Money, cards and ATMs in Guatemala

The quetzal

• The quetzal (GTQ) is the currency and it is a cash economy once you leave Guatemala City and Antigua.
• US dollars are widely accepted for tourist services - shuttles, tours, the departure tax - but they are not legal tender and change comes in quetzals at a rate that is not in your favour.
• Carry small notes. A 200 quetzal note is hard to break in a village.

Cards and machines

• Cards work in Guatemala City, Antigua and larger hotels and restaurants and almost nowhere else.
• Cash machines are the risk point. The FCDO's warnings about express kidnapping involve victims being driven to machines - use one inside a bank or a guarded supermarket during the day, never a street-facing machine at night.
• Take out what you need for several days at once when you are somewhere with a reliable bank, especially before heading to Semuc Champey or the smaller Atitlan villages.
• Decline the offer to be charged in your own currency.

Everyday

• Tipping is 10% in restaurants where service is not included.
• Guides, shuttle drivers and boat crews are tipped in small quetzal notes, which is another reason to carry them.
• Markets are haggled, politely and without drama. Chichicastenango expects it; a shop does not.