2000 Yen notes (using them in Japan)
 

Will I have any challenges using these notes during my trip to Japan in April?

I like the 2K yen notes. They take up less wallet space and are often less used so less dirty. Most I have gotten seemed to be new bills.

The only place I had it questioned was at the Nara Visitor Center years ago by a volunteer who hadn't ever seen one before (?). She went to ask her supervisor and then accepted it without further question, commenting that they are "very rare." I suspect they are like a US $2.00 note, legal tender but rarely seen. Every other time there was never even a doubt.

Short answer - no, no problems with the possible exception of some teen-aged part-timer at a convenience store who has never seen one.

I have not seen 2000 yen note for long time. When 2000 yen note was first circulated in year 2000, yes, I think it was deliberate to introduce 2000 yen note on year 2000, anyway, I saw some back then due to curiosity factor.

However, today I have not come across any. The popularity of 2000 yen notes dropped fast (some say it was never popular to begin with) and year 2003 or 2005 was last time 2000 yen note was printed. I read somewhere that Bank of Japan has 2000 yen notes stored in a warehouse and even the government is not actively circulating 2000 yen notes any more.

I will not be surprised that some young kids today have never seen 2000 yen notes. Vending machine manufactures in Japan is still making machines to accept 2000 yen notes, but most machines today will not spit of 2000 yen notes as change. Most ATM machines in Japan today will dispense 1000, 5000, and 10000 yen notes but not 2000 yen notes.

Just wondering, today unless you go to a bank and specifically ask for 2000 yen notes I think it is highly unlikely that you will come across 2000 yen notes (think it is like U.S. $2 bill). How did you come about in getting 2000 yen notes? Did you acquire 2000 yen notes from your travel to Japan more than 10 years ago?

2000 Yen Notes
 

Ordered some "walking around money" for my trip to Japan. 15 of these notes was included in the package of 36000 Yen. Travelex Currency Services Inc. Louisville, KY
Will any vending machines accept these notes?

Could be that Travelex is trying to get rid of 2000 yen notes. :)

Most vending machines in Japan still do accept 2000 yen notes. If a machine does not accept 2000 yen notes, then there is a sign but it is in Japanese posted such as 「２千円札は使えません。」. One specific example I know is fare/ticket machines for Sapporo subway do not accept 2000 yen notes.

I got them in a package of "mixed denomination" bills when I bought cash from my bank before leaving for Japan also. I think American banks probably got a stock of the bills years ago and have been trying to get rid of them ever since.

Although the exchange rate has changed the math, I just think of the various bills as 1k = $10.00, 2k = $20.00, 5k = $50.00 and 10k = $100.00. Back a few years ago, when the rate was close to 100 to 1, this worked pretty well. Now they are worth a little more but the "feeling" is about the same.

Some older vending machines may not accept the bills but most newer ones will. I generally try to use the 2k bills whenever I can and save some 1k and 5k bills for those times the 2k may be problematic. Carrying cash in Japan is not a problem as it might be in many US cities. I am one who prefers to avoid routine credit card use except for large purchases like hotels so always have a fair amount of cash on me.

The same here from a currency exchange at LHR many years ago. I don't think foreign currency exchanges/banks realise how widely 10,000 yen notes are used in Japan. After all I hardly ever see £50 notes in the UK. I was given a mixture of 5,000 yen, 2,000 yen and 1,000 yen notes.

I saw and used a 2,000 yen note last year on my trip. Wasn't an issue, the person on the other end took it without blinking.

Get a monkey from a cashpoint in the square mile
They spit fifties like they're going out of style ...

[Should've been a rapper, maybe]

2,000 yen notes are actually pretty common (and popular) in Okinawa, and this is a pretty well known fact in Japan. (The art on them is a tribute to Okinawa.) So someone might be a little surprised to get one on the mainland at this point, but they'd probably just figure you'd been to Okinawa. They are well circulated there, including by banks. Consequently, they're not unheard of all over Japan.

I don't think they're quite the level of rarity as a US $2 bill. Maybe more like a US Sacagawea dollar coin, which are also very regional.

Whattt ... ?!? An FT'er who avoids credit card mileage accruals? :p

4 trips to Japan and I never even knew til now that there's a 2k note.

I'm Japanese and I've completely forgotten about such thing as 2000y bill

I regularly use an ATM frequented by students and it always spits out at least a couple of £5 notes. :o

I get 2k yen notes ALL the time when transiting EWR on the way back to Japan - I've NEVER had a single issue in the last 6 years using them. Most taxi drivers do a double take because yes they are rare - but I quite like them as they do save wallet space...

LOL I got these today in ORD - they seem to all have been shipped to America!

Some were shipped to Canada as well. Years ago I bought a package of currency in Yen, and they were pretty well all 2000 yen notes. I handed them back and said I wanted a different denominations (5000 and 10,000)

Equivalent to US $2.
 

I was rather shocked when I got a half-dollar coin in change a couple of years ago. They just don't circulate. (Nobody calls them fifty-cent coins. They don't even say "fifty cents" on them. :))

Beg to differ. Back in the day when they were common pocket change we called one a "fifty cent piece."

Yeah, I remember calling them that. I don't recall anyone calling one of them a fifty-cent coin though.

American coins must really confuse foreigners. If they even name their value in cents, it's in English, not numerals. The smallest coin, the dime, is worth more than either of the two next-larger ones, and doesn't identify its value. Nobody calls the five-cent piece anything other than a nickel. And in recent years, scores of different designs of nickels, quarters, and dollar coins have appeared. The unfortunate foreigner is unlikely to be confused by a dollar coin, at least, as they hardly circulate.

Thanks for confirming. I thought I was the idiot ... Now I'll stop looking.

Strictly speaking, its value is what the coin says: one dime. The original US dollar was subdivided into ten dîmes which were further subdivided into ten cents each. One cent was further subdivided into ten milles.

Students of French will recognize dîme as a short form of dîxième, "one tenth". It's hardly President Washington's fault that we only remember "dime" as the name of a coin, is it?

Went to Ecuador a long time ago, they use the dollar as currency there. I think that's where all the dollar coins went, they're everywhere.

The banking lobby has successfully foiled widespread circulation of one-dollar coins in the US by making sure that Congress requires continued issuance of dollar bills. Popular resistance to change takes care of the rest.

You may wonder why banks care whether Americans use coins or folding money for their small transactions. It's simple: for obscure historical reasons, the Federal Reserve pays the shipping cost for currency, while banks have to pay it for coins.

Folks, please stay on topic -- that is, the use of 2,000 JPY notes when in Japan.

Regards,
armagebedar
Japan forum moderator

Interesting, been to Japan so many times, never seen a 2K note.

I had a ton from a currency order. Folks in Japan did remark they hardly ever saw 2k yen notes.

I've still got a fair bit of what the ATMs really loved distributing: 10k notes.

I lived with a host family in Kanazawa in 2000, around the time the 2000 en note was introduced...somewhere, I have a pamphlet noting its watermarks and Murasaki Shikibu.

Indeed, on all of my subsequent travels to Japan, that bill had seldom been encountered.

2000 Yen notes are very common in Naha (Okinawa).

There is no train service (apart from the monorail) and bus services aren't the greatest.
So those who do not have cars tend to use taxis.
As the "average" journey costs more than 1000 and less than 2000 yens, they are widely used in Okinawa.

You can even see on the bank note that the Shuri Castle in Naha is featured as part of the design.

Got several in my stash for upcoming trip, crisp & new!

I haven't seen a 2000 yen bill since 2009 or 2010.

On many levels they are like the dollar coins - there, but completely annoying. If you have 1000 yen 10000 yen bills in your wallet, a 2000 yen bill very easily becomes something handed over with some 1000 yen bills (with you forgetting it is a 2000 yen bill), and the cashier not noticing as well.

My fiance and her mom visited the US and I went with. They were confused about the change (yeah, a dime doesn't say ten cents on it) and got some dollar coins - I made sure to use those ASAP.

The only places I believe you'll get a 2000 bill are at banks or currency exchange offices. 2000 yen bills are never given out as change! (though I see no reason why they shouldn't)

As an experiment I checked out the 5 vending machines in my office. Two are standard drink machines, two are coffee machines, and one is a snack machine. None of them take 2000 notes. There are some machines in Japan which do take 2000 yen notes but I wouldn't count on it!

Used one in machine to purchase new Icoca card today. All machines that I could see took Y2000 notes. This is not an issue.

I am going to Tokyo in 2 months. Will be exchanging some currency. I should not worry if I get some 2000 then from the conversation, right? Is cash the dominant payment in Japan? If so how much does one need for a 3 day stay excluding hotels as that will be known in advance. Just an understanding of cost there. I know it all depends on one lifestyle but its my first time and I would like to see the city in a typical touristy way.

No problem anywhere with Y2000 notes on trip last week. Yes cash is dominant for day-to-day stuff (not hotels). How much you need depends on you, especially in what level of food/drink you'll be indulging...

Nope. I visited Gion Corner on my recent trip to Kyoto. They gave change in 2000 yen notes. Nice! ^

Japan is cash based generally. If you're spending your time in Tokyo, you can use credit cards at big places (hotels, chain restaurants generally, denki stores, limousine bus from NRT, combini, JR tickets from Ticket Office). Where you can't is at a lot of nice old traditional places or Yoshinoya.

The amount of cash you need depends on what you like to do. I'm a fan of B-Cuisine so considering a bowl of ramen on average is just under 1000Y and a tonkatsu dinner is about twice that, I'd guess 20000 yen in your pocket should be fine. If you need more, there's 7-11 bank and your ATM card.

Where OP was referring to the tip to Japan on April 2016. Thanks for the response to OP which is a year and four months late… :p :D

Now that this topic has been resurrected. I haven't seen a 2000 yen note in Kansai for several years. Are they still being returned as change elsewhere?

My understanding is that National Printing Bureau has not printed 2000 yen bill for long time, but Bank of Japan is still actively circulating 2000 yen bill. What ever reason 2000 yen bill just did not caught up in Japanese. Although Bank of Japan is trying to actively circulate 2000 yen bill, demand for 2000 yen bill is so low that story has it that there are a lot of 2000 yen bill left in Bonk of Japan warehouse storage even thought 2000 yen bill has not being preinted for so long. Many Japanese has not seen 2000 yen bill for long time and likely place to get hold of 2000 yen bill today is at banks. However, 2000 yen bill is still commonly used in Okinawa because 2000 yen bill has a picture of Shureimon Gate of world heritage site Shurijo Castle in Okinawa.