Can I bring US$$ to Bali?

Yes, but you'll have to change them to Indonesian rupiahs as that is the currency they use. It is much easier and you will probably get a better exchange rate by withdrawing rupiahs from an ATM. ATM's are everywhere in Bali including at the airport by the baggage carousel.

bjc...will stores in your town take rupiah?

Thank you Craig- So i can put in my ATM from bank of america?

Rhkkmk- I am not sure what you mean? Was that suppose to be nice?

bjc, look at the back of your ATM card. It will show the various world-wide ATM networks you can use - cirrus, plus, etc. Just match the symbol on the back of your card with the symbols on the ATM machine. You will have no difficulty finding an ATM that will accept your card.

By the way, find out what your bank will charge you for using foreign ATMs. There are two types of charges, per use charge (range from 0-$5) and exchange rate charges (range from 1%-3%). Since you get a better exchange rate from an ATM than a money changer, if your bank only charges 1% you will come out ahead by using the ATM. If you bank charges 3% plus $5 per use, you'd be better off to bring cash and exchange that.

Bob was just asking you to take a look at the idea of using US dollars in Bali from a different perspective. People often ask if they can use US dollars in various foreign countries without thinking about the reverse - how happy would your local stores be to take foreign currencies?

We didn't find ATMs to be everywhere - it depends where you are going. We didn't see any ATMs in Amed, for instance.

We took US$ to exchange in addition to our ATM cards. Generally speaking, you get the best rate from $100 bills.

it was just as kathie suggests....not nice, but realistic...

Thank you all for your response. This is the first real time that I am traveling (kind of by my self)- so my question might sound nieve... Thank you all again!

Bara

november is actually correct - if you are going off-the-beaten-track, finding ATM's will be difficult. Usually any place that has banks will have ATM's. That includes Ubud, Kuta/Legion/Seminyak etc. You can go to your card issuer's website to get a list of locations.

$100 bills work too. We brought some to change to pay our driver. Do make sure they are in pristine condition though, otherwise they will not be accepted.

Check with your bank. I use BofA for my US banking and they have some really nasty foreign ATM charges (something like $5 + 3%). I avoid using my BofA ATM but do use my Thai ATM card a lot, especially in Indonesia.

Although I tend to use ATM cards for cash, I always have a few $100 in my wallet for emergencies. Make sure they are new, as the money changers in Bali can be very fussy about taking older bills. They won't even touch the ones without the big head.