Cell Phone Use....

[time4sun]

According to Verizon our cell phones won't work in Italy or Spain and they are suggesting a "temporary" phone that we can use for 1 month for $20...has anyone had experience with this or is there a better alternative??? We would use it for emergencies only.

 

Thank you!!

[Donray]

I used the service for europe and it was good. Glad I did it for emergency use and I did use it.

[sippican]

I am activating my Verizon Internationel phone tomorrow. Ordering was very easy; the phone rep was very helpful. (Verizon store employees didn't even know the international phone existed :eek:) Directions seem simple enough for even the " technically challenged". You keep your same number. The rates are not bad compared to other plans/options we checked. Text messages are 50 cents. We will not activate our e-mail on the phone as we will use ship's Internet if needed.

Seemed like the best option for us in case an emergency arises.

[mom4mom]

We got a temporary Verizon phone to use in Italy in 2009. They only allow you to keep it for a month for the $20 shipping charge and they activate it with your own number. We will be doing it again in Oct. Just remember to let your friends and family know that you are not available except for an emergency because the air-time minutes can add up fast. You can receive texts, though, at $.05 and send for $.50. We did need to use it the last time when my husband got lost and couldn't find our car. If he didn't have the phone to call, our driver would have left him.

[Fblack]

Depending on how often you travel to Europe, you might want to consider buying an inexpensive, unlocked, GSM phone to use when traveling. I have one and a Passport International SIM card. More info below.

 

 

http://www.telestial.com/

[lalique]

Agree with the other posters. We got the international phone for the month from Verizon and it used the same phone # we have every day. We used it on our Baltic Cruise and got great reception on the phone in St. Petersburg as well as all the other countries we visited. They send it to you and include box and label to return it to them when you get back home. So easy!!

[orchidj5]

yeah im all about this too-it worked great-and i added international dialing to my plan-altogether will calls and texts i think it cost me 30 bucks and so worth it-and my parents/in laws could use my regular number if needed ( both my mother and SIL were in treatment for breast cancer at the time we traveled-but trip was booked and paid for before that came up.)

[D4]

Depending on how often you travel to Europe, you might want to consider buying an inexpensive, unlocked, GSM phone to use when traveling. I have one and a Passport International SIM card. More info below.

 

 

http://www.telestial.com/

 

I use the same as Fblack. At home, I have Verizon but I do not want my regular phone number in Europe. I only want calls/texts from my family or tour/transportation providers.

[baggal]

According to Verizon our cell phones won't work in Italy or Spain and they are suggesting a "temporary" phone that we can use for 1 month for $20...has anyone had experience with this or is there a better alternative??? We would use it for emergencies only.

 

Thank you!!

 

We used it on our Baltics cruise in 2009 and had no problems.

 

We used it again this past summer for a Med. cruise and found the battery didn't even last 24 hours. We ran into a problem almost immediately - our flight from the U.S. was delayed and we missed our connecting flight in Frankfurt and very nearly missed the cruise (but that's another thread). We were using the phone almost immediately in the U.S. and by the time we got to Frankfurt the battery was out and the charger was packed in our luggage, wherever that was (another thread). We literally ran through Frankfurt airport to find a store that sold a compatible charger and then found a charging station right near our gate so we could contact our cruiseline, etc.

 

If you can, I would recommend that you order the phone early enough to have a day or two at home to test the battery.

 

I would definitely use the temporary phone vs. not having a working phone at all.

 

Have a great time!