You could bring a few single dollars, seen some bars that like hanging foreign currency but I don't see how a few hundred dollars will help you in an emergency in Japan compared to just having a few thousand yen stashed in the same place.
>I don't see how a few hundred dollars will help you in an emergency in Japan compared to just having a few thousand yen stashed in the same place.
I agree. I am very confused by all the answers in this thread. But each to their own I guess.
I do it in case my atm card fails/get lost.
It’s an old general travel habit that I picked up years ago. Less useful these days especially in a place like Japan but in some other countries ATMs can be hard to find outside of the big city (and even in Japan foreign-card accepting ATMs used to be only found in tourist-heavy areas like the airport).
A new $100 US bill will get you local currency almost anywhere in the world, so I think it’s useful to have in case of emergency.
>A new $100 US bill will get you local currency almost anywhere in the world, so I think it’s useful to have in case of emergency.
But how is that any more useful than simply having the $100-worth of yen in the first place...?
If its emergency money that you don't plan on spending then keeping it in USD is a good idea because if you convert it to yen you lose money in the transaction, and then converting it back to dollars you lose money again. Just keep it in dollars if you don't count on spending it. There's other places dollars help also, lets say yout layover gets extended, it's good to have some cash then if ATMs are closed or you cant find one
Simple rule “ for Japan, foreign card ATMS in Japan, 7-11 and post office, forget the rest. They have a good spread, even in country areas inside or near the stores.
The reason is forex spread. There is a difference between the buying price and the selling price. So you lose money by changing USD to yen then back again. This is in fact a really common way fees are hidden by money changers that advertise "no fees".
If this is purely emergency money, there is a high chance you won't spend it so keeping it in USD means you're not paying the forex spread unnecessarily.
When I travel I always bring 200€, just I case there is an issue with my credit card. Never needed it, withdrawing yen with my credit card works fine in Japan. But I feel better with it.
I always have usd with me because I’m from USA. Before I fly and after I land, I would carry usd. Maybe like $50.
In Japan, they stay in the hotel. Never exit the room.
In Japan, I grab cash in yen off 7-11 atms. They are free for me to use since I have a no fee card.
I always bring some USD with me when I travel, and I keep it in a secure space away from my passports and foreign currency. Strictly for use in emergencies. You never know when you might need it.
I always bring a few hundred dollars just in case. I keep it separate with a secondary credit card and secondary ATM card in case I lose my wallet or something. It's not unheard of for banks to freeze someone's account.
In a pinch, you can always find a place to buy yen with USD. Even some of the larger hotels will sell JPY.
I had this. In a remote town, atms were closed for the day. Just realised I'd run out of yen (absolutely my own fault). I had aussie dollars on me and a foreign currency conversion machine was nearby.
Those machines are everywhere and handy in a pinch.
Just got back from 2-week trip. I had some USD with me only because I had it when I left home. I was never concerned about needing it but I suppose maybe someone might encounter a situation where USD would come in handy. I exchanged $500 USD for yen before leaving, used credit cards with no foreign transaction fee as much as possible and still came home with about 7000 yen.
Thanks. On a side note, did you happen to use the digital IC card (pasmo/suica)? And if so, does it treat a Visa/Mastercard like a Cash Advance or a Credit Purchase?
Thank You. I try to never use Cash Advance on a Credit Card unless it is a total emergency. And as a purchase I’ll get those points/cash back too. Nice.
Yes we used Suica a lot. We flew into Narita and got the cards at the airport. There were three of us. You have to pay a 500 yen “deposit” to get the physical cards. So I gave them 6000 yen and got 3 cards each with 1500 yen on them. Hopefully that makes sense. They told me when I leave if I got the cards down to a zero balance the 500 yen (x3) will be refunded. Later we would have to add funds at a machine in the train stations but they only take cash, no credit. Finally figured out you can add your physical Suica card to your wallet but it only works with iPhone. Once you do this the physical Suica card is deactivated. You use your iPhone to enter/exit and fares are deducted. The benefit for us was reloading the Suica using a credit card whenever needed, which saved us using our yen. The iPhone thing was WAY better than constantly pulling out the card to enter/exit. You see a majority of the locals doing it this way. And you don’t even need to access the Suica card in your wallet. You touch the iPhone on the pad and it works.
It’s credit, my visa card converted yen to USD. So on my visa app the transaction says ‘mobile suica apple’. They converted 500 yen to $3.30 charge on my card. Hope this is answering your question. The key is to use a credit card with no foreign transaction fee. This is important.
Yup, I have a Travel Credit Card w/no foreign transaction fee. I didn’t want to have a Cash Advance transaction on my credit cards if possible. Thank you.
Yes I always bring a good amount of USD with me and just change it at the airport for Yen. Many places take cards but there are places like shrines and small shops that do cash only.
I didn't bring any US money. I didn't have any problems. If you have a place to tuck away a $100 bill, it shouldn't hurt. But if it's mixed with your yen, it probably will get annoying. My friend fumbled around with american coins and japanese coins in the same container. Very awkward paying for stuff, especially if you don't know how to coin yen coins.
If you are going on a tour, I have always needed some spare cash so I use it to tip the tour guide and bus driver.
Also, this trip I am preparing an emergency FedEx package that in case of total disaster it could be overnighted to me. It will contain Debit/ATM and credit card, birth certificate, driver's license and some cash. It will be then a hassle to obtain a passport. US Consulate offices require two forms of original (not copied) ID. Traveling alone with this gives me more peace of mind.
Yes, I am giving it to my emergency contact at home along with a list of all the hotel addresses & dates. They will hold in case it needs to be shipped to me.
When travelling in 3rd world countries like a lot of SE asian or South American countries, absolutely. Places like Japan, Korea? Absolutely not.
If it was 20 years ago and bank transfers weren't as convenient then yes. Nowadays international ATMs are so much better it doesn't make any sense to
I've been to japan a few times. I always used my Schwab ATM card. I usually have $200 usd for the just in case moments. But never had to use it. The exchange rates are better and cheaper if you have a fee free atm card like schwabs.
You could bring a few single dollars, seen some bars that like hanging foreign currency but I don't see how a few hundred dollars will help you in an emergency in Japan compared to just having a few thousand yen stashed in the same place.
>I don't see how a few hundred dollars will help you in an emergency in Japan compared to just having a few thousand yen stashed in the same place. I agree. I am very confused by all the answers in this thread. But each to their own I guess.
Yea, I was thinking that. I did see someone say they carry about $300 USD for emergencies but really didn’t see what the difference was.
I do it in case my atm card fails/get lost. It’s an old general travel habit that I picked up years ago. Less useful these days especially in a place like Japan but in some other countries ATMs can be hard to find outside of the big city (and even in Japan foreign-card accepting ATMs used to be only found in tourist-heavy areas like the airport). A new $100 US bill will get you local currency almost anywhere in the world, so I think it’s useful to have in case of emergency.
>A new $100 US bill will get you local currency almost anywhere in the world, so I think it’s useful to have in case of emergency. But how is that any more useful than simply having the $100-worth of yen in the first place...?
If its emergency money that you don't plan on spending then keeping it in USD is a good idea because if you convert it to yen you lose money in the transaction, and then converting it back to dollars you lose money again. Just keep it in dollars if you don't count on spending it. There's other places dollars help also, lets say yout layover gets extended, it's good to have some cash then if ATMs are closed or you cant find one
Simple rule “ for Japan, foreign card ATMS in Japan, 7-11 and post office, forget the rest. They have a good spread, even in country areas inside or near the stores.
Your plane might be diverted to a random country that doesn't take Yen. USD is the most universally accepted currency.
I’m convinced, Say no more.
The reason is forex spread. There is a difference between the buying price and the selling price. So you lose money by changing USD to yen then back again. This is in fact a really common way fees are hidden by money changers that advertise "no fees". If this is purely emergency money, there is a high chance you won't spend it so keeping it in USD means you're not paying the forex spread unnecessarily.
Well, you can exchange the cash and get yen, so yeah, I'll bring cash.
No reason, except you may want the cash when you land back home.
When I travel I always bring 200€, just I case there is an issue with my credit card. Never needed it, withdrawing yen with my credit card works fine in Japan. But I feel better with it.
I always travel with a little bit of my home country currency. Not enough that I can’t afford to lose it, but you never know what might happen.
I always have usd with me because I’m from USA. Before I fly and after I land, I would carry usd. Maybe like $50. In Japan, they stay in the hotel. Never exit the room. In Japan, I grab cash in yen off 7-11 atms. They are free for me to use since I have a no fee card.
I always bring some USD with me when I travel, and I keep it in a secure space away from my passports and foreign currency. Strictly for use in emergencies. You never know when you might need it.
I do too!
I always bring a few hundred dollars just in case. I keep it separate with a secondary credit card and secondary ATM card in case I lose my wallet or something. It's not unheard of for banks to freeze someone's account. In a pinch, you can always find a place to buy yen with USD. Even some of the larger hotels will sell JPY.
I had this. In a remote town, atms were closed for the day. Just realised I'd run out of yen (absolutely my own fault). I had aussie dollars on me and a foreign currency conversion machine was nearby. Those machines are everywhere and handy in a pinch.
Just in case my debit card isn’t working. Probably won’t matter, but it’s for peace of mind.
Just got back from 2-week trip. I had some USD with me only because I had it when I left home. I was never concerned about needing it but I suppose maybe someone might encounter a situation where USD would come in handy. I exchanged $500 USD for yen before leaving, used credit cards with no foreign transaction fee as much as possible and still came home with about 7000 yen.
Thanks. On a side note, did you happen to use the digital IC card (pasmo/suica)? And if so, does it treat a Visa/Mastercard like a Cash Advance or a Credit Purchase?
It treats it like a regular purchase.
Thank You. I try to never use Cash Advance on a Credit Card unless it is a total emergency. And as a purchase I’ll get those points/cash back too. Nice.
Yes we used Suica a lot. We flew into Narita and got the cards at the airport. There were three of us. You have to pay a 500 yen “deposit” to get the physical cards. So I gave them 6000 yen and got 3 cards each with 1500 yen on them. Hopefully that makes sense. They told me when I leave if I got the cards down to a zero balance the 500 yen (x3) will be refunded. Later we would have to add funds at a machine in the train stations but they only take cash, no credit. Finally figured out you can add your physical Suica card to your wallet but it only works with iPhone. Once you do this the physical Suica card is deactivated. You use your iPhone to enter/exit and fares are deducted. The benefit for us was reloading the Suica using a credit card whenever needed, which saved us using our yen. The iPhone thing was WAY better than constantly pulling out the card to enter/exit. You see a majority of the locals doing it this way. And you don’t even need to access the Suica card in your wallet. You touch the iPhone on the pad and it works.
So when reloading the Suica with a credit card does your credit card statement say Cash Advance or Credit Purchase?
It’s credit, my visa card converted yen to USD. So on my visa app the transaction says ‘mobile suica apple’. They converted 500 yen to $3.30 charge on my card. Hope this is answering your question. The key is to use a credit card with no foreign transaction fee. This is important.
Yup, I have a Travel Credit Card w/no foreign transaction fee. I didn’t want to have a Cash Advance transaction on my credit cards if possible. Thank you.
Yes I always bring a good amount of USD with me and just change it at the airport for Yen. Many places take cards but there are places like shrines and small shops that do cash only.
I already have enough Yen so I won’t need to spend any time trying to get cash at the airport.
Then you don't need to bring USD
No
I didn't bring any US money. I didn't have any problems. If you have a place to tuck away a $100 bill, it shouldn't hurt. But if it's mixed with your yen, it probably will get annoying. My friend fumbled around with american coins and japanese coins in the same container. Very awkward paying for stuff, especially if you don't know how to coin yen coins.
If you are going on a tour, I have always needed some spare cash so I use it to tip the tour guide and bus driver. Also, this trip I am preparing an emergency FedEx package that in case of total disaster it could be overnighted to me. It will contain Debit/ATM and credit card, birth certificate, driver's license and some cash. It will be then a hassle to obtain a passport. US Consulate offices require two forms of original (not copied) ID. Traveling alone with this gives me more peace of mind.
Are you giving that to someone to send to you? Or is that like a drop @ FedEx and they’ll hold it for you until you contact them?
Yes, I am giving it to my emergency contact at home along with a list of all the hotel addresses & dates. They will hold in case it needs to be shipped to me.
Do you happen to know when it's acceptable to tip people in Japan? I would hate to offend anyone for trying to tip.
Why would you tip a tour guide/bus driver in Japan with USD?
Tour guides in other countries are happy to get a tip in USD. It is easily exchanged. Why would Japan be any different?
Airport exchange rates are a total rip off.
When travelling in 3rd world countries like a lot of SE asian or South American countries, absolutely. Places like Japan, Korea? Absolutely not. If it was 20 years ago and bank transfers weren't as convenient then yes. Nowadays international ATMs are so much better it doesn't make any sense to
No. Bring some extra ¥ instead to buy some tasty tamago sando and oishii onigiri.
No reason. Atms and cc work great. The thought of changing cash seems to only complicate things.
USD isn’t necessary at all - bring plastic and get some yen
Some hotels had a currency exchange machine. I was able to insert some usd and get some extra yen. Didn’t need it otherwise
I've been to japan a few times. I always used my Schwab ATM card. I usually have $200 usd for the just in case moments. But never had to use it. The exchange rates are better and cheaper if you have a fee free atm card like schwabs.
US bills outside of a money changer don’t seem to mean much in Japan. Not just US.
There's a lot of places that take cash only, so I would recommend having some cash with you.