Reread all the above. Then go to Sim4Travel web site. They have a sim that covers all of Europe and incoming calls are FREE. Check to see if your hotel charges for using their phone, if not, buy a cheap phone card and after someone calls you from the states, call back on the hotel phone with your locally bought phone card.

I'm pretty sure that that would work, Brynna. I have a TIM sim card that I got in Italy. It roams on TMobile in the US. I haven't tried having someone call me from Italy, but I get a lot of texts from Tim!

TIM allows roaming in the USA so if you put the TIM sim card into a tri band (900,1800, 1900) or (850, 900, 1900) or quad band phone, it will indeed work but at astronomically high prices! Your Italian friends will be able to call the Italian number and as soon as you answer, the clock will start running.

Maybe she doesn't mind if it's her that's charged and not the caller - would it cost a caller in Italy more to call an Italian number roaming in the uS?

It costs an Italian (and most everybody else in gsm euro land) to call a mobile line than to call a landline and believe it or not, in many cases using a calling card, it can be far cheaper to call the USA than to call another Italian line even within Italy whether the Italian line is a landline or a mobile line....and calls to the USA do not differentiate between calls to landlines and calls to mobile lines!

Thank you..so if I use the card in the US roaming charges would apply...but I can still get texts? Can I refill the card from the USA?? I don't want my number to change. Thanks.

Your italian sim card is good for about 1 year after the last time you recharge/top it off it in Italy. The best way to keep it activated, if you aren't going to be in italy for another 12 months, is to either lend it to a friend who's going there, or have them bring a recharge card (ricaricard) back for you. You can also buy ricaricards on ebay.