airalo ESIM and SMS messages

[rmalbers]

I know that some people here use airalo ESIM's for data because that's where I first heard about it.  I used their esim on the last trip and it work great and I'm really glad I had it but: I had several cases where I was buying (trying to buy) an excursion or tickets and to pay at their checkout required sending an SMS message with a 'code'  to my phone number, which, being data only I didn't have (and of course, didn't have access to my US phone number).  Do any of you users of data only ESIMs have a work around for that?  My google searches and airalo don't really have any answers.   Oh, and I'm android so apple imessage is out. 

[OneSixtyToOne]

I use an iPhone so can’t address a workaround, but Airalo also sells a global esim that includes voice, data, and SMS text.

Edited October 6, 2023 by OneSixtyToOne

[rmalbers]

14 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

I use an iPhone so can’t address a workaround, but Airalo also sells a global esim that includes voice, data, and SMS text.

Ya, now that I know it works I guess I'll probably just go with the global 'everything' next time, that's probably the way to go.  It really isn't that much more money than the regional one I bought.  This was the first time I used it and wasn't sure if I could get it to work or not.  

[OneSixtyToOne]

27 minutes ago, rmalbers said:

Ya, now that I know it works I guess I'll probably just go with the global 'everything' next time, that's probably the way to go.  It really isn't that much more money than the regional one I bought.  This was the first time I used it and wasn't sure if I could get it to work or not.  

I’ve used the data-only esim on our last three trips to Europe and it works great but I never use voice on my phone, even at home and everyone I text with uses apple.
 

The first time using the temporary esim took some fiddling with settings to get the SMS text right. My wife sent a text and she got a message from Verizon that she was being charged $10 for the day! Took a while to figure out how to disable all of that and only use the new esim.

 

BTW buy the most inexpensive card. You can always top off for the equivalent price.

 

We will buy buying the global one in a few days for our SA trip. It’s actually cheaper than the regional Latin America esim and covers more carriers .

 

Edited October 7, 2023 by OneSixtyToOne

[rmalbers]

4 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

I’ve used the data-only esim on our last three trips to Europe and it’s works great but I never use voice on my phone, even at home.
 

The first time using the temporary esim took some fiddling with settings to get the SMS text right. My wife sent a text and she got a message from Verizon that she was being charged $10 for the day! Took a while to figure out how to disable all of that and only use the new esim.

Ya, tmobile sent me a text warning me about charges like that, I disabled my tmobile sim right away. Now that I know it works I won't be without a esim for the areas I'm traveling in for sure, it's real convenient.  I never thought about the SMS text problem with purchases until it happened. 

[wine-wine-wine]

1 hour ago, rmalbers said:

Ya, tmobile sent me a text warning me about charges like that

Odd that. I use T-Mobile’s provided nearly global roaming for free quite frequently. Works well for me. Maybe your plan doesn’t include it. 🤷‍♂️

[OneSixtyToOne]

25 minutes ago, wine-wine-wine said:

Odd that. I use T-Mobile’s provided nearly global roaming for free quite frequently. Works well for me. Maybe your plan doesn’t include it. 🤷‍♂️

T-Mobile has many different plans. Their basic plan vs one that includes international can be almost double the price.

 

I'd rather buy an esim for the few weeks I'm out of the country. I'm using Wi-Fi 99% of the time when not traveling. Plans that include bells and whistles are not cost effective for me.

Edited October 7, 2023 by OneSixtyToOne

[wine-wine-wine]

26 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

T-Mobile has many different plans. Their basic plan vs one that includes international can be almost double the price.

Ah makes sense. Now that I think of it I’m on an old plan and corporate rate that is no longer available.  Someday when I get kicked off of that I’ll follow your lead. 😎

[Mich3554]

2 hours ago, rmalbers said:

Ya, now that I know it works I guess I'll probably just go with the global 'everything' next time, that's probably the way to go.  It really isn't that much more money than the regional one I bought.  This was the first time I used it and wasn't sure if I could get it to work or not.  

This is probably a smart move.  
 

We used Airalo on our world cruise this year.  DH chose the global plan (which unfortunately did not include voice or text).  I decided to buy plans by the country.  First purchase was New Zealand.  Worked beautifully, and I had an idea of how much data I’d be using.  Next stop, Australia.  We fought for half the time we were in Australia to get m6 plan going.  After that, I decided to go with the global plan.  Apparently, if you have more than one eSIM plan in function…..even if you are no longer in the country but still hav3 time on it….it jacks everything up.  Once I finally got the global plan working in Indonesia, everything worked great and it was very easy to top off.

[OneSixtyToOne]

14 minutes ago, Mich3554 said:

Apparently, if you have more than one eSIM plan in function…..even if you are no longer in the country but still hav3 time on it….it jacks everything up.

Yes, the trick is to disable the esims you are not using so only the one you want to use is active.

[rmalbers]

19 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Yes, the trick is to disable the esims you are not using so only the one you want to use is active.

Interesting, I'll have to remember that, that sort of makes since after having hearing about it now. 

[rmalbers]

37 minutes ago, Mich3554 said:

This is probably a smart move.  
 

We used Airalo on our world cruise this year.  DH chose the global plan (which unfortunately did not include voice or text).  I decided to buy plans by the country.  First purchase was New Zealand.  Worked beautifully, and I had an idea of how much data I’d be using.  Next stop, Australia.  We fought for half the time we were in Australia to get m6 plan going.  After that, I decided to go with the global plan.  Apparently, if you have more than one eSIM plan in function…..even if you are no longer in the country but still hav3 time on it….it jacks everything up.  Once I finally got the global plan working in Indonesia, everything worked great and it was very easy to top off.

That's good to know.  One thing I didn't like is that I really had no idea if my regional plan was installed correctly and going to work, until I got to the 'region'.  I should not have been worried because it worked (except for the SMS stuff I ran into) but anyway, now I know.  Hopefully, this thread helps some others understand it better also. 

[OneSixtyToOne]

6 minutes ago, rmalbers said:

That's good to know.  One thing I didn't like is that I really had no idea if my regional plan was installed correctly and going to work, until I got to the 'region'.  I should not have been worried because it worked (except for the SMS stuff I ran into) but anyway, now I know.  Hopefully, this thread helps some others understand it better also. 

If you buy the global esim, the US is included. That allows you to test it before you leave, although it will start the clock ticking.

[rmalbers]

5 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

If you buy the global esim, the US is included. That allows you to test it before you leave, although it will start the clock ticking.

Yes, I was thinking about that, that would be another benefit for sure with global.  Now that I know more about it I'll be doing global 'everything' for sure next time.  With travel these days, you really never know what's going to happen and this is another way to be prepared.  The multi SIM ability was one of the reasons I bought the phone I have, I just had the first chance to test it on the last trip (Iceland). 

Edited October 7, 2023 by rmalbers

[NewbieWestCoaster]

If your US wireless plan is Verizon, there is a way to send and receive SMS messages using only WiFi (aka any eSim providers) for Andriod ( I suppose it works for iOS as well).  Verizon has a text app for WiFi connection:  Message+.  I switched to Message+ to send/receive all my SMS messages even when I'm in the US.   It's just as seamless as the regular SMS apps.

[Torquato]

On 10/7/2023 at 9:11 AM, OneSixtyToOne said:

T-Mobile has many different plans. Their basic plan vs one that includes international can be almost double the price.

 

I'd rather buy an esim for the few weeks I'm out of the country. I'm using Wi-Fi 99% of the time when not traveling. Plans that include bells and whistles are not cost effective for me.

We are on t-mobile. Our plan includes international data. Free calls in all of North America plus other perks. We only pay $60/month for two lines including taxes. Very cost effective for us. I don’t know if they offer this plan for seniors anymore. 

[NewbieWestCoaster]

Oh nevermind.  Verizon is disabling Message+ in June 2024.  Oh well.

[LindaS272]

1 hour ago, Torquato said:

We are on t-mobile. Our plan includes international data. Free calls in all of North America plus other perks. We only pay $60/month for two lines including taxes. Very cost effective for us. I don’t know if they offer this plan for seniors anymore. 

We have this too, but I was told last year by T-Mobile that it’s no longer offered to new customers.

[yogamom]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:37 PM, rmalbers said:

That's good to know.  One thing I didn't like is that I really had no idea if my regional plan was installed correctly and going to work, until I got to the 'region'.  I should not have been worried because it worked (except for the SMS stuff I ran into) but anyway, now I know.  Hopefully, this thread helps some others understand it better also. 

Did you use the airalo esim while on the cruiseship?  Curious since the cruiseline / satellite would not be able to charge airalo (I don't believe) so just wondering if it would work?  We are sailing Alaska inside passage soon and very curious about turning on only the airalo esim (global/US Plans) and picing up signal when so close to land.  Definitely do not plan to turn on our homebased carrier as I don't want to incur those terrible cruise/satellite charges.  

[CurlerRob]

On 10/7/2023 at 7:04 AM, rmalbers said:

I know that some people here use airalo ESIM's for data because that's where I first heard about it.  I used their esim on the last trip and it work great and I'm really glad I had it but: I had several cases where I was buying (trying to buy) an excursion or tickets and to pay at their checkout required sending an SMS message with a 'code'  to my phone number, which, being data only I didn't have (and of course, didn't have access to my US phone number).  Do any of you users of data only ESIMs have a work around for that?  My google searches and airalo don't really have any answers.   Oh, and I'm android so apple imessage is out. 

There are a couple of things that you should know about Airalo. 
 

First, as you recognized, a data eSIM will not help with confirmation texts - they need cellular service. 
 

If you go to the Airalo site and search their help function, you will find a section that explains how to still use your phone with the data eSIM. See the pic below. The section explains how to restrict data usage to your eSIM while activating your phone and text. 
 

If you only need to receive a confirmation text, you should not be charged or trigger a daily plan from your home provider. This is what I do when I need 2-factor authentication. 
 

Additionally, even if you have an eSIM that supports text and calls, it usually comes with a number different from your phone - may be useless if the text goes to your home number. 

Summary - I use the eSIM for data when away, but turn on my normal line for incoming text when I need a text code. 🍺

[CurlerRob]

13 hours ago, yogamom said:

Did you use the airalo esim while on the cruiseship?  Curious since the cruiseline / satellite would not be able to charge airalo (I don't believe) so just wondering if it would work?  We are sailing Alaska inside passage soon and very curious about turning on only the airalo esim (global/US Plans) and picing up signal when so close to land.  Definitely do not plan to turn on our homebased carrier as I don't want to incur those terrible cruise/satellite charges.  

I’m not aware of any Airalo eSIMs that support maritime cellular service. Depending on the strength of the shore signal you should be able to use a Global or US eSIM when in range -  but I have no personal experience with the coverage for the inside passage. Good luck! 🍺🥌

[longterm]

On 3/26/2024 at 12:31 PM, Torquato said:

We are on t-mobile. Our plan includes international data. Free calls in all of North America plus other perks. We only pay $60/month for two lines including taxes. Very cost effective for us. I don’t know if they offer this plan for seniors anymore. 

Us too. We switched from AT&T, got our phones paid off (almost $900 total), and the plan's much better. Same cell towers so no change in coverage. It's been nice to have data usage outside the US. Also includes Netflix & AppleTV+ as well.

[Breckski]

What's the primary purpose/benefit of such an eSIM for someone on a cruise?  I'm assuming it's for cost-savings as compared to your providers international plan but wanted to ask in case I'm missing something.  

[OneSixtyToOne]

15 minutes ago, Breckski said:

What's the primary purpose/benefit of such an eSIM for someone on a cruise?  I'm assuming it's for cost-savings as compared to your providers international plan but wanted to ask in case I'm missing something.  

Yes, it’s cost. A few years ago we got hit with a $25/day charge from Verizon for receiving one text. After that, we installed an eSIM. A few weeks ago we changed to T-Mobile and international text & data is included for less cost than our old Verizon plan, which had no international included.
 

We also dumped Verizon because without notice they increased rates and charged a 5G surcharge on both lines even though one phone is not 5G capable. Our bill increased by 20%. Word to the wise, new plans come and go in a highly competitive environment. If you have had the same plan for a number of years, you might be paying too much. Shop around.

Edited April 22 by OneSixtyToOne

[rmalbers]

I just want to add, if it's not real clear, not all T Mobile plans include international.  Nobody really said they did but some people might not know.  As more and more phones are esim capable international esims are really nice.  If you do not have an international plan and have an esim capable phone, it's really cheap and easy to go that way.