Cash for Japan trip
Replies: 2 - Last Post: Nov 16, 2012 12:12 AM Last Post By: windswept321
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Cash for Japan trip
I am leaving for a 3 week trip to Japan after Thankgiving and need some advice about cash. Am I better off (1) taking a small amount of US cash and relying on ATM machines for yen; or (2) bringing a lot of US cash and exchanging it there: or (3) purchasing a lot of yen before I leave? thanks.1
The ATM option is generally the best, assuming you will be mostly in big cities (where there are 7-11 shops and other ATMs that take non-Japanese cards), and assuming your home bank's "foreign network charge" is reasonable. (Examples: my US ATM cards have network charges of 1% or 3%. That difference becomes very large, when considering the amount of money spent on a 3-week trip.)2
I've never had any problem using my card at the Japan Post Office ATMs. They're much more ubiquitous than 7/11, and they accept quite a few overseas cards, although you have to be careful because they usually close by late afternoon/early evening.
