jrpinto

I am going to make a couple of trips to Europe this year. I understand that I can purchase cell phones at the airport when I land. Do I do this for EVERY country I visit, or do I get the same rate all over Europe?

JR

sjj

I don't think this is a good strategy. Assuming that you're familiar with gsm phones and sim cards, you can buy a cell phone that works in Europe (but not in the US) along with a sim card with $20 calling time (at $0.99/minute) for $49 at Telestial.com. Alternatively, you can buy an unlocked gsm phone on ebay (I recommend a Nokia 6610) for $50 to $60, shipping included, and then buy a sim card in each country you visit. This is a good option if you plan on doing lots of calling. If not, buy a phone on ebay and look at www.prepaidgsm.net/en/international.html
for sim cards that can be used throughout western Europe. A final option, recommended by people who want their phones only for emergencies, is to buy a phone at Mobal.com. The Mobal phone + sim card combination is very reliable but the calling rates are high.

Kellye

We really don't have enough info to give you complete advice either. Who do you have cell service with in the US? If it is AT&T or TMobile, then you have a phone with a SIM card already. Both companies have different policies about unlocking, but I know that TMobile will send you the unlock code on request after you have been a customer for a minimum amount of time--I think 90 days, but check their website to verify. I have been a customer of theirs so long that I didn't really key into that aspect of the situation. If you can get the unlock code from one of those two companies, then you can purchase a SIM card on arrival and pop it in your international phone and it will work just fine. If you don't have an "international" phone--quad band is best--is it time for an upgrade? Might well be worth it in the long run.

I did purchase a "global SIM" before my trip this summer, but found out after I arrived that it would have been FAR cheaper to have bought local SIM cards wherever I went and just emailed the phone number home after I got it. That is what I will do next time. To give a cost comparison...I paid $50 for a Lichtenstein global SIM with 15 Euros airtime and reloads costing $90 each (now up to $100) which gave me approximately 40 minutes of time to the US and free incoming. After the first reload, I decided to shop locally. I paid approximately $13 for a local SIM in Serbia and got free incoming and approximately 45 minutes outgoing to the US (at about .50/minute to the US).

TMobile unlocked my phone for free and I will keep it and use it next time.

jrpinto

Thank you! This gives me plenty of stuff to research!

sjj

jrp - If you take a phone to Europe, check to see that a) it's a gsm phone, and b) that it operates on the European frequencies, 900 mhz and 1800 mhz. If you intend buying a sim for use in Europe, be sure that your phone is unlocked. And finally, I would buy a local sim in each country you visit only if you intend to do a lot of calling. If not, I would buy an international sim despite the higher calling rate.

egailc

Travelers,
Check out phone sims at www.sim4travel.com. I usually pick mine up for Europe when I am in the UK. I use a store there called carphone warehouse, where I also get a sim for UK, which is free when you load on $20.00 air time.
Free incoming calls in over 80 countries.

egailc

I forgot, I had my cell phone company, at the time, cingular, sent me an unlock code for my v557 motorola gsm phone.