International SIM card?

Hi all, we are first time cruisers and it's a Mediterranean trip. We will be in Spain, France, Italy, Sicily and Greece before returning through London. Does anyone have any experience with using an international SIM card for the GSM iPhone in these countries? We want to ensure we have data and calling available on land in each port. We do have the free wifi package on board but from what we have read it's difficult and slow unless it's 3 am as everyone is on the same wifi (it's an Oceania cruise). Additionally a few of those cards suggest that you can utilize data on board the ship but as you're using the ships antenna to communicate I suspect it will be just as slow are the ship wifi. Can anyone share how they found the service and if they found a solution? It's a 2 week sail with a few extra days on land. We can't be out of touch with the kids and work for so long.

Thanks much

Ren

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I would just get a pre-paid card since you can use your telephone and data within the EU just as you would in the country you bought the card. New rules since 15 June.

In Sweden you would be able to get a card with free calls, sms, mms and 1 GB data vaild for one month for less then 11 U.S $.

Can compare rates here:

https://www.carphonewarehouse.com/sim-only/international-sim-card.html

Yeah, you could try to get a local sim in each country, but IMO it's more of a pain that's not worth any small savings you'd get. It's more important to me that I maintain the same number throughout to ensure family back home knows how to contact me at all times in case of an emergency (of course, they are subject to int'l rates from their provider in this case, so I'd stick to calling them, while they just text or email).

Can compare rates here:

 

https://www.carphonewarehouse.com/sim-only/international-sim-card.html

 

Yeah, you could try to get a local sim in each country, but IMO it's more of a pain that's not worth any small savings you'd get. It's more important to me that I maintain the same number throughout to ensure family back home knows how to contact me at all times in case of an emergency (of course, they are subject to int'l rates from their provider in this case, so I'd stick to calling them, while they just text or email).

Why would you change in each country after the new law from 15 June? No need anymore.

Check with your provider as it may be cheaper to just get their international option.

Hi all, we are first time cruisers and it's a Mediterranean trip. We will be in Spain, France, Italy, Sicily and Greece before returning through London. Does anyone have any experience with using an international SIM card for the GSM iPhone in these countries? We want to ensure we have data and calling available on land in each port. We do have the free wifi package on board but from what we have read it's difficult and slow unless it's 3 am as everyone is on the same wifi (it's an Oceania cruise). Additionally a few of those cards suggest that you can utilize data on board the ship but as you're using the ships antenna to communicate I suspect it will be just as slow are the ship wifi. Can anyone share how they found the service and if they found a solution? It's a 2 week sail with a few extra days on land. We can't be out of touch with the kids and work for so long.

Thanks much

Ren

If you are from the US, we have a T-mobile plan that allows us to sent free texts and make a call at $0.20/min, outside of the US when in port. That is how we get connected with home from Europe, including the Med, and did not need an international SIM.

agree

if you have Verizon you can activate $10/day on demand plan which is good for very occasional use or emergencies, {$10 activates your phone for 24 hours from first use, minutes and data according to your basic plan .... worked good when airline lost DW's bag going from Oslo to Bergen last month} ... or buy packages of minutes and data in monthly increments. It wasn't expensive IMO last time I did it. If you have an iPhone later than a 5 you need nothing else.

As we have oft posted, if you have T-Mobile as your US cell carrier. your phone will work just about everywhere in Europe (and most of Asia) without any extra fees (unlike Verizon). T-Mobile simply extends their included data and text to just about everywhere (no extra charge). If you want to make or receive phone calls it will also work, but there is usually a small charge (often 20 cents a minute).

Personally, we used to have ATT...but a couple of years ago, after chatting with some crew members on a long HAL cruise, were convinced to change over to T-Mobile. This has made our travel life quite nice since now, our phone just works....everywhere. And because there are no additional fees for data....we now use our iPhone as our GPS system when driving all over Europe.

Hank

without any extra fees (unlike Verizon). T-Mobile simply extends their included data and text to just about everywhere (no extra charge). If you want to make or receive phone calls it will also work, but there is usually a small charge (often 20 cents a minute).

huh?

I would mention that IME T-Mobile was the 'big dog' in EU ... but having paid for Verizon International my connection was seamless . . .

When abroad w/T-mobile, you're roaming on their partner networks at no add'l cost for text or data. So, performance varies, but based on experience in Europe, it's been mostly good, pretty much on par with what I experience at home. You likely won't always (rarely maybe) get the fastest data speeds, but no issue for me. I'm not there to tweet, snapchat, lurk on CC, etc.

One nice thing is upon arrival in port and connecting to the regional network, I'd get an SMS welcoming me to that country and informing me of the carrier and per minute voice charge.

I used OneSimCard for one trip. You'll find mixed reviews on this. I'll just say it can be cost-effective and useful for some, but do your homework and understand the nuances and fine print. You'll see this card ripped on Amazon, but read the top positive review. It's not for everyone, but for someone willing to figure it out who doesn't want to change carriers and has specific communication needs, it could be a good solution.

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When abroad w/T-mobile, you're roaming on their partner networks at no add'l cost for text or data. So, performance varies, but based on experience in Europe, it's been mostly good, pretty much on par with what I experience at home. You likely won't always (rarely maybe) get the fastest data speeds, but no issue for me. I'm not there to tweet, snapchat, lurk on CC, etc.

 

One nice thing is upon arrival in port and connecting to the regional network, I'd get an SMS welcoming me to that country and informing me of the carrier and per minute voice charge.

 

I used OneSimCard for one trip. You'll find mixed reviews on this. I'll just say it can be cost-effective and useful for some, but do your homework and understand the nuances and fine print. You'll see this card ripped on Amazon, but read the top positive review. It's not for everyone, but for someone willing to figure it out who doesn't want to change carriers and has specific communication needs, it could be a good solution.

 

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Thanks for this response. I picked one up in Amazon and I think it will work for us.

Thanks

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As we have oft posted, if you have T-Mobile as your US cell carrier. your phone will work just about everywhere in Europe (and most of Asia) without any extra fees (unlike Verizon). T-Mobile simply extends their included data and text to just about everywhere (no extra charge). If you want to make or receive phone calls it will also work, but there is usually a small charge (often 20 cents a minute).

 

 

 

Personally, we used to have ATT...but a couple of years ago, after chatting with some crew members on a long HAL cruise, were convinced to change over to T-Mobile. This has made our travel life quite nice since now, our phone just works....everywhere. And because there are no additional fees for data....we now use our iPhone as our GPS system when driving all over Europe.

 

 

 

Hank

Thanks for this. I do have T mobile and wasn't aware of this service but didn't want to chance arriving before finding out if it worked so I also picked up a European SIM card with lots of data

Thanks again

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