Money and Foreign Exchange

Japan's currency, the yen, is available in 1, 5, 10, 50, 100 & 500 coins, as well as 1000, 2000, 5000 and 10,000 bills. (Note that many vending and ticket machines will not accept new 2000 yen bills.) Most major currencies can be exchanged (into yen) at the airport and banks, hotels, and the Central Post Office in Sapporo.
Most major banks in Sapporo will exchange Yen into US dollars immediately. Citibank in downtown has 24-hour ATM service.
Most major credit cards are accepted in hotels, shops and restaurants.

Electricity and Water

The electricity supply in Sapporo is 100V AC 50Hz, with a two-pronged plug / socket arrangement. Tap water in Sapporo is drinkable and is indeed quite delicious thanks to the snowfall in winter.

Telephones

Due to rising popularity of cellular phones, public phones are becoming less available in Japan. There are some public phones which can make direct international calls, but finding those phones are also becoming difficult. International call from major hotels in Sapporo is not a problem although the price may be costly. NTT Docomo, AU and Vodafone are the major cell phone companies in Japan. Please check your cell phone company's international service availability before you leave the country.

(as of February 2006)