Twelve years since last in Tokyo - what's changed?
Mar 21, 2023, 11:51 am
#16
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Southern Cali
Programs: AA ExPlat, Marriott Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 2,025
I can't say for certain if they all do, but last October when I was in Tokyo, nearly every place we visited accepted cards, even the more local shops.
Again, you should keep cash on you, but it's definetely not like before where credit card acceptance was rare outside of larger establishments.
Again, you should keep cash on you, but it's definetely not like before where credit card acceptance was rare outside of larger establishments.
Mar 21, 2023, 4:37 pm
#17
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,598
I have spent an aggregate of about 10 weeks in Tokyo since last summer, and I can count on one hand the number of times I needed to use cash. It has become like the US in that regard.
Mar 21, 2023, 4:48 pm
#18
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 1,218
A contrasting perspective: I eat out ~14 meals per week when I am in TYO. Last week five did not accept cash or tap or QR payment.
Mar 21, 2023, 5:33 pm
#19
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,598
Mar 24, 2023, 6:50 pm
#20
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Tokyo
Posts: 1,582
It is pretty rare in Tokyo nowadays to encounter a place that is truly "cash only" and doesn't at least accept Paypay. For anti-cash folks like me Paypay is worth getting set up - you'll need to log into a japanese app store account temporarily, and you can then top up your account using cash at a 7-11 atm (and probably others).
Also, a reminder that most of the credit card terminals function with Apple Pay but the quirk is that if the vendor selects Apple Pay from the payment options, it often doesn't work. Just have them select "credito" instead and it will work.
Also, a reminder that most of the credit card terminals function with Apple Pay but the quirk is that if the vendor selects Apple Pay from the payment options, it often doesn't work. Just have them select "credito" instead and it will work.
Mar 25, 2023, 8:49 am
#21
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: NYC / TYO / Up in the Air
Programs: UA GS 1.7MM, AA 2.1MM, EK, BA, SQ, CX, Marriot LT, Accor P
Posts: 6,322
Many of the business type "lunch" places still only accept cash for lunch time meals -- most will take Paypay or Suica. At dinner cards are nearly universally accepted -- except for some smaller specialty places (mostly Suishi) that still only accept cash. I do agree CC acceptance has greatly improved in the past years -- we can probably thank COVID for that...