I am going to Japan in like 3 weeks for around 2 months. I plan to have around 5000$ CAD. I am with TD and, for reasons, I can’t get a credit card in time. I tried to get one last month but there was a problem and I have to wait for like 1 months for a follow up with the credit company.
After doing some research, some said that it is better to get money before arriving while others said that it is better to just wait until you land and go to a ATM (from like 7/11 or post office since they have good rates).
For the bank method, I can get yen before arriving to Japan. From the TD calculator, for 5003.40$, I can get 538000$ (1 YEN for 0.0093 CAD or 1 CAD for 107.52 YEN).
For the ATM method, I can take out money but, with TD, everytime I take out money, I have to pay a 3.5% international fee + 5$ for non-TD ATM and the ATM fee (from what I understand). I have the basic no annual fee debit card.
Is it better to get the money before or after the flight? I considered changing my card to a no-international fee debit card but I don’t know if I can change it back (since I don’t want to pay monthly after my travel).
If there is other method (without needing a credit card), please feel free to let me know.
by Jeffbob1239
