Atm ??

[cruiser02]

Are ATMs available in most Asian ports? Did I read that they are difficult to use in China?

Thanks

[paul929207]

We found them in rural parts of Vietnam last month. So yes they are all over.

[tommui987]

Are ATMs available in most Asian ports?

Thanks

 

In Tokyo - which is the capitol and therefore (supposedly the most advanced), you cannot go to any ATM but only those in a POSTBANK are far and inbetween! Of course if you have a Japanese credit card, that is a different story!

[gerton]

I have heard the airports have ATMS that take foreign cards- but do the harbors? I did not want to take much cash with me.

[j2ink]

The previous poster is correct. In the advanced nation of Japan, very few ATMs accept American cards. We were in five cities last June, and I got into a habit of checking many of the ATMs, and I couldn't find any that accepted my card. Oddly enough, the only place that consistently accepted American cards in Japan was the 7-11 convenience store chain.

 

Beijing is also a problem for American cards. We didn't try too many banks, but none of the Chinese Bank ATMs that we tried accepted our card. The Bank ATM we used was Citibank, which has several ATM locations throughout the tourist areas of Beijing.

 

I also read that, while many businesses in these areas have Visa and MasterCard signs posted, the authorization systems are not connected to the American databases. As a result, many of them will not accept American credit cards.

[alidor]

Last year some of the places we used our ATM (American) card was Stockholm, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Mexico. Those come to me off the top of my head - maybe more countries. There never was an issue.

[j2ink]

Last year some of the places we used our ATM (American) card was Stockholm, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Mexico. Those come to me off the top of my head - maybe more countries. There never was an issue.

 

And your point is?

 

I've used my ATM card all over the world, including just about every country in Europe (including Iceland), many places in Asia, South America, and everywhere in North America. That's why it is so surprising that many/most Japan banks don't seem to feel the need to accept American ATM cards.

[gerton]

Well my card is Australian , not American, but presume I will have the same problem. Rats. Really hate carrying cash as I never know how much we will need. We are staying in a hotel in Shanghai and believe the hotels will have an ATM that will take foreign cards but better stock up for Japan. I have heard the post offices take foreign cards so I guess I could google the location of a few of those as well.

[alidor]

My POINT was in response to the original question of how easy it was to use ATM's in Asia.

[Bufrenee]

You will be OK in China, HSBC,ICBC, BANK OF CHINA and CITIBANK all accept foreign cards. The biggest problem is all over Japan where you can only use Postbank ATMs.DO NOT USE THE ATMS FROM OTHER BANKS IN CHINA.ADDITIONALLY YOU CAN ONLY GET 2000 YUAN AT A TIME BUT YOU CAN DO IT SEVERAL TIMES UP TO YOUR BANK LIMIT.

[j2ink]

As I said above, 7-11s are also a reliable source for ATMs in Japan, and they are quite common in the larger cities.

[j2ink]

My POINT was in response to the original question of how easy it was to use ATM's in Asia.

 

Oh, okay. But three of the six countries you listed are not in Asia. And the original question concerning how difficult ATMs were to use was in reference to China.

[Philip217]

And your point is?

 

I've used my ATM card all over the world, including just about every country in Europe (including Iceland), many places in Asia, South America, and everywhere in North America. That's why it is so surprising that many/most Japan banks don't seem to feel the need to accept American ATM cards.

 

Although most Japanese do have at least one credit card, they very rarely use them - except for very large purchases.

Japan is so safe that most everyone carries large amounts of cash to pay for everything.

Japan's banking laws and systems are very restrictive and inflexible when it comes to foreigners and their money/credit cards. Many Japanese merchants would prefer to lose the sale rather than accept a foreign CC or foreign cash.

 

Culturally (in the eyes of the Japanese) it is very important to pay cash (Yen) in Japan.

 

If Japan wanted more American tourists in their country, you can be sure that they would make the necessary ATMs readily available to them. But they really don't want or need the aggravation.

 

China is a very different story. The incredibly high incidence of credit card fraud makes the Chinese very nervous. They are very cautious about any credit card transaction.

[alidor]

J2 - I think you need to get a grip. My response was a simple reply to a simple question.

[chipmaster]

Are ATMs available in most Asian ports? Did I read that they are difficult to use in China?

Thanks

 

ATMs are available and I have used them sucessufully, don't read a word of chinese or other language but English :o Found and used in Beijing, Shanghai, Tokoyo, Sinapore, Bangkok, Taiipei. In general have never found any problem with those at airports and always found ones that worked in cental areas of every big city I visited.

[j2ink]

J2 - I think you need to get a grip. My response was a simple reply to a simple question.

 

Well, that’s just the point, isn’t it? You gave a simple answer that didn’t address the question. When I asked you what your point was, you became indignant and shouted that, "My POINT was …"

 

And then you tell me to get a grip. Funny.