Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Money
ATMs
Sizeable towns have
cajeros automáticos
(ATMs) - usually Banco Nacional de Bolivia,
Banco Bisa, Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz and Banco Unión. They dispense bolivianos in
50 and 100 notes (sometimes US dollars as well) on Visa, MasterCard, Plus and Cirrus
cards; note that in the past, many Europeans have reported trouble using their cards. In
smaller towns, the local bank Prodem is a good option for cash advances on Visa and
MasterCard (3% to 6% commission charged) and many branches are meant to be open on
Saturday mornings; the hours and machines are unreliable. Don't rely on ATMs; always
carry some cash with you, especially if venturing into rural areas.
Change
Finding change for bills larger than B$10 is a national pastime, as change for larger notes
is scarce outside big cities. When exchanging money or making big purchases, request the
cambio
(change) in small denominations. If you can stand the queues, most banks will
break large bills. Also, check any larger bills for damage as you may not be able to change
them if they're torn or taped together.
Counterfeits
Counterfeit bolivianos and US dollars are less common than they used to be, but it still
happens more often than you'd like.
Credit Cards
Brand-name plastic - such as Visa, MasterCard and (less often) American Express - may
be used in larger cities at the better hotels, restaurants and tour agencies.
Currency
Bolivia uses the boliviano (B$). Most prices are pegged to the US dollar. Only crisp US
dollar bills are accepted (they are the currency for savings).
The boliviano is divided into 100 centavos
.
Bolivianos come in 10, 20, 50, 100 and
200 denomination notes, with coins worth 1, 2 and 5 bolivianos as well as 10, 20 and 50
centavos. Often called 'pesos' (the currency was changed from pesos to bolivianos in
1987), bolivia- nos are extremely difficult to unload outside the country.
