Cash or Card
 

Have a 7 night trip to GIG but includes excursion on LATAM to IGU for 2 nights

- can use UBER App (linked to CC) to do airport transfers.
- will pre-book tours online (CC)
- Hotels clearly take CC
- Restaurants am looking at seem to take CC

So, apart from few BR$ (or USD..?) for tips (eg. Housekeeping).. Anything else i need to consider exchanging real money for in advance. ?

TIA

CC are widely accepted in Brazil, although sometimes only debit cards are accepted. Make sure you use a card with no foreign transaction fee and always pay in Brazilian Real (BRL), decline the conversion to USD otherwise a 7% transaction fee is tacked on.

You may use an ATM to withdraw BRL after you arrive at your hotel, there’s no need to exchange money in advance. I use the no-fee ATM at Bradesco Bank, again, decline the conversion to dollars otherwise an 11% transaction fee is tacked on.

I didn't know you could decline Bradesco's conversion, I thought it was either accept that or no withdrawal at all.

In Rio de Janeiro, specifically the city, you should avoid withdrawing money with a foreign card on ATM machines. I've had multiple cards "cloned" over the years. So now I never get cash in the city anymore.

thank you, good to know

I always withdraw at Bradesco and haven’t had any cards cloned, yet! :eek:

Ditto (Knock on wood). Also, OP, have at least two different CCs as I have sometimes come across a situation where one would not work, or one was not accepted.

now First Direct have also dropped fees for foreign transactions, I'll have at least 2 debit cards plus CC's (though maybe not all on me at same time lol)