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Anonymous
How likely is my American Express card going to work in Japan?

ITT: tales of places where your credit cards weren't accepted.
>> Anonymous
I was pleasantly surprised how widely accepted it was in Japan, you shouldn't have any problems in major shops, department stores or restaurants. Smaller businesses are hit and miss with cards general, normally I would just carry cash for any purchases of less than 10K Yen. From what I understand though, American Express have a deal with JCB, so any retailer that accepts JCB cards (by far the most used card in Japan) has the option to accept Amex too, whether they do is their choice though.

My American Express card is actually fast turning into my card of choice when I travel abroad. Unlike my visa, they never block it, they don't charge me a fee (unless I'm getting cash on it) and the conversion rates actually seem to be quite generous, rather than screwing me over.
>> Anonymous
>>69507
>Smaller businesses are hit and miss with cards general
Spot on. Places near major tourist attractions might accept cards, but don't count on it. I went with some friends and luckily I had a bunch of cash with me so I didn't have to worry. However, my friends couldn't get any cash out of the convenience store ATMs with their cards so I was pretty much buying lunch for at least one person every day. The only reliable place would be a post office for some reason.

If you stick to the major places you probably won't have a problem, but if you plan on adventuring around town (aka more residential areas) make sure you have some of those crispy Yen with ya.
>> Anonymous
Why cant you faggots get cash it's just so much easier.
>> Anonymous
>>69566
Cash and ATM cards. Really, stop depending on credit cards everywhere. Japan's a cash society.
>> Anonymous
Protip: Bring cash. All of it.
>> Anonymous
Wel, just used my amex to buy a 500GB external drive, seems to work fine.
>> Anonymous
Cash, cash, cash. You can exchange back & forth more readily too.
>> Anonymous
The one time I had to use my American mastercard because I didn't have enough cash on me it worked fine, but this was in a posh salon in Harajuku that catered to foreigners and had English-speaking staff. I also had the foresight to call my bank in advance and tell them not to block my card if they see any charges coming from Japan.