I'll be headed to Tokyo shortly and since there is no bank in my area that offers currency exchange, I will have to make this transaction in either Chicago on the layover or at NRT upon arrival (arriving after 6PM). Does anyone know if a better rate is offered in one or the other? Or maybe recommend a particular place to exchange money.

You will generally get a much better exchange rate through an ATM than from a currency exchange. I usually just hit an ATM with a debit card before I leave the airport. Check with your bank for affiliated ATMs. You can then check online for locations.

Depending on your bank card, you may have to look for an ATM affiliated with the Japanese post office (yubinkyoku) to get money out.

Look for this sign.

Citibank's ATMS have proved erratic for me, whereas the post office machines have always been dependable.

There are a few ATMs in the airport that take all the "normal" types of cards. However, any given card may not work for whatever reason. If you can, it's good to have two different cards debit cards from 2 different systems like Cirrus and Plus.

Outside the airports, the ATMs that accept foreign cards are not common--there may be just one in smaller cities, plus the post office ones. However, there should be a few around in Tokyo. A lot of them look like you can use your card--they will offer inctructions in English--but then you can't.

Another thing--Japanese ATMs usually only give cash in multiples of 10,000 yen, so you have to plan your spending at the end carefully. However, at the beginnig of a trip, you'll probably want that much.

As a general rule of international travel, ATMs are usually better than money exchanges, and it's almost always better to wait until you get to the country you are going to. If you are coming into a small, obscure airport in an uncommon location, you may need to get local currency to get into town, but for any big international airports, a debit card plus some US cash as back-up is what I always do. I carry about $300 in emergency traveler's checks, but I haven't cashed any in MANY years (I've called American Express several times to ask if they are still good because they are so old . . .).

One more thing I thought of: In the airport and in the cities and all tourist-oriented towns, the folks at the tourist information centers will always be able to tell you where there is an "ATM for foreigners." They are always very aware of the issue that foreign tourists have with their debit cards in Japan and will immediately be able to give you the nearest location where there is a "friendly" ATM.

I was quite amused that they knew immediately what the problem was and where to send you. One place even had maps premarked with the "foreigner ATM."

I had forgotten that post-office-only rule and my poor brother tried one ATM after another. Finally we asked a bank employee who gave us a map with a nice highlighted route on it.

Which led to ... another bank where he could cash trav checks, and that's it.

My personal feeling when travelling is, always have a fallback and then a fallback to that. So I take a few trav checks AND some credit cards AND an ATM card and have some cash already in pocket when I land. If you go online, you can find several ways to get yen by express mail, or failing that if there's a branch of a major bank in town (like BofA or Wells Fargo) they can get the dough for you. It might be worth the peace of mind to have $100 in yen in your pocket when you land.

After that, just look for the nearest post office and use their ATM.

If the OP is looking to do a cash exchange, then certainly doing it at the NRT exchange counter, will yeild a better exchange rate, than back in Chicago.

Certainly using an ATM is probably the best option, but I always like to have some cash in hand for dollar to yen exchange just in case.

At NRT there are both Citibank and Japan Post ATMs.

Also check with your bank to see if you have a limit of withdrawl.

Here is bank of america to my answer. You might want to check with bank.

You can use your Bank of America ATM card anywhere you see the Plus or
Interlink symbols that appear on the back of your card, including
numerous financial institutions throughout the world. For the nearest
Plus ATM, please visit www.Visa.com and click on ATM Locator at the
bottom of the page. Bank of America may assess a fee for some
transactions performed at ATMs operated by others and the ATM operator
may charge an additional fee for cash withdrawals.

While traveling outside the United States, you can avoid the access fee
by using an ATM at the following banks in these locations:

- Barclays - United Kingdom
- China Construction Bank - China
- Deutsche Bank ? Germany
- Scotiabank - Canada
- BNP Paribas - France
- Westpac - Australia and New Zealand
- Santander Serfin - Mexico.

We suggest that you not rely on one method of accessing funds while you
are traveling overseas. Cards demagnetize and systems go down, so there
is always the possibility that you will not be able to access your funds
when you need to use a card. In addition to your Bank of America ATM
card, you should consider taking foreign currency. Travelers Checks are
also available. To explore these options further please visit
www.bankofamerica.com/foreigncurrency/

My friend has Bank of America on a recent trip, they had no problem using the card at CitiBank and Post Office ATMs.

As do I. My BofA card works most places. But I will again risk scorn by saying that BofA's foreign currency exchange service gives me almost the same exchange rate as the ATM and I then have my cash before I travel. For BofA customers who purchase over a certain amount, there isn't even any transaction fee.

JR

I too use BofA - no issues at post offices.

However, BofA socks me now with I think a 1% (or maybe 2%) fee above interbank rates + only 2 free "out of network" withdrawals a month from my checking account.

no problem in Nippon. However, in addition to a non-network fee each time I used the card, WF also charged a currency conversion fee. I'm not one of those who nickels and dimes their travel, but I bet if I ran the numbers it would have been about the same cost to do the trav check or currency exchange thang. Thus my frequent advice to hit the ATM infrequently and take out a fairly good chunk of yen; slight chance of getting robbed in Japan so I felt comfortable with more walking around money than I usually carry.

What you gain with ATMs, of course, is convenience, location and your choice of when to pray to the money wall.

For those not familiar with ATM transactions in Japan, be aware of the need to find an "ATM for foreigners" as described above. But also be aware that many ATMs are not open 24 hours each day. Quite a few ATMs are not available for use after around 9pm. Given the relative lack of crime in Japan, it is the one place where I always carry some cash - typically much more than I feel comfortable carrying back home in New Jersey.

I don't think they are specifically marked "ATM for foreigners" on them (maybe on the map provided to one of the posters), I don't recall actually seeing it on the Citibank machine. What you want to look for is either citibank, or somthing affiliated with the Japan Post network (look for the Japan Post type logo) as shown by LapLap.

I found that in most urban post offices there would be 2 ATMs side by side, and only one had the English option. They both worked just fine, but unless you have the button sequence memorized, best to wait for the gaijin machine.

In popular tourist locations like Nikko, the PO had one ATM but it was clearly used to foreigners because it had plenty of signage in English.