Telephones
in Mexico
are very reliable, especially since TelMex (the Mexican Ma
Bell) started using fiber optics and began installing high-tech phones on every corner in Cancun.. TelMex phones are
recognizable by their white booths and LADATEL logo. LADATEL
are the electronic phone cards used in the phones and are
sold at corner stores and pharmacies in blocks of $30 Pesos,
$50 Pesos, $100 Pesos, and $200 Pesos ($3, $5, $10, $20 respectively).
Some cards are quite beautiful little works of art and have become
collector’s items.
The phones are easy to use. When you pick up the handset,
instructions show up on the telephone screen. To change
them to English, push the ABC button on the left hand side
of the dial pad. When instructed, slide your card in, then wait
until it asks you to dial your number. After you dial and
are connected, the dollar amount on your card and time you
have remaining on it
will appear underneath the displayed number. If your card
runs out before your conversation, press the button with
the card picture, wait one second and slide in the new card.
Using a phone card is the cheapest way to phone home, aside
from calling Collect. You may be tempted to use the red
phones around town that are so simple to use (just dial
0) but you may want to avoid the temptation, as they charge exorbitant rates.
They are also subject to heavy scamming, since they accept
credit card numbers with no other identification. Calling
from your hotel room can also cost a significant amount, as hotels add a hefty
surcharge: between 50 cents and $1 for each local call and
much, much more for long-distance calls. It adds up quickly.
To call long distance anywhere in Mexico, dial 01 + area
code + local number. To call the US or Canada, dial 001
+ area code + local number. To call Cancun from the US or
Canada dial 011 (int'l access code) + 52 (Mexico's country
code) + 98 (Cancun’s area code) + the local number.
For local calls in Cancun, just dial the local phone number.
If you have a phone card from home, be sure to ask for
their special 800 number that works in Mexico—the
usual number won’t function outside of the States
or Canada. Many of the long distance cards you buy at home
will not operate in Mexico even if advertised that they
do, so check with your long distance server before you leave
home. Using your phone card may get you cheaper rates depending
on your arrangement with your long distance server. Long
distance rates in Mexico are one flat fee not based on distance,
so it means it costs the same to call Hong Kong as it does New
York. The rates are still pretty high: international phone
calls are taxed 60%. Rates are reduced 50 % after 8 PM from
Monday to Saturday and all day Sunday until 8 PM. The international
lines on Sundays are sometimes busy all day.
To phone Collect, dial 09 and you will be connected to the
international operator who speaks English. This is the cheapest
way for you to call home – it will cost one peso to
be connected. However, it won’t be cheap for the person
who accepts the charge.
For information, dial 040 – these operators don’t
speak English well, so you must speak slowly. For the correct
time, dial 030 – this too will be in Spanish.
If you would like to make your phone call more private
and comfortable, try a caseta de larga distancia (long distance
office). You make your call in a telephone booth after the
clerk has dialed your number. The rates are a bit higher
than the telephones, but you have the benefit of silence
and a place to sit down. In the Hotel Zone, there are offices
in Plaza Kukulcán, Plaza Mayafair, and Plaza Caracol.
Downtown, there is a caseta de larga distancia directly across
from the bus station on Av. Tulum. There is a service fee
between $3.50 and $5 on top of the large long-distance charges.
