Hi all...

I have tested my Lebara SIM and it is working. Now I have another question:

How do I enter France numbers in my iPhone contacts? For instance the Hotel number is 01-42-78-55-29, but, of course the leading zero is dropped when dialing from US.

(1) First of all, I assume that when dialing while in Paris with the Lebara SIM, the entry should be normal:

<strong>01-42-78-55-29</strong>

(2) I figure I'll need a <strong>separate entry</strong> in contacts for dialing from the US using my normal US SIM:

<strong>+33-1-42-78-55-29</strong>

Is this the best way to do this...or is there a way to just enter the "from US" version and assume that the phone will figure out whether to not use the 011-33 and add the leading 0 when the Lebara chip is in.

Thanks.

Just use the + sign. It will work wherever you are in the world on a mobile, including in France. Since many countries have a different prefix for international dialling the + sign has become the mobile standard to indicate a foreign number.
I list all my numbers, including local ones that way so I can just call whoever from wherever.

With mobile phones, you can/should always use version #2 (+33 1 xxxxxxxx)
It does not have any effect on the rates when you use the "international version" with your Lebara SIM when in France. The phone will place the call as if you dialled 01 xxxxxxx (when in France).
So you need just one contact entry.

Using an iPhone with T-Mobile you just dial the number (+33), a free call if in a Wi-Fi zone, or $0.20 minute if not.

Don't forget to add the WhatsApp to your iPhone. Just about everyone in Europe is using it for free messaging when in a Wi-Fi zone.

+33 or "+" any other country code works everywhere in the world. I enter all of my phone numbers that way, including for local calls, just in case I need to call them from the other side of the planet some day.

Oooops...accidentally pressed send before finished typing:

Thanks everyone...but this is too much information. If I am understanding you, I need only create a single entry starting with +33...but I'm still not certain how to deal with the leading 0 in French phone numbers that is dropped when calling from the US.

Do I enter it:

+33-1-42-78-55-29

or

+33-01-42-78-55-29

or

+33-(0)1-42-78-55-29

Thanks.
SS

Ooops...I really am losing my mind. I just re-read the thread.

I see that Cowboy1968 answered my question.

It's:

<strong>+33-1-42-78-55-29</strong>

Thanks, Cowboy.

SS

You actually type in +31142785529. No need for spaces or dashes.

Thinking about this further it's a good idea to store your US contacts in the same way so that you can call them easily from abroad should you, or someone else, have to.

In that case you use +1 of course.

hetismij2...

I assume that is a typo in your message...you typed 31 instead of 33 for the country code.

<strong>+33142785529</strong> ought to do it.

Thanks.

SS

ssander, yes sorry. 31 is the Netherlands, which is where I am. Force of habit. But the same applies, no matter what the country code.
Do adjust your home contacts to read in the same way, ie +countrycode, number without the zero, so you can contact them easily when abroad.

hetismij2:

[ssander, yes sorry. 31 is the Netherlands, which is where I am. Force of habit. But the same applies, no matter what the country code.]

I thought so...

Thanks to all for the help. My phone is ready to go with the France (and other European) numbers and I am in the process of adding the +1 to all my US numbers. Should be done later today.

Thanks again.

SS

Just got back from Paris...

The Lebara SIM (sent to the US before we left) and phone numbers as described above worked perfectly.

NOTE: In my wife's phone, we used her old free GiffGaff (UK) SIM -- also recommended by Fodorites -- and it also worked perfectly. (She had about 10 GBP remaining on it from our May trip to London.)

Once again, Fodorites come through!

Thanks, so much.
SS

For those who want to read a thread about getting Lebara SIMs sent to the US, here is one of them:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...e-sim-card.cfm

Though Lebara claims they only send them to France, that is not true...enter your address manually and do NOT put USA in the address...your SIM will arrive. (I also spelled Pennsylvania the way it's spelled in France: Pennsylvanie.)

SS

For those who want to read about getting a GiffGaff SIM for UK (and it works on the Continent, but more expensively) look at "Day 1" of my post on my May trip to London. There is an email address to which you can send your request.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-to-london.cfm


The SIM is free and sent to your US address (via a very nice UK person to whom you send 10 GBP to reimburse for getting a code for adding the money to the SIM -- I used PayPal).

SS