Which currency for Bequia Caribbean

Ellington
Ellington Posts: 27 Forumite
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in Flights, currency & car hire
For Bequia island in the Grenadines in the Caribbean should we take US Dollars or East Caribbean Dollars ?
Also should we buy the currency here in the UK before we go
If here where should we buy from
We will also always take a Santander Zero Card with us for use abroad
Any advice would be appreciated
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Comments

  • eDicky
    eDicky Posts: 6,570 Forumite
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    Forget about US dollars, unless you already happen to have some (notes in good condition).

    Use your Zero card for payment in XCD and obtain any necessary cash from local ATMs. Don't waste time and money buying cash in advance.

    Consider a fee free debit card such as Starling Bank or Monzo as backup, and/or take some cash pounds (notes in top condition).
    Evolution, not revolution
  • Ellington
    Ellington Posts: 27 Forumite
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    Thank you - we still have about 100 US dollars in pristine condition
    I will take a look at the free debit cards which you mention
  • Ellington
    Ellington Posts: 27 Forumite
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    I took a look at Starling - liked the look of it and applied for a debit card - very simple process - thanks once again
  • NoodleDoodleMan
    NoodleDoodleMan Posts: 3,348 Forumite
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    A cautionary tale - we had an educational experience on one of the popular tourist islands on a Caribbean cruise a few years back.

    Running short of US Dollars (which everybody and their dog accepted there) so I went into a local bank to get more.

    They didn't offer US Dollars for Sterling as an immediate transaction - I had to buy the local currency (Eastern Carib Dollars if memory serves) as transaction one, and then converet them to US Dollars in transaction two.

    To add insult to injury, they demanded two separate forms of offical ID, a passport alone was insufficient - fortunately I had other backup documentation.
  • harz99
    harz99 Posts: 3,636 Forumite
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    eDicky wrote: »

    Consider a fee free debit card such as Starling Bank or Monzo as backup, and/or take some cash pounds (English notes in top condition).


    An important distinction as in most foreign countries people will have at the very least some difficulty changing Scottish, Northern Irish, Gibraltar issued notes although all are of the same face value as the English variety.
  • Ellington
    Ellington Posts: 27 Forumite
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    Thank you NDM and harz99 for your input
    We have some pristine US Dollars and will also have some pristine sterling notes with us as a back up
    Also as the Starling Bank Account ( with debit card ) - ( as recommended by eDicky ) is now up and running hopefully this will enable us to withdraw East Caribbean Dollars from the ATM in Bequia as and when needed
  • NoodleDoodleMan
    NoodleDoodleMan Posts: 3,348 Forumite
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    edited 8 January 2019 at 6:38PM
    Transacting with Scottish notes in England can sometimes be a drama !!!

    his will enable us to withdraw East Caribbean Dollars from the ATM in Bequia as and when needed
    I doubt you'll have any problems using US Dollars in the Grenadines - they are widely accepted - and make sure you'll get greenbacks in your change, best to ask first to prevent any problems.

    Best to stick with low denomination bills, and in good condition.

    You'll want to use up your ECD's as much as possible and not bring them back.

    I've read somewhere that some of these islands have a few ATMs that dispense US $.
  • Ellington
    Ellington Posts: 27 Forumite
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    Hopefully Plan A will work - pay by Santander Zero card wherever possible and use our relatively small supply of US dollars until we can get a supply of East Caribbean dollars via Starling for use where it is not possible to use our Zero card
    Judging by our research and the postings on TA Bequia seems to be a wonderful island and ticks all the boxes for us so if it happens that we still have some EC dollars left at the end of the holiday we will have a starting supply for when we return
  • LadyDee
    LadyDee Posts: 4,293 Forumite
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    If withdrawing local currency or dollars from ATM, be sure to select local conversion if a choice is given before you withdraw the money.
  • eDicky
    eDicky Posts: 6,570 Forumite
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    LadyDee wrote: »
    If withdrawing local currency or dollars from ATM, be sure to select local conversion if a choice is given before you withdraw the money.
    I think you mean be sure to select 'Without Conversion' or whatever option is displayed that rejects 'Conversion' by the local bank operating the ATM (so that your card performs the conversion at the ideal rate).
    Evolution, not revolution
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