budget needed for venezuela and places to see

09-August-2009 post:

I am horrified of how many people arrived in Venezuela without knowing of the black market and fleeing the country because of the official exchange rate, they simply cannot afford. My experience is, you can change everywhere, we have done it several times, on the street there are no problems, it is too big an activity now. I would definitely recommend more USD than Euros. And, most important: bring BIG notes, only 50 and US$ 100, you will get a much better change.

09-August-2009 post:

As has been stated repeatedly the official exchange rate is a joke, a total rip off. you need to take some USD or Euros in cash for your trip and change it at the black market rate (about 3x the official rate) everyone does it, that is just how it works. To change money just ask in the posada you are staying or ask around hotels or travel agencies, if they cannot help you out they will be able to point you in the right direction. Do not trust random people on the street offering to change money. They may be ligit but they may be carrying fakes. Many posadas - at least those owned by foreigners will normally have a bank account in Europe or even some in the US where you can transfer money too - some will also have a pay-pal account. If you are planning on taking trips that can be expensive (such as Angel Falls) do not count on paying by credit card as you would be charged the official rate - but money transfer may be good (though bare in mind the transfer fee and the rate will not be as good as cash.The exchange rate (at least for the Euro) seems to decline as you head west (this was told to me and I have found it to be true) so you get better rates in places in the east but it can go down by a whole point (as in from 7.9 to 6.9) as you get close to Colombia. Of course you can always try and haggle. There are also people/agencies/posadas, that you can transfer money too and they will give you the cash.

Buenos Aires Memory

The official rate just doubled on Friday and is now 4.3 bolivares fuertes to the dollar.

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Ormeño runs from Bogota to Caracas at least once a week. Other choice you should consider (possibly cheaper) is to go by bus from Caracas to the border (San Antonio), cross on foot to Cucuta at the Colombian side and then catch a bus to Bogota; Berlinas del Fonce buses take 16 hours and cost US$ 55.00.

www.grupo-ormeno.com.pe</a></strong>
www.berlinasdelfonce.com</a></strong>

Buenos Aires Memory

even though you change money on black market you will end up spending more than you thought... it is easy enough to change money but yet everything costs a lot

thanks a lot, i appreciate your answers!
bamemory, is 55 dollars the one way price for caracas to bogota?
and can someone tell me what i can expect to pay for budget accommodation and food there? and of course transport in general... i really can't find any estimates for costs on the internet.
cheers!

Berlinas del Fonce runs from Cucuta to Bogota. This trip costs 51.00 American dollars.

I recommend the Ormeño bus. It is US$70 so only negligibly more than the other option but much easier and safer. My husband is Venezuelan with family in Colombia and has done both and that is his suggestion. He says it´s safer because otherwise you have to get a taxi between the two border towns which could be sketchy for foreigners. We´ll be taking the ormeño bus ourselves on Thursday. It only leaves once a week on Thursdays and can be hours late since it orginates in Peru several days prior.

Good luck!