5 Errors Expats Make in Paraguay

Who Inspired These Questions?

Fluido's founder, Sam Goetz, featured in the first edition of Paraguay Tax Free's "Founders in Asunción" interview series. Yannick Schroth, the CEO of Paraguay Tax Free, inspired Sam to elaborate on his questions about "what are the first three things you would tell somebody moving to Asunción", with this list of 5.

For more unique insights on Paraguay, please read the full interview here.

5 Common Errors

1. Poor Neighborhood Choice
2. Overpaying for Uber
3. Ordering Steaks Wrong
4. Saying "De dónde eres?"
5. Standing up

Poor Neighborhood Choice 

Living in a less centralized neighborhood may save expats rent, but will cost them in transportation expense.

The central neighborhoods for expats in Asunción are Villa Morra and Las Lomas. Therefore, they are the most expensive. But choosing to live farther from these hubs to save money, will result in a similar amount spent on transportation, like Ubers.

Overpaying for Uber in Paraguay

There's a rideshare app called "Bolt", that's cheaper than Uber.

But Bolt is cheaper for a reason. First of all, they don't vet their cars and drivers as much as Uber. It's common that a car that's over 20 years old will be used to pick up riders, and perhaps without seatbelts. 

But since Bolt doesn't vet its drivers as much as Uber, there are many more drivers on Bolt than on Uber. This means the pickup times are much faster. Perhaps this increased supply of drivers also contributes to cheaper fares; supply and demand.

Bolt drivers are paid by the app every Monday, which means that on weekends, they tend to prefer to be paid in cash, so they can receive the money they need instantly. As a result, many Bolt drivers will ask riders if they are paying cash ("efectivo") or with local bank transfers ("transferencia"), and will cancel if the rider wants to pay with the credit card they've used in the app. This behaviour does not happen on Uber.

Ordering Beef Steaks Wrong in Paraguay

Paraguayans tend to prefer their meat well done, while western expats often have a preference for something closer to medium rare. If one goes to a steakhouse like Cabrera or Patria Parrilla, they must clearly communicate that they want their steak "a punto", if they want it medium-rare.

Never say "De dónde eres" in Paraguay

In Paraguay, people say "vos" instead of "tú", when they want to say "you". While most verb conjugations are unchanged, instead of "tú eres", we say "vos sos" here. "Sos" is the conjugation of the verb "ser" when the pronoun is "vos".

If this sounds confusing, our team at Fluido Spanish School would love to make it easy for you!

Be Careful When Standing Up in Paraguay

It can be considered rude to remain standing when waiting for something in Paraguay. Expats waiting at government offices for service, or even just waiting for food, should try to sit down - especially when offered a seat.