars then charging your card I'the bet they are giving you a bad rate. So just something to double check next time you go. Since the CC will usually give you what the going rate is on that day. At least mine is always favorable.[/QUOTE]Yeah, they always verbally tell me the price in American dollars but the receipt I sign (and the copy they give me) always has the amount in pesos, never in dollars. So that and the fact that, at least on my last trip, it seems I paid a bit less using a CC than I would've paid had I paid in cash, jives with your observation that it's my credit card company doing the conversion, not HK. But even so that's something I'm going to start paying closer attention to going forward, thanks.

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2941552] So the math comes out to $267 + $60 = $327 that I was supposed to pay but I only paid $310 per my credit card statement. So it seems I actually paid 5% or so less than I would've paid had I paid in cash, plus the way my credit card works I got a few percent of that $310 cost back in cashback rewards since it was a travel expense.[/QUOTE]That is a good chunk you saved. It seems, like someone wrote below, the conversion and paying in pesos by using the Credit card without paying service fees is beneficial. Lesson learned on my part.

Had you paid in dollars cash the conversion the hotel would have given you usually is ridiculous specially these-days when the dollar is stronger in the market.

Are there short term hotels not in the zona that don't require handing over ID when paying for the room if you walk up? I am used to Monterrey where you can just give them cash (at least the ones I go to) and I'd prefer to keep it that way.

[QUOTE=KimJongil;2941692]Are there short term hotels not in the zona that don't require handing over ID when paying for the room if you walk up? I am used to Monterrey where you can just give them cash (at least the ones I go to) and I'd prefer to keep it that way.[/QUOTE]La Mansion Motel. I've been there a few times but in the passenger seat. Mexican chica from Tijuana was driving (with a long expired California US license plate.) No one ever asked for ID. I just paid for 4 hours and that's it. I don't know what it's like if you take a taxi or uber to this motel.

[QUOTE=KimJongil;2941692]Are there short term hotels not in the zona that don't require handing over ID when paying for the room if you walk up? I am used to Monterrey where you can just give them cash (at least the ones I go to) and I'd prefer to keep it that way.[/QUOTE]They all ask for ID of some sort. If you drive a car in, your license plate number is your ID. If you taxi / Uber / walk up then somebody, you or her, needs to leave an ID. This is for everybody's safety. If that's a deal breaker, best to stay in Monterrey.

[QUOTE=Phordphan;2942045]They all ask for ID of some sort. If you drive a car in, your license plate number is your ID. If you taxi / Uber / walk up then somebody, you or her, needs to leave an ID. This is for everybody's safety. If that's a deal breaker, best to stay in Monterrey.[/QUOTE]The ID requirement is a good thing. Underage prostitution could land unprepared monger in a Mexican jail, God forbid.

in TJ they not only require ID's of everyone, the hotels also have strict rule of guests or visitors who want to walk up alone. They will call and verify first before allowing a pass. We hear horror stories, e.g in Colombia where unsuspecting monger is in the room and the girl lets in dudes that rob him at gun point.

Typical conversation with a BG.

[QUOTE=Nothing24;2942221]Typical conversation with a BG.[/QUOTE]I just say that's unfortunate with no further comment. They can wallow in their misery without me just fine.

[QUOTE=Nothing24;2942221]Typical conversation with a BG.[/QUOTE]Most must be a little off to do this type of work for long periods. Same as sugar babies.