I will be in France, Poland, and England next month. Are there phone cards that will work in all three countries to call back to the US or will I need to buy cards in each country? I've never had the need to call home on previous trips, but this time around the need is there. Thanks in advance.

Hello aggiegirl

Do you have a Costco nearby?

They have an internatinal phone card which can be used for just about any country. I have used mine for years, keep refilling it when I run out of money.

The only thing you need to be sure to do is make a list of each country's "access code" before you leave the U.S. You cannot access the system from any type of phone overseas without this access code. And each country has a specific code.

It's no problem to get them. They're either listed on the paperwork with the card, or you can call the customer service number listed and get it that way.

Happy travels!

Which country are you visiting first? I'm not sure about Poland but I've bought phone cards in both the UK and in France that were good for calling back to the States from both countries (and good for making calls w/i the States too)

Like I said, not knowing about Poland specifically, but if you are in England or France first - I'd just wait and buy your phone card there. I found the per-minute rates a little better on the European-purchased cards than w/ the Costco cards. But the difference is small, so a Costco card would be OK too - assuming you are a member.

This is slightly off topic but might be useful for those calling TO Europe from US: I was given a Sprint prepaid calling card (60 minutes) at a conference I attended recently, where Sprint was a sponsor. I've been happy to discover that calling abroad (France) to plan my October trip uses the same number of minutes as if I was calling here at home. I don't often buy calling cards but this was a great discovery. Of course I have no idea the purchase value of the card, but it must be cheaper than an international calling plan through ATT!

I always use my MCI calling card. YOu can put more minutes on it just by using the telephone. Has worked in all the different countries I have been in.

How much per minute on your MCI card? I always thought they were nearly as expensive as AT&T cards.

Most calling cards I've bought in Europe run between .04¢ - .07¢-ish per minute.

The MCI card is 3.4 or 3.5 cents per minute. I have made numerous calls back to the U.S. and never use many minutes. My niece had difficulty with her AT&T card so she ended up using mine.

I use the MCI card to call from the US to Europe also - uses very little minutes.

Costco had a sale on them a while back $15 for 600 minutes so I bought another card.

Alas, I am not a member of Costco. I do have an AT&T card, but if I use it over there, I'm deducted 10 minutes for every minute I speak, so I think I could do better with a European card.

aggiegirl, I usually buy a card in the country I'm visiting and last May I bought one in Gatwick that worked for several countries but I no longer have it. My recollection is that the rates were better for UK and OK for France.

Re AT&T cards, the rate is not the same on all of them. They have some that have better rates for international calls so if you want to take one as a back up look for international and make sure you get the access numbers before leaving. They don't have enough room to print everything on the card.

https://www.minutepass.com/

https://www.minutepass.com/Pages/IntlRates.aspx

I was checking out MCI online. Think they have gone to this card. The second website will give you what the rates are for each country.

You can buy MCI cards other places -not just Costco. I haven't looked for one for sometime as I just get minutes put on the card I have.

I've gotten all of the access codes for my AT&T card and will bring that along as backup. I will look for cheap cards when I arrive at my first destintation, Paris. And, I'll be on the lookout for better cards before my departure. Thanks everybody.