Please sign in to post.

Buying SIM Card for phone in LHR - where?

I'll be heading for Scotland in July, with a long layover at London Heathrow. While I'm there, I'll want to pick up a SIM card for my phone, maybe a couple of them.

(And before you go there, thanks, but I don't want and can't use an e-SIM. I know all about them, they don't work in the devices I will be using. So I will be looking for an old-school physical SIM card, thank you.)

We will have plenty of time to kill in the airport. Finding and buying a SIMs is one task I hope to accomplish during my long layover there. I assume there should be plenty of options. I know SIMs can often be found at shops/counters in many airports' arrival halls, sometimes elsewhere in the maze of terminals.

We will be arriving (on a Tuesday morning in early July), arriving from USA on American Airlines. Since I'll have many hours to kill, I don't mind switching terminals (pretty sure we will have to switch terminals anyway to catch our BA flight to Aberdeen and then Shetland).

I'll be looking for a SIM to use in Shetland (and Shetland is in Scotland) for about 10 days; after Shetland, we will be going to Bergen, Norway for a few days, so ideally I'd prefer to get a SIM that works in both places. I'll want data mostly, and a few local calls. I do not need or plan to make any international calls. I know coverage througout Shetland may be spotty (especially in more remote places) but will be hoping for service that works well (as well as one can expect) there.

Could someone point me to 1) a preferred company that gives me a good chance at meeting my needs, and 2) a shop in the airport where I can find that?

Thanks.

Posted by
350 posts

I bought a GiffGaff sim on Ebay for $1.25, with a 5 pounds credit. It took 15 days to arrive (from Paris), but activation was easy, and it worked fine in Ireland. It was Pay as You Go, and I could top-off the account by Paypal. Since you'll be activating it in London, it will roam as normal. Don't know about Norway.

Posted by
3794 posts

Another vote for giff gaff.
I’ve used them twice with great results.
Order now and set up at home.
As long as it’s activated first in the UK, you can roam in the EU.
The website will tell you where you can roam.

https://www.giffgaff.com/

Posted by
623 posts

Another vote for giffgaff. You can download their app and have it set up and ready to go before you leave if you order now and have it shipped to you.

Posted by
3794 posts

Just adding that giff-gaff regular simcard and package cost me only CAN$ 17. for more data than I would use here at home in months.
I was there for about 15 days.
That was in Dec 2023.