Coming back for a visit

by zenwoodle Wed Dec 04, 2024 12:23 pm

We are coming back down for a couple of weeks at the end of February and were wondering about a few things.
Did COVID change the cash society? Are cards accepted more nowadays?
Who is the best for airport transportation?
I used to have a sheet that explained phone dialing in Mexico from a Canadian cell phone. I think I got it on this site, but can't find it now.

So I came on to the best source for information lakeside. Don't let me down.

by RickS Wed Dec 04, 2024 2:20 pm

zenwoodle wrote:We are coming back down for a couple of weeks at the end of February and were wondering about a few things.
Did COVID change the cash society? Are cards accepted more nowadays?

Cash/pesos is still king; credit cards are/have been acceptable at most larger stores, restaurants, etc.
Who is the best for airport transportation?
I assume you mean getting from the airport to Lakeside. If so, easiest is to take a cab; less than 500 pesos right to your door.
I used to have a sheet that explained phone dialing in Mexico from a Canadian cell phone. I think I got it on this site, but can't find it now.
Can't help you. Kinda depends on your Canadian carrier and what they require. On my US cellphone, I just dial the Mexican number. You might look into using the whatsapp facility/app. Most Mexicans communicate this way these days. Don't answer a phone call but jump right on a whatsapp call/text.

So I came on to the best source for information lakeside. Don't let me down.

by CanuckBob Thu Dec 05, 2024 7:16 am

Long time no see......I hope all is well with you.

Many more small businesses take credit/debit cards with the advent of the "Clip" device. However as stated above be prepared to carry some cash.

I agree that an airport taxi is the easiest and least expensive however it is about $580 pesos now. Be prepared to wait up to 30 minutes for a car to be available.

To call Mexico from Canada, dial:
011 - 52 - 10 digit phone number

by mudgirl Thu Dec 05, 2024 9:54 am

He asked how to phone while in Mexico from a Canadian cell phone.
As far as I'm aware, you just dial the 10 digit number. Or maybe with +52 in front of it. Definitely not with the 011.

by Trailrunner Thu Dec 05, 2024 11:07 am

Hi Zen! You've been gone a long time. Moving back or just visiting?

by Bill Phillips Thu Dec 05, 2024 2:56 pm

This is how to do it with a Telus (Canadian) SIM card. Presume it is the same with other Canadian carriers:

To call Canada from Mexico with Telcel, you can dial the following:
Exit country code: Dial 00
Country code: Dial 1, which is the country code for Canada
Area code: Dial the area code for the region you are calling
Phone number: Dial the 7-digit Canadian cell phone or landline number
For example, to call Toronto, Canada, you would dial 00-1-416 and the 7-digit.

by mudgirl Thu Dec 05, 2024 3:33 pm

Except that nowdays people use + instead of 00. So to call Canada or the US from Mexico, you just use +1 and the area code and number.

by zenwoodle Thu Dec 05, 2024 4:16 pm

Thx for the info, We are coming to look into the idea of returning as snowbirds.
I will rent a car while we are here. I have rented from S&S many years ago when we first came down. Are they still a good bet?

by BisbeeGal Thu Dec 05, 2024 5:10 pm

I use my cc far more than cash...even my local frutería, pastelería and almost all restaurants take them even smaller MXN owned ones.

I used to go to the ATM once or twice a week before the chip readers, now I only hit the ATM once or twice a month, mostly to pay my gardener and other workmen who take only cash.

fyi, it wasn't the pandemic that changed MEX re: cc's. It was the MXN's government new requirement that almost all businesses issue receipts to customers via a platform that also reports the sale to the government. The ability to hide cash sales went away for the most part. And no doubt a lot of businesses also realized that cash sales that were going into the pocket of their employees, also stops when they take cc's.

I am frankly suspect of the few good-sized gringo-oriented restaurants that do not accept cc's.

We landed this afternoon at GDL and the taxi was 570p to Ajijic Centro. They take cc's too!

S&S remains a great company to do business with.

by BisbeeGal Thu Dec 05, 2024 5:59 pm

Oh and there was no wait on a taxi. Instead of going down to the hotel, we went out first opening we could and they were taking tickets there.

by zenwoodle Fri Dec 06, 2024 1:51 pm

It seems that S&S are not doing car rentals. They recommended Linea Professional located across from Guad Pharmacy.
Any one have any experience with them? Any other suggestions?

by RickS Fri Dec 06, 2024 3:06 pm

There are a couple of individuals who have rent cars here in Ajijic. They are generally older vehivles but.....

Margaret Ancira cell 331-177-6330 or Mark Turford cell 333-398-9045 Both rent used vehicles with insurance. Mark's maybe a little older but....

by BisbeeGal Fri Dec 06, 2024 3:51 pm

I wasn't sure if Mark was still around. We rented from him a few times, once for 2 months, but not since 2017. His drivers would pick us up in the rental at the airport, saving us the taxi fare.

And Mark made sure the insurance papers included our names...whoever you rent from, make sure you get that.

We liked that Mark's cars usually had a few dings in them. No worries if someone dinged a door in a parking lot.

This is email I used with Mark back then. markturford@yahoo.com

by zenwoodle Sat Dec 07, 2024 2:29 pm

The car rental is proving to be confusing.
Linea Professional located across from Guad Pharmacy quoted me 875 pesos a day including all taxes and insurance.
Budget at the airport quoted me 590 pesos a day for the same thing.
Mex rent a car at the airport quoted me 575 pesos a day for the same thing.

My experience in the past has been that airport rental costs about 20% more than local rental.
Am I missing something with the airport quotes?

by BisbeeGal Sat Dec 07, 2024 3:11 pm

Often the airport quotes do not include all the misc. charges, just barebones rate.

Sometimes you can dig a little deeper at their websites and try to calculate all the costs, but not always. We have run into this in the EU.

by CanuckBob Sun Dec 08, 2024 7:21 am

Yep, I'll bet those airport quotes don't include the "mandatory insurance" they will say you need. That is usually more than the daily rate of the vehicle.

by mudgirl Sun Dec 08, 2024 9:34 am

Yes, the car rentals from the airport will definitely spring a lot of extra charges on you, regardless of whether the paperwork you get when you rent the vehicle online claims it's the total price. They are notorious for that.

by zenwoodle Sun Dec 08, 2024 10:24 am

I have arranged a rental with Antonio Regalado in Riberas.
I think I may have met him many years ago when I was selling my car.
But then again at my age who can tell?

Thx for all the help. Maybe I will see some of you again when we are there.

by RickS Sun Dec 08, 2024 5:52 pm

Hey Zen... did Antonio have cars to rent or did he 'arrange' a rental through another source? How did the pricing compare to what you had found elsewhere? (asking for a friend).

Thanks

by BisbeeGal Mon Dec 09, 2024 5:30 am

Make sure your name is on the insurance documents!

by zenwoodle Mon Dec 09, 2024 12:36 pm

Do not know whether Antonio has the cars or not. Linea Profesional was 875 a day, and Antonio was 750.
This is for a compact car. Nissan March size.

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