Barbados is not a particularly cheap place to visit, and prices for many items are at least what you'd expect to pay at home. Bargaining is usually frowned upon, but during the off-season, it's worth asking for reduced rates.

The island's unit of currency is the Barbados dollar (B$), divided into 100 cents. It comes in bills of B$100, B$50, B$20, B$10, B$5 and B$2 and coins of B$1, B$0.25, B$0.10, B$0.05 and B$0.01. The rate of exchange is fixed roughly at B$2 to US$1; the US dollar is also widely accepted. Prices are normally quoted in B$, with the exception of accommodation which is almost universally quoted in US$, and we have followed this practice in this guide.

Banking hours are generally Monday to Thursday 8am-3pm and Friday 8am-5pm. Bridgetown, Holetown and Speightstown have numerous banks, and there are branches at most of the south coast resorts; most have ATMs. Many hotels will also exchange money. Major credit cards are widely accepted, though not always at the smaller establishments.

Many hotels and restaurants automatically add a service charge of 10 percent.