Europe SIM purchased in USA

[DaveT65]

I have searched Cruise Critic BB for posts about European SIM cards. I found several posts, but most are older. I ask for any comments about recent experience with my situation:

 

I want to have a mobile phone with me on my Norway cruise out of/back to the UK, and then continuing on to Ireland. I do have a mobile phone here in the USA, a pre-paid plan, and was with Tracfone. I have researched this enough already to know that I could get an "unlocked, quad-band, GSM" phone that will work in Europe and the USA under certain carriers. I wanted to switch from Tracfone anyway, so have purchased a phone as above that is dual-SIM and is working with T-Mobile pre-paid now. So I am NOT looking to buy a cheap phone & card, but instead to buy just a Europe SIM.

 

I would prefer to buy it now, while still in the USA and attempt to make sure it works. In addition, I will be arriving at Heathrow after 21:00 in the evening, going directly to the hotel to get some rest, then on the transfer to Harwich and the ship the next morning. So I don't see having much time - or the opportunity - to buy upon my arrival in Europe UNLESS there is a store in LHR [i will be arriving on UAL in the new T-2] that can do the whole thing in a short time.

 

In the searching I have done, I have come across lots of names of Europe SIM providers, and am looking for your comments. Among them: National Geographic Talk Abroad, Vodaphone, eKit/Telestial, Mobal, SimpleRoam, Roam Simple, O2, Orange, giffgaff. I'm sure there are many more. Various upfront costs versus call cost. Simplicity is important to me. I expect to actually use the phone very little. Calling home every day, or even every week, is not on the agenda.

 

Comments appreciated!! And sorry for the lengthy explanation; I just get carried away with completeness.

[DaveT65]

My post didn't generate any interest, but I decided to post what I have found out. Be sure to read my requirements for context.

 

I am planning to go with Roam Simple for the following reasons:

*Post-Bill account, not prepaid, so I won't pay for minutes, in chunks, that I may never use. A "biggie" for me.

*Reasonable upfront cost - $15 for a Europe SIM + UK #, sent with SIM, good for one year, renewable afterwards for $9/year.

*Billing for upfront costs and usage in USD against US credit cards.

*Customer Service phone #, albeit only 9-5 M-F.

*Reasonable, but NOT the cheapest, calling costs for my travel areas.

 

giffgaff had much better costs, but deals only with UK credit cards, thereby requiring a forwarding purchase and does not support phone top up with non-UK credit cards; you must purchase a voucher and then can do it by phone. [i will not have internet access]

 

WorldTravel cards never expire and you get a USA phone #, too, but is not Post-Billed.

 

Mobal is Post-Bill but very expensive per minute.

 

 

I'll let you know how this works out after my trip.

[calliopecruiser]

I have used Telestial for purchasing SIM cards before, and their service was reliable and their prices reasonable. I prefered to pay up front, so that I knew exactly what I was paying and wouldn't be hit with something unknown later - that's different from DaveT65's choice, but it was equally important to me. The $30 card included (in my case) $10 worth of service, which I could use in phone, text, or data. The instructions were easy to follow and I had no problem in actual use (I used only text and data - never made any calls).

[DaveT65]

Thank you, calliopecruiser, for posting. I intended to include the following comment regarding Telestial and just forgot:

 

Telestial [= eKit?] has attractive rates but several similar plans that are hard to choose among to me. It is pre-paid, includes a UK & USA #, has 24/7 CS, and the ability to keep the number by paying to do so. I am not sure on this, but think it is trigger callback based - instructions/FAQs are confusing.

 

Based primarily on the pre-paid versus post-paid, I favored Roam Simple, but calliopecruiser's post prompted me to look again. Telestial OneRate and Passport cards are available on Amazon.com for a significant discount [OneRate for $10, free shipping eligible, $5 call credit incl] , which makes the initial investment competitive to Roam Simple. And I honestly never considered the downside of post-paid, where you could run up a huge bill due to some glitch, or not understanding the system. That is a real advantage of pre-paid, provided I can top up from the phone, which you can with Telestial. I believe the minimum top up increment is $30, though, which is high to me. Lots to consider before I have to choose in June.

 

If you can clarify any of this, I welcome your post, calliopecruiser. And thanks again.

[Goo Brew]

Thanks for all the good info. I too am looking for a phone option when I am in Europe. But we will be all over, and I have read that a sim that works in Italy won't work in UK or Ireland. So, I have some homework to do and you guys have posted some great starting spots and have lit a fire under me to get going on the research!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[calliopecruiser]

Thanks for all the good info. I too am looking for a phone option when I am in Europe. But we will be all over, and I have read that a sim that works in Italy won't work in UK or Ireland.

 

Untrue - many companies (including Telestial) have cross-Europe coverage with their SIM cards. You'll find this true when you do a little research........enjoy your trip.

[Sparkles87]

According to Terminal 2's website there will be a SIM local shop where you can purchase SIMs in the arrivals area of the terminal. T2 doesn't open until June but there is also one in T1.

 

If you are looking for a provider that wont kill you on costs O2 is a good one. They are my provider and the costs are not bad - they also don't charge horrible for roaming charges either.

 

Orange are also pretty good with coverage and their costs aren't too bad either.

 

Also Vodafone aren't too bad. There is a store before security in T5.

 

The above 3 do all over Europe. When entering a different country you need to switch your phone off and back on again and it will register with the companies foreign counter-part (it may have a different name but that's normal)

 

As for the others you've mentioned - some of them I haven't even heard of and others aren't top providers.

Edited April 15, 2014 by Sparkles87

[bdever]

When I landed in Madrid I purchased an exactta sim for my iPhone. I didnt have too look to far as they had a booth set up in the baggage claim area and got me taken care of before I even left the airport. Talk about saving a lot of money.

 

check them out at exactta dot com. They have a very impressive coverage chart!!!!!

Edited April 15, 2014 by bdever

[DaveT65]

Sparkles87,

 

Thanks for the information. I didn't realize O2 had multi-country [Europe] SIM Cards; I must have missed that.

 

And I have looked for T2 detailed terminal maps [as I will be arriving there in early July on UAL] but haven't found them. Only the general ones with pretty pictures and graphics. Can you possibly post the link, or guide me to the site?

 

Thanks.

Edited April 17, 2014 by DaveT65

[Sparkles87]

Sparkles87,

 

Thanks for the information. I didn't realize O2 had multi-country [Europe] SIM Cards; I must have missed that.

 

And I have looked for T2 detailed terminal maps [as I will be arriving there in early July on UAL] but haven't found them. Only the general ones with pretty pictures and graphics. Can you possibly post the link, or guide me to the site?

 

Thanks.

 

My phone contract is with O2 and i had no issues using my phone last year on my Med cruise. As I understand it UK companies have deals for their users to utilise EU phone masts with no extra costs, not to mention there are regulations on all eu phone companies that they are not allowed to charge extra costs for usage, they have even cut down costs on data roaming for phone internet.

 

Here is the link to T2 Heathrow - there are no maps as yet because the terminal isn't open yet but i'm sure they will appear soon. The site has a list of shops the terminal will have and what area they will be located but not an exact location. Hope it helps

http://www.heathrowairport.com/about-us/company-news-and-information/improving-heathrow/heathrow's-new-terminal-2

[DaveT65]

I was able to find the shops list and then go further. I found the SIM Local shop listing in T2 and also found the SIM International card info on the O2 site. But neither will work for me, and the reasons illustrate why this is such a "complex" issue for me.

 

The SIM Local shop in T2 will be open until 22:00 according to a site I found. My flight is scheduled in at 21:55, though it has been typically arriving between 21:00 and 21:30. So I would have the very real possibility of the shop being closed by the time I clear the arrivals process. In addition, I saw on the O2 site that you can ONLY top up their SIM card in the UK. My time actually in the UK will be minimal. So I think I am back to RoamSimple or Telestial - which does also let me get the SIM while still in the USA. As I recall, one or both of those use the O2 network anyway.

 

So again, many thanks for your information, even if it doesn't work for me. It makes me better informed.