We will pick up a rental car at the Zagreb airport (after taking the bus from Lljublana to Zagreb -- thanks for the earlier info) and want to activate my cellphone (Android Motorola Moto E LTE) for calls and GPS.

I’ll have the car for 7 days (Rovinj/Istria to Plitvice to Zadar to Split) before dropping the car in Split and taking the bus to Dubrovnik.

I assume the best choice would be to purchase the SIM card in Zagreb to make sure all is working before I pick up the car. We’re staying in central Zagreb.

What do you folks recommend (vendor and amount) for the SIM card?

What’s your experience with Google Map and/or WAZE GPS in Croatia?
We have a good Croatia Michelin map and driving instructions from MapQuest from point to point.

Of course, we’d appreciate any other advice you have on driving in Croatia or whatever.

Thanks again for all the great advice I've received for many trips.

I bought a SIM card in Zagreb at Ban Josip Jelacic square. I think it was a VIP store. I am going to Croatia again this August and plan on a fairly extensive road trip to see wineries and olive oil processing. We will be there 6 weeks total. I plan on taking my iPhone 7 since the SIM card is not locked on the 7 or 7+. I am trying to find information on what sort of plan (SIM card) I need for a decent GPS system. I did not have GPS on my last trip and got lost a couple of times on small back roads in Istria. It was quite nice actually, we discovered wonderful spots but not everyone has that sort of time. I have a very detailed printed Croatian Atlas but driving and reading is difficult. Actually I will have both if possible. It is great fun BTW but they drive very fast in Croatia so you have to know where you are going!

Technically, you don't need any internet for GPS with your phone; it works without data. If you pre-load your maps (e.g. Google Maps) ahead of time on WiFi for Croatia you can get turn-by-turn directions without any data connection.

I had my Garmin GPS with me when I drove through Croatia and Bosnia in 2015, but I've already sold it - my Android with Google Maps is far more advanced.

I used T-Mobile for my phone service in Croatia in 2015 and it worked great, though I didn't use it for GPS because the Android phone I had then was too slow for the job, most likely. But I don't have T-Mobile any longer. I just bought a Vodafone Netherlands SIM card on eBay and am going to try to use that next month on an upcoming trip to Europe - no roaming charges in the EU and reasonable rates, we'll see if it works or not!

The OP has the same Moto E I have - maybe. I have a couple of them, but the one I use for Europe is the international version, so it works as a 4GLTE phone in Europe. My other US version only has the slow 2G "Edge" frequencies for Europe and would probably be pretty slow to use, no matter what SIM or service you get for the phone. Probably good enough for GPS, though, given that you don't even need data for that.

Thanks babaluggi and Andrew. I use a Garmin in the states and have just lately begun using WAZE and Google Maps on my phone. I will load the Croatia maps and point to point directions, but I'll also want a phone connection. I'll probably buy more data/phone than I might need to be on the safe side. What I have read here and elsewhere, I shouldn't have to spend much more than 20 E for a pretty full coverage. Sound about right -- and from which provider? Thanks again.

I recently found this Wiki for prepaid SIMs for international travelers - there's a page for each country. Seems pretty helpful and accurate as far as I can tell. Here's the Croatia page:

http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.com/wiki/Croatia

PaoloCast2, which specific Moto E do you have? For example, the one I use daily in the US is an XT1526 (Sprint network), but the international Moto E I use when traveling is the XT1521. You can find this under Settings -> "About Phone" -> under "Hardware SKU." As I said, some versions of the Moto E will only work with slow edge (2G) data networks in Europe.

Hi Andrew,
First thanks for the link. It looks to cover my questions about vendor etc. My phone is a Motorola Moto E LTE, and since I'm a low phone and data user I'm connected with Consumer Cellular. From their help line and info from you and my other Fodor friends, I believe all I need to do is insert the SIM card (after typing in unlock code) -- and I should be good to go.
We've driven in most European countries for years with Michelin maps and pre-done MapQuest directions. This will be a first with a GPS on our phone, but it sounds as though I can manage with a lot of help from my friends. Thanks.

Not sure you will need an unlock code - but if Consumer Cellular gave you one, you'll use it only once - the first time you turn on the phone with the new SIM. Type in the unlock code once and that's it.

You need a "micro SIM" size by the way for the Moto E - most new prepaid SIM cards come as a "3 in 1" SIM that you can break down with your fingers to the correct size. (iPhones use an even smaller size called a "nano SIM").

Your Moto E is probably the XT1527, which should work fine in Croatia just a bit slow - only 2G "edge" data. Expect it to be a lot slower than in the US - be patient and you will be fine. I'd probably download your maps ahead of time anyway, but the 2G speed should be fast enough for any turn by turn directions you need and miscellaneous stuff.