I read in the travel books Frommers's and Lonely Planet the best place to convert US dollars to Jamaican dollars is at the airport is this true? On Yahoo Finance the going exchange rate is 72.5 Jamaican dollars to 1 US dollar but realistically what can I expect?

The airport gives one of the worst exchange rates. Look for a Cambio when you leave the airport and they give a better rate. If you have a driver picking you up at the airport, just ask him and he will take to to a place giving a better rate.

What is a Cambio? I'll be renting a car.

Cambio is a money exchange outfit. (Cambio is spanish for exchange)

And do LP and Frommers really say the airport is the best place? That's crazy. They may be the easiest, but I've never thought of them as giving the best rate.

To be quite honest, I find that the best rate is usually the ATM machine. When I use my US ATM card in Jamaica, I always seem to get $1.00-2.00 more than the Cambios. Be careful though, because it does fluctuate.

SuperSaver Plus in MoBay is the best I've found, and you can stock up on groceries and provisions that you might need as well. It's open late, and it's on the way out of MoBay that you will travel to go to Treasure Beach.

you are just go to the machine best rate

That is what it said in the travel book. What can I expect in currency exchange I know I'm probably not going to get the $72 to $1 that yahoo says is the current rate. Unfortunately I'll be coming from Kingston but is there a full service grocery store along the way I can stop and get somethings

If you use your ATM card at an ATM machine to extract JA$$$ you receive the official market exchange rate but you pay a small bank fee which will show on your monthly statement.The fee is nominal and better than the lowered local exchange rates. It has always been the best choice for me.

I'm not certain if there is an ATM Bank Machine like the JNB(?) one near the arrival terminal in Mobay. Does anyone know? Bryan if there is, I would suggest using it. Be sure to use a bank machine versus a private company machine which may charge high fees.

Alice, do you know what the maximum $$ withdrawel is per day from the ATM? I think it is only $200 or $300US per day in the States. If there is a limit, it may make a difference for folks who are not planning to travel outside of the Treasure Beach area during their stay. Unless perhaps there is an ATM at Crossroads now - seems like I read something about it but can't remember for sure.

A few weeks ago SuperPlus in MoBay ran out of money. Seriously. Apparently, they use a lot of what's brought in to do Western Union transactions. (This has never happened to us before.) SuperPlus is normally a great place to exchange money because you can also buy food items, phone cards, and other things there.

King Cambio in MoBay (between the airport and SuperPlus) has excellent rates and ultra-fast service.

Bryan, there is an ATM right at the Kingston airport. As you exit the building walk straigh ahead and you will see it on the left hand side. You will be limited to whatever your bank allows you to take out per day.

As far as a good supermarket, since you have your own vehicle, you may want to just shop at the supermarket located 10 minutes out of Treasure Beach at Crossroads.

Some US banks allow a daily withdrawl limit of $1000USD from ATMs. The ATMs at Scotia Bank has a limit per transaction of $30,000JA(?) but you can make more than one withdrawl back to back if you desire more than 30,000. I have landed in JA with only about $20USD and never had a problem. last year, the ATM @ the Mobay airport wasn't working due to construction so I went to the Scotia Bank in Ironshore where you can get JA or US. There is also another dual currency Scotia machine at Half Moon Resort in Mobay. There is a single currency ATM(JNB?) along the way, next to a Super Plus( not sure of the district's name); when go go from Mobay to TB via Sav. Anyone, what's the name of the area? It's been a long time since I've flown into Kingston so not as familiar with options there.

I strongly reccomend the Supermarket at Cross Roads. The employees are exceptionally helpful and the supermarket does stock all your needs. During our stay over the Christmas Holidays, that is where we shopped and the store was clean and seemed to be very well managed.

Is the supermarket at Crossroads where Sylvans wife works at? Can not remember where Crossroads is. Have a great day. Thanks

How far is Cross Roads from TB. Does anyone know what the bank service charge is for withdrawals?