Buy sim card or purchase Verizon package?

Don't know anything about sim cards, but have used the Verizon package for many years. It used to be data only for $25, which is what I use. My husband started taking advantage of the $40 when it came available. Don't do a whole lot of calling, but it is very nice to be able to make calls if necessary. There have been a few places where the data didn't work too well, if at all. I think it was Azerbaijan several years back. And even with the package you might incur roaming charges if using on a cruise ship. That changes from time to time. But for simplicity, I like the Verizon package. If not enough data, you can supplement with wifi whereever you find it. You just have to remember to call to turn it off when you return. I don't think they can set it up to turn off automatically.

Depending on the country and how much data you plan to use a sim card "can" be cheaper. The downside of course is that you will then have a new phone number - which means only the folks you notify of the new number can call you - which may or may not work for you:-).

Was in Paris, Amsterdam and Bruges last month and had the Verizon package. The minimal coverage was fine for the few calls and google searches I did while out and about. Mainly I used wifi in the apartment and Whatsapp to call family. For navigating and keeping track of shops and restaurants I used the City Maps to Go app which doesn't require data. It worked really well when used in combination with my Streetwise Paris map.

Last year in Austria, Slovenia, Italy I used the Verizon package and rapidly ate it up. I ended up buying a sim card in Vienna that was VERY good for data, text, and the rare phone call. Last a long while. I didn't need to make calls home to the USA, and was happy to email/text home at night on Wifi, so this worked well for me.

This summer, on June 15 roaming fees within the EU will cease to exist. That should mean that if you bought a Sim card and plan in one country, you can call to any other country or travel there and use it without running up any excess costs - making this even better.

My wife and I plan to get new SIM cards this summer in scandinavia and use them to be able to text/call one another and use data for navigating around.

A lot depends on how you intend to use your phone. If you haven't done so yet, read over the "Phone and Tech" section in Travel Tips on this site. Then, compare the benefits of a local SIM card (for example Lebara in the U.K.) vs. the Verizon plan. I'm an ATT customer, but once I get to Europe, I buy a local SIM since they offer more benefits than my home international plan at a good cost saving.

UK Sim is the most cost effective way to go.
If both on same network there will be no call charges between those phones. £10 would get you a month deal with hundreds of UK mins call time,unlimited text and a couple of GBytes of data.
Extra credit could be added for calls to US,at about 3c a minute.
Every corner store and supermarket has SIMs.

When we go to the U.K., our first stop is an "EE" store (Everything Everywhere cellular). Last fall we paid 15.00 GBP for a SIM with 2GB and 30 days of service. It was more than enough for our two weeks in the U.K. But we have unlocked GSM phones. That is a factor.

If your phones are not unlocked and you can't or won't change that, then a local SIM won't work. If you expect to gobble a lot of data, e.g., navigation, mailing lots of pix/videos, know Verizon's limits and what happens if you go over.

Unless you have particular requirements, I'm not sure the cost or service differences between the major UK providers are worth the analysis. On my last trip, I went with Vodafone simply because the equally nearby E and O2 shops were busier. The shop set everything up and I walked out in 15 minutes with a working phone.

And be sure to safely secure and store a U.S. SIM you switch out. And take a paper clip with you so you can pop out the SIM holder at the end of the trip. I found UK clips were, oddly, too big for the job.

I always use the Verizon package and have found it to be plenty for us. We make few actual phone calls and mainly use our phones to make reservations, buy tickets online, and sometimes lodging reservations. We use navigation offline so we don't eat up data quickly. Other than that wireless is everywhere and simply by connecting to it we can easily get by on the amount of data that comes with a $40 package from Verizon.

Thanks. The discussion has been very helpful.