Mexicali Mexico

Mexicali offers a variety of shopping malls, souvenir shops, department stores, and specialized boutiques. Malls particularly are popular among locals and tourists alike especially during the extremely hot summer season. They are fully-air conditioned, highly-modernized, and well-designed. Aside from shops and boutiques, they have bars, bowling alleys, movie theaters, and food courts.

The biggest and most visited mall in Mexicali is the Plaza La Cachanilla. Its name was derived from the sweet smelling Canchanilla plant which is native to the Valle de Mexicali. It houses different restaurants, specialty shops, and a movie theater. It also features a wide variety of products, from local handicrafts to expensive imported goods. Some of its shops sell souvenirs created by well-known Mexican artisans.

The Plaza Mundo Divertido was originally constructed as an amusement park and was later converted to a shopping mall. It boasts of a large food court that serves various international cuisines, a movie theater, and a state-of-the-art bowling alley.

The Plaza Catavina is more popular among health buffs because of its modern gym which has the latest work-out machines and free weights. It also has souvenir shops, fashion boutiques, and jewelry and shoe stores.

Other malls and department stores are Plaza Nuevo Mexicali, Plaza Juventud 2000, Plaza Fiesta, Pisos Y Recubrimientos, Centro Comercial Gigante, Plaza Universidad, and Plaza San Pedro. A majority of stores are open from 10 AM to 9 PM and those located in the tourist areas are also open on Sundays.

Most commercial establishments accept Mexican and international credit cards including Visa, American Express, and Master Card. The branches of main banks and credit institutions in Mexico are also easily accessible. They are usually open from 9 AM to 4 PM although some banks cater to clients until 7 PM. Banking services for currency exchange and checking transactions are available from 9 AM to 1:30 PM. The foreign exchange rate fluctuates from 10 to 11 Mexican pesos per US dollar but foreign tourists need not exchange their dollars with the local currency as all businesses accept the US currency. Banks in Mexicali and ATMs in San Felipe accommodate debit cards to take up to P3,225 (about US$300) per day from the client’s account. Some of the banks in Mexicali are Banamex, Scotiabank Inverlat, Banorte, HSBC, BBVA Bancomer, and Banca Serfin.

Tourists from the United States can bring back up to US$400 worth of goods free of customs duties and up to one liter of alcohol. This limit is cumulative within a family. Mexican arts and crafts are duty-free and will not be included in the US$400 limit. If traveling by cruise ship, plane, or train, tourists can exceed the one-liter limit of alcohol but only the first liter is duty-free. The following items are legal in Mexico and can be bought in the border area but are not allowed to be brought into the US: Cuban cigars, turtle products, switchblades, butterfly knives, and fireworks.