Here is information for anyone shopping in Cuba, whether it is within resorts, at local stores or at the Airport shops. It is based on personal experience from shopping many times at various locations, including around Varaderos, Havana, Cayo Guillamo and Cayo Coco.
One method that is commonly used is when you pay with credit card. The sales clerk would swipe your card on the machine, key in (supposed to be your cardâA¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬A¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚¢s security code and expiration date). Then she would tell you the line is not working and then ask you to pay with cash. So you pay with cash and meanwhile, when you get your statement weeks later, you are charged also on your credit card. So you end up paying twice. And it is no use to argue with the credit card company because of the difficulty verifying with the store.
Another common event is when you pay at the cash, the cashier would key in the items amounts (but there is no display to show you the amounts keyed in and the total). Then she would tell you what the total is. You do not get a receipt to verify because they do not give out receipts. The key is-the total amount she tells you is usually about 10% to 30% higher than the actual purchase amount. Most people would just pay the total because they would think the amounts were punched in and machines are accurate. What happens is that they are being charged more than the actual cost and the cashier would pocket the balance. If you hesitate and try to figure out the actual amount, she would tell you another amount, saying something like, Oh, it should be such and such. The thing is, this second amount is lower (but still higher than the actual cost) and you would think, Well, it is lower so it must be correct now.
The point is, add up your purchase and know the actual total cost before going to the cash or check your purchase amount with the amount told to you by the cashier or you will be bilked.
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This is really interesting.
Can you please share with us some more details? |
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| What exactly would you like me to expand on? |
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| Use cash in Cuba whenever possible. |
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