Are Prepaid Phone Cards a good idea in Europe?
 

I'm traveling in Europe for a few weeks in May. I want to call back to US and also between countries in Europe. Do they sell prepaid phone cards in Europe that can do both? Can I use a prepaid card I bought in the US to call home or other countries while in Europe?

Perhaps...most prepaid cards in Europe are country specific to get the really lowest rates i.e. if you buy a card in Britain it gives you a low rate but most likely can only be used in Britain. Go on to France and you need a new one. They are not terribly expensive.<BR><BR>A very convenient alternative, assuming you live in the US, is net2phone (www.net2phone.com). It is a prepaid card based in the US, calls from all of the Western European countries to the US are 15 cents a minute, relatively cheap to call between Western European countries and of course if you have time left, it can work domestically at a good rate too. They give you an 800 type number to call in Europe to access the system and unlike in the US you hardly ever get socked with extra charges either from your hotel or from coin phones on the street for accessing the system. It is a relatively good deal although buying country specific cards in Europe is probably a little cheaper but can you really go wrong with 15 cents a minute?

Search &quot;costco&quot; here and you will read a number of positive experiencs (though not unanimous), using phone cards purchased there. Seems to be one of the better bargains.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>[email protected]

I like the IDT (idt.net) prepaid global card because you can call US 800 numbers from overseas. Normally, you cannot call 800 numbers except from a US telephone.<BR><BR>IDT's rates are about 10-15 cents per minute depending on country.<BR><BR>In the UK, there are other cards that you can sign up on the internet (or buy in person). Many of them can be used to call overseas.

I have bought phone cards in France, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria.<BR>Many of the public telephones over there do not take coins or euro bills, so the only way to use some of them is to have a card or a phone number to dial. The type of card with a magnetic strip on it is the easiest to use. Just insert the card and dial your number. I use them for all types of calls. An LED readout gives the time remaining on the card. I notice that when I call the USA the time goes rather rapidly.<BR>I don't time it, I just buy it and use it up.<BR>When the card is used up, I drop it in the cash. There is no dangling entangelement with calling plans or minimum usage fees.<BR><BR>One caveat to my comment about phones not taking coins is this: In Munich, I noticed that the telephones on the street usually are in groups. One of the phones in the group will usually take coins and another will take the prepaid card. If you are calling the USA you might not have enough money in the right denominations to make the call. The phone card at least is prepaid and you have the amount of time and money that is on the card.

We bought cards from small convenience stores in Paris, Brussels, and London. They were easy to find and the rates were good, but if you can get one card that does it all (like from Costco) I would choose that. <BR>It seems that I was always running late to buy one of those cards so I could make a phone call appointment.