confused..currency??

[boowaaccaa]

Ok I am a bit confused....I have left over EURO's from another trip so I thought I would use them in St. Maarten.....but when I asked the price of an excursion there it was $35 US or $33 Euro.

Am I missing something? I go to the online exchange and it says that $35 US is $23 EURO.

[gtaylor]

Obviously there is something amiss.

 

Where were you trying to book the excursion?

 

The 35 US = 23 Euro sounds correct, not the 35 = 33.

 

If you would like to spend the money on food instead of an excursion, I would recommend that you convert the Euros to Dollars (currently about $1.50 US) and then find a nice restaurant on the French Side that does 1=1. You just saved about 1/3!

 

This also works on Orient beach for chair rentals, etc.

 

gary

[boowaaccaa]

Thanks Gary.

 

The excursion is already booked but I remembered the EURO's I had and asked if I could pay with them. I also emailed back and asked if he meant $23 and not $33.

 

In the first email he said it would cost $33 EURO--in the second he said "the Euros we take at $1.25"

 

I think this sounds like a rip off--OR--benefit of the doubt perhaps some confusion....I will email him once more and go from there.

 

This tour guide came recomended from cc.

[gtaylor]

The Dollar has dropped some more since we were on-island in October, but at that time casinos were doing $1.30 = 1 Euro. I would think that it might be even higher now, and looking at bank-rate conversions I do see $1.49.

 

If the excursion company is slow to track rate changes, I guess the $1.25 isn't TOO bad, but, again, you might convert the Euros to Dollars now at a more favorable rate (depends on fees, of course), and then pay the company in Dollars.

 

gary

[boowaaccaa]

Thanks---the lastest email now says $28 euro.

I only had a $50 euro (which at $23 x 2 would be enough) but since it is $28 I will pay $35 US and save the Euro for another spot.

[tinybabynurse]

We had the same issue.

 

Note that on the dutch side the dollar is the "de facto" currency and the Euro is not normally used.

 

Many places on the French side will take the dollar 1-for-1 with the euro but this may change if the dollar keeps dropping.

 

We always take cash because if you pay with credit card they usually charge it in Euros AND you pay taxes and your card's exchange fees.

 

Several places use the current conversion rate so you are better off there paying in Euros if you have them. The places on Pinel Island and the Bars at Club O are in this category. Club O does accept dollars for everything but only the chairs and watersports were 1-for-1 when we were last at Orient Beach

[startraveler]

The exchange rate is usually the best rate you can get. Private companies will often give you less, and the rate can also differ from day to day. If there's a fixed exchange rate, like the Bahamas 1 of their dollars to 1 U.S. dollar, that's a different story.