Chicago: Money & Costs

• Currency

  Name

  US Dollar

  Symbol

  US$

  American banknotes (bills) often confuse visitors: they're all the same size and the same colour. Be especially careful not to hand over too much cash, and always check your change carefully. Be careful not to accept incomplete or severely torn notes, as they can be refused; small rips are usually not a problem. Bills come in denominations of 1, 2 (rare), 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars.

  Coins come in 1 (penny), 5 (nickel), 10 (dime), 25 (quarter) cent and 50 cent denominations; there is also a dollar coin.

• Changing Your Money

  Major credit and debit cards, including the Visa Cash Passport Card, are widely accepted. You can also access your bank account using US ATMs which are ubiquitous. Travellers cheques are easily converted to cash at any bank. You'll probably need to take your passport along to prove your identity.

• Money Tips

  If you camp or stay in hostels, catch buses and cook your own food, you could feasibly explore the country on around US$50 a day. Staying in motels and eating at modest cafes will mean you'll hit the US$100 mark, and enjoying the convenience of a rental car will push your daily budget up to US$150 .

• Sample Price Guide

  movie ticket

  US$ 9.00

  internet cafe access per hour

  US$ 8.50

  Chicago Art Institute entry

  US$ 10.00

  ride up Sears Tower

  US$ 11.95

  bicycle hire per day

  US$ 9.00

  Warren Park baseball batting cage hire (per 15 pitches)

  US$ 1.00

  budget hostel dormitory bed

  US$ 35.00

  hot dog

  US$ 1.50

  top end standard room at the Chicago Hilton

  US$ 200.00

  Average Room Prices
  Low	Mid	High
  US$0-114	US$115-239	US$240+
  Average Meal Prices
  Low	Mid	High	Deluxe
  US$4-8	US$9-35	US$35-75	US$75+

• Tipping

  Restaurant wait staff, hotel maids, valet car parkers, bartenders, bellhops and others are paid a mere pittance in wages and expect to make up the shortfall through tips. But whom to tip? And how much? If, at the end of your meal, you thought the service was fine, tip a minimum of 15% of the pre-tax bill. If the service was great, take that number up to 20%. Indifferent or hostile waitstaff deserve whatever pittance you feel like leaving. (If the service was truly abysmal, discuss it with the manager - not only will the waiter get a stern dressing-down later, but you might get your bill reduced for your pain and suffering). Many restaurants add the tip into the bill for parties of six or more.

  At cafes or taquerias where you order food and drinks at the counter, the tipping etiquette is a little less clear (though a tip jar will always be prominently displayed). If you order food that someone then brings to your table, it's common practice to drop about 10% of your total in the tip jar. If you're getting food or drinks to go, no tip is expected. Valet parkers should get anywhere from US$2.00 to US$5.00 when they return your car to you (assuming the car is in the same shape it was when you surrendered it to them).

  Bartenders should be paid up to a dollar a drink, 10% to 15% for cocktail servers and taxi drivers, doormen a buck or two for hailing you a cab (depending on the weather), hotel cleaning staff a dollar or two daily (left on the pillow), and concierges should be tipped a couple of dollars when they go out of their way to make your stay more than usually pleasant.

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