El Salvador: good to know
The general-information half of trip planning: how expensive El Salvador feels, what is considered polite, what is not, and the everyday practicalities - alongside our 61 written places.
Warm, family-first and unhurried; strangers greet you and mean it.
✓ Considered polite
- Greet with buenos dias or buenas tardes entering shops and buses - it is expected everywhere
- Say buen provecho to fellow diners - it is the standard courtesy around food
- Eat pupusas with your hands, with curtido and salsa on top
- Carry small bills - breaking a twenty at a pupusa stand is genuinely hard
✗ Better avoided
- Launch into business before small talk - family questions come first
- Arrive exactly on time to a social invitation - a relaxed half hour late is normal
- Wear beachwear away from the beach - churches and towns expect covered shoulders
- Refuse offered food or coffee outright - accept a little even if you barely touch it
Worth knowing
- The US dollar is the everyday currency - no exchange needed if you carry dollars
- A 10% propina is often already printed on restaurant bills - check before tipping again
- Pupuserias are busiest at breakfast and dinner - many close mid-afternoon
- Sunday is family day - expect full beaches, packed comedores and early closures
Plugs and voltage: Wikipedia, «Mains electricity by country» (after the IEC World Plugs list), read 15 October 2026.
Some links on this page are Amazon affiliate links - if you buy through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Customs are living things - regions differ, cities relax, generations shift. Take these notes as a friendly head start, watch what locals do, and when in doubt a smile and a greeting in the local language cover almost everything.