Silly question that I'm sure the customer service folks on those phone cards can tell me, but how do I call home (the US) from the UK?<BR><BR>I bought some phone cards at Target and have a phone number to call in the UK, but don't know the country code. If I want to call 212-555-1212, what is the country prefix and is there anything else that goes w/ the prefix?<BR><BR>Stupid question I know.

With the phone cards, all you need to do is follow the verbal prompts. My Sprint phone card required only the area code and phone number, not the country code.

The country code for the US and Canada is 1.

The best deal is to purchase a phone card from the local post office. They come in 5, 10 and 20# denomination with no connection fee. I purchased a 10# card and had 200 minutes of actual talk time. Called the U.S. every day, it was nice to touch home and relay our daily activities. My brother purchased a 5# Pay Peanuts card which only last for 2 very short calls. Never did figure out what he was paying in connection fees. Instruction are very, very simple with verbal prompts; access code (on back of card), pin number (on back of card), country code 00 for USA, then U.S. area code, then actual number, i.e: 00-212-555-1212, very simple. I learned about using the post office card on this message board and as always, the advice was fantastic! Have a great time.

When you say you buy the cards at the local post office, do you mean in the US or in the UK? I hadn't heard of these before, but they sound great.<BR>Thanks!

scaltreto: I think you are mistaken about the country code -- when I've called the U.S. from pay phones in europe (not UK), it is 00 for long distance, then 1 for country code, then the US phone number -- 00-1-212-555-1212. Of course, it may be different in UK, so ignore this post if that's the case.

Follow the verbal prompts. To dial direct from the UK it's 001 nnn nnn nnnn, but the prompts may be different for the first bit (breaking into the international network and the country identification).<BR><BR>Doug

Sorry about my error. It is 00-1-555-5555. PAM: I purchased the phone card at the local post office in London---excellent value for the money.

Topping for phone card info.

I have to admit that this is still a mystery to me even after I have been to London. I dialed the local 800 number from my hotel room and got whacked 2.50#. I don't really understand the country code thing...how do I call the US from the UK? Anyway, I survived not knowing how to call (thanks to operator assistance) but will need to review it later before Paris (next trip). I had bought some prepaid cards at Target by the way.<BR>

Mike: that 2.50 charge--was it on your hotel bill? If so, it's what I've found in the U.S. too. At business class hotels, where rooms are $175 and up, I've been charged a dollar or two for each call to an 800 number. On the other hand, I had no charge for such calls from my $40 room at a Motel 6. Go figure!<BR>Phone cards bought in the country you are calling from will usually be much easier to use than one purchased from a US company. <BR>The international country code for the US is 1, confusing to us because in North America that is the number we use to begin a long distance call within NA. The number I gave you above, 00-1-212-555-5555, is one that should work from pay phones, homes, etc., but dialing from hotel rooms involves first accessing an outside line, and those steps probably vary from place to place.

What about mobile (cell) phones? I've got a mobile rented in the UK and want to call the US....can I use a phone card and just pay the local airtime on the mobile?<BR><BR>

TTT for Eugene

This is interesting. I've got the phone card thing on my list for our upcoming trip so timing is perfect. Does that same advice (the post office) apply to buying phone cards in France, Belgium and Amsterdam?<BR>If not, does anyone have any tips?<BR>

On earlier trips to Europe I used an ATT phone card to make calls back to the US and it was very easy because in each country there would be a toll free ATT access number that you would call and then you would follow voice prompts to complete your call to the US. Although not the best deal, the cost was reasonable and it worked all over Europe but of course with different ATT access numbers for each country. However, on a later trip to Europe I used the same ATT card to make calls within Spain to modify hotel reservations or alert hotels that I would be late, and ATT totally ripped me off with outrageous per minute charges that I disputed but they refused to change. As a result I sliced their phone card and ATT has lost my business forever.<BR><BR>On my last trip to Europe I simply purchased calling cards at tobacco shops and newspaper stands. These cards have clear directions in English and are easy to use. For the most part I had success using these cards in France and Italy. However, I did purchase a calling card at a street side newspaper stand in Naples that when I went to use it did not have any credit value. I went back to the stand to complain but the guy just shrugged his shoulders and said too bad. <BR><BR>So I’d recommend buying the calling cards in advance in the US from reputable vendors, or buying them overseas from either the post offices or reputable stores, I would definitely stay away from street newspaper stands.<BR><BR>

Take a look at net2phonedirect.com....<BR><BR>15 cents a minute from most Western European countries and an 800 type number for accessing the network.<BR><BR>It's a prepaid plan you re fill here or can refill on the road.