Hi Thomas, it will not be easy to cash a personal check in Ecuador unless you have a bank account here. And then, it’s been my experience that you’ll need to have that amount of cash already in your account to cover the amount you want to withdraw. There are ATM machines everywhere. The fee will depend on your bank in the States. We switched to a Capital One online account as they don’t charge foreign transaction fees. I think maybe Citibank is another that doesn’t impose these charges. Credit cards are the same – -you can use them in Ecuador wherever they are accepted, but you’ll pay whatever fee your credit card company imposes. If you are from the US there should not be a currency conversion fee, but you may have to pay a foreign transaction fee. Ask your credit card company. One place to compare and contrast credit card fees and services is creditcards.com — we carry both Amex and Capital One cards for this reason.
That said, only major businesses (supermarket chains, stores in big malls, hotel chains, expensive restaurants, etc.) will accept credit cards. Small vendors will not. We usually withdraw the maximum amount allowed on our ATM card — usually $300 (some machines allow more) and when that’s gone, we withdraw more. $300 goes a long way here. We’ve functioned this way in Ecuador for three years now, and don’t see any reason (economic or convenience-wise) to change that.
If you ever get in a pinch, there are banks that allow a large sum withdrawal charged to a credit card. Banco Internacional offers this service in Quito, for instance.
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