The Jamaican dollar is the official currency of the Caribbean island state of Jamaica. Its ISO code is JMD and its symbol is J $. It is issued by the Bank of Jamaica.
The Jamaican dollar is available in banknotes of 50, 100, 500 and 1000 dollars, the coins in the denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 20 dollars and small coins of 1, 10 and 25 cents. Most tourists find the $ 20 coin very interesting. It is visually very similar to the 1 euro coin. In addition to the Jamaican dollar, which the locals briefly call Jay for the sake of simplicity, the US dollar is Jamaica’s unofficial second currency.
History of the Jamaican currency
The currency has only existed since 1971. Jamaica was a British crown colony until 1962, and the British pound was used as the currency for several years after independence. The Jamaican dollar is a freely convertible currency.
Exchanges into Jamaican dollars
US dollars are accepted everywhere and in the tourist centers today even euros are accepted almost everywhere. Even so, it is cheaper to either have US dollar bills in small denominations ($ 1 or $ 5) with you or to exchange euros for Jamaican dollars at one of the many exchange offices.
Alternatively, money can be withdrawn from one of the many ATMs with the EC card or Mastercard. You get the best prices when you pay in Jamaican dollars, the other currencies are often rounded up rather shamelessly.