ATMs in the Far East

[Fredr]

Hello,

 

Could some one please advise on the ATM networks (Cirrus, STAR) that are to be found in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dalian, Hiroshima, Seoul, Pusan, Osaka, and Beijing?

 

In Europe, banks belong to multiple networks and getting money was very easy, even in the far eastern corner of Hungary.

 

However, I have not been to the Far East.

 

Thanks,

 

Fred

[paul929207]

We have been to most of the cities you list and have not had any problem getting money from ATM's.

[cruisemom42]

ATMS in Japan mostly do not work with US cards. You would need to locate a post office, a 7-11 store (believe it or not), or a Citibank ATM.

[sultan_sfo]

For some reason, the ATM at the Holiday Inn in Beijing kept giving me a message "Out of Range" -- whatever that meant. Did not try a bank ATM.

[mking8288]

Check to see what networks your bank's ATM card can access & call their customer services about any restrictions on using them oversea, as sometimes, transactions might not be authorized due to fraud protections. Major bank ATM's in Far East countries belong to multiple networks including Cirrus, STAR, etc. and you should not have any problems accessing your bank funds in local currencies. In Hong Kong & China, look for HSBC branches (with its British origin) or their ATM's and you will see the familar Cirrus logo for getting your money.

[Bobblsc]

ATMS in Japan mostly do not work with US cards. You would need to locate a post office, a 7-11 store (believe it or not), or a Citibank ATM.

 

 

Cruisemom may have been unlucky, or we may have been lucky, but I recall no problems getting yen via ATM's in Japan. We travelled to China, and then Japan in 2007. I believe I must have used an ATM at the Osaka airport to obtain yen. We then took bus to Kyoto, followed by taxi to our hotel. I had yen then. I am not certain, but I think I used ATM's later in Kyoto, and then in Tokyo. We stayed six nights in Kyoto, and then four nights in Tokyo. I am certain I had several hundred dollars of yen when we checked out of the Palace Hotel in Tokyo. I recall that I was able to pay part of the hotel bill with yen, and the rest with my credit card.

 

Credit cards are indeed widely accepted in Japan.

 

I am certain I got Chinese currency at an ATM in the Beijing airport. I do recall that specifically. I may have used other ATM's in China, I just don't recall.

 

I think the network typically found is Cirrus, in both China and Japan.

 

I predict that you will like Japan.

 

Bob :cool:

[boatboat]

To avoid problems, notify the bank for the atm card and also the credit card companies of your travel plans. The pattern of use is monitored and sudden unusual activity may result in the card or atm being declined. This could be a real problem resolving on the other side of the world.

[Moeve]

We have just done this Itin. and had no problems other than in Japan because little post offices are closed on Sundays and holidays but the main post office was open and very easy to find from the A bomb park in Hiroshima for example - all in walking distance.

 

The best thing you can do is exchange a smaller amount of money at the international airport before leaving for your vacation. Busan for example will pull up a mobile ATM right to the ship. Shanghai has a bank directly across the road from the port entrance (agricultural bank)

 

Incheon is not the place to go - head up for Seoul it was much better there. Bear in mind if you use a private guide they will always know where to find an ATM for you - some of the guides if you ask them will even buy your USD / euro or what ever (if they are planing a trip) at the days exchange rate. Just tell them in advance that you will need an ATM with the Ciruss, Star or what ever symbol.

[N&PJ]

The Visa website has a very useful facility for identifying banks globally that have ATM's which accept Visa.

[Peregrina651]

For some reason, the ATM at the Holiday Inn in Beijing kept giving me a message "Out of Range" -- whatever that meant. Did not try a bank ATM.

I wonder if "out of range" meant that you were trying to draw more than the maximum allowed.

 

While we did not get any similar message on our recent trip to Buenos Aires, we did find that the ATMs just ended the transaction if we tried to withdraw more than 300 pesos per transaction, even though the machines were market for up to 700 pesos--new rules, old machines. Maybe you ran into something similar. It was very frustrating until we figured it out.

 

 

 

[paul929207]

I had trouble at the ATM at Marco Polo Airport in Venice when I tried to withdraw too many Euros. I lowered the amount and all went fine.

[AWorldCruise4Me]

I know everyone's experience is different, so here is mine. I just did a world cruise. The only place I could not use my ATM card was in the far east. My card has the following symbols: Mastercard, PLUS, pulse, co-op network. I was also on tours with people who could not use theirs either.

 

In Japan we ran into a westerner, while trying our third ATM cluster (usually more than one type of bank per cluster), who indicated that most ATM machine's don't take international cards. We did take the bullet train and metro and the ATMs in the train and metro stations did not take western cards.

 

The airport in Beijing did not take my ATM card either even though it had the proper symbols on it. However it was the domestic airport since I flew from Shanghai to Beijing and then Beijing to Hong Kong. In Beijing we could easily exchange money at our Hilton hotel.

[Moeve]

You have to bear in mind that there are daily limits tooo. Another thing is are you using the withdrawl system with the pin code? Some US cards run into trouble because the users don't use these pins.

[macro duck]

I used my Visa card in Shanghai to withdraw Chinese currency without any problem. I used the ATM at Citibank.

 

Roger

[greatam]

I spend a lot of time in the Far East for business. I use Citi and Chase credit and debit cards every place EXCEPT Japan and Cambodia.

 

Cambodia-ATM's are FINALLY getting there, but don't count on it. There have been NUMEROUS problems with phone system and internet connections (needed to process the transaction). US dollars are welcomed in Cambodia and you get better prices. Cambodian banks will give you US dollars but the surcharge is pretty expensive. Cash traveler's checks on the ship for US dollars.

 

Vietnam-HSBC ATM's will accept most US credit/debit cards. But don't be surprised when you see the withdrawal amounts-1,000,000, 2,000,000 and 3,000,000. 15,000 dong to a dollar (roughly) so 3,000,000 dong is only $200 US.

 

China-the ATM's on the STAR system work better. Plus system ATM's are hard to find.

 

Japan has their own system. I use cash in Japan and convert USD to yen.

 

Thailand-EVERYWHERE. BE careful where you use the ATM's in Thailand. Inside large hotels or around MAJOR tourist attractions-OK At small markets/ATM's that are sitting around plaza's (example: one in the "entertainment" plaza next to the Royal Orchid Sheraton)-BE CAREFUL. A lot of these are owned by private parties. And there have been numerous reports of "stealing" credit card numbers. Don't know how it works, but I do not use those type of ATM's and have had no problems.

 

Hong Kong-everyplace and almost every type of card

[cruisemom42]

Cruisemom may have been unlucky, or we may have been lucky, but I recall no problems getting yen via ATM's in Japan. We travelled to China, and then Japan in 2007. I believe I must have used an ATM at the Osaka airport to obtain yen. We then took bus to Kyoto, followed by taxi to our hotel. I had yen then. I am not certain, but I think I used ATM's later in Kyoto, and then in Tokyo. We stayed six nights in Kyoto, and then four nights in Tokyo. I am certain I had several hundred dollars of yen when we checked out of the Palace Hotel in Tokyo. I recall that I was able to pay part of the hotel bill with yen, and the rest with my credit card.

 

Credit cards are indeed widely accepted in Japan.

 

I am certain I got Chinese currency at an ATM in the Beijing airport. I do recall that specifically. I may have used other ATM's in China, I just don't recall.

 

I think the network typically found is Cirrus, in both China and Japan.

 

I predict that you will like Japan.

 

Bob :cool:

 

Don't think it was "luck" -- I have read this in many guidebooks, on Tripadvisor's Japan board, and on the link below (one of the most highly regarded for travel information on Japan):

 

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2208.html

 

I definitely found it to be true while I was there again for 2 weeks (just returned yesterday).

[smeyer418]

There are Citibank branches in both Shanghai and Beijing. The one in Shanghai is right downtown at the Bund. You can't miss it and I have also used a citibank card in non Citibank ATM's there with little problem. Remember to change to a 4 digit code before leaving the US...

[j2ink]

I just returned from three weeks in the Far East, and I can assure you that US ATM cards do not work in most ATMs on the streets of Japan. I believe they probably will work at airports, train stations, and Citibank locations, but we found that most Japan bank ATMs on the city streets will not accept US cards. It is nothing like Europe and other parts of the world, where US cards are almost universally accepted in ATMs.

 

And I don't believe we were unlucky. Japan is very expensive, and we went through a huge amount of cash. I took $100 of yen, and we were through that before we got warmed up in Okinawa. We stopped everywhere to try to get more cash, even in the shopping district, and we never did find an ATM that would accept US cards on that island.

 

In Kobe-Osaka-Kyoto, it was the same situation. We got cash in Kobe, and almost immediately spent almost all of it on the bullet train and within the first few hours in Kyoto, and we needed to find more cash. So, we always seemed to be searching for money. By the time we got to Tokyo, we stopped searching and used only 7-11 ATMs.

 

The most reliable places to get money in Japan are at 7-11 stores or Citibank locations. Someone also mention using credit cards to get cash. We didn't try that, but I believe the credit card fees are very high for cash advances.

 

I found the situation in Beijing is about the same. We found a Citibank ATM located inside a restaurant near the Forbidden City that we used several times without a problem, so we didn't do as much searching for cash in Beijing.