eSIM card for Europe

iPhone user here - Android appears to be a bit different. I have used the Orange plan twice and it works fine. Do remember it is only good for 15 days.

I know that they say it is possible to register the phone number and keep the same number for longer but I have not had great success with this. And you have to buy a new plan anyway after 15 days, so this may or may not be useful….

The Esim comes with installation directions and it’s not difficult. It IS easiest with 2 devices so you can access the emailed QR code on one device and scan the code with your phone. Then just be sure that cellular plan is turned off till you are ready to use it. Your days start with first use. I turn on airplane mode on the plane, then during the flight I turn off the cellular plan for my home phone and turn the Orange cellular plan on. When we land I turn off Airplane Mode and it’s ready to go.

One note: last time, I had to back into settings and turn on Roaming. I don’t remember having to do that before.

And yes, Airalo is data only. But you could use WhatsApp for calling if you go that route.

Thanks! Did you buy the Orange eSIM from them directly, if not, where? It seems like on Amazon I only saw the Orange physical SIM.

So it sounds like I can buy it and install it, but simply not activate it until I am in Europe. After it is installed, it will show up on the iPhone under "Cellular data", right? And after installation, I will have to take some concrete step to activate it (so it wont activate too early).

Finem, I had an Airalo plan, which activates differently, but @TexasTravelmom went with Orange and here is a post from her (taken from this very long post ) about activating an Orange eSIM.

Kathy, when I bought my Orange eSim for Spain in March, I ordered ahead, gave them the date I wanted to activate (the day before my trip), and then waited. On the day I chose, an email arrived with a QR code (which I opened on my iPad and scanned with my phone). Then I followed directions. I kept that cellular plan turned off and my home plan turned on. Then on the airplane, while my phone was in Airplane Mode, I turned my home plan Off and the Orange plan On. After deplaning, I simply turned Airplane Mode off and was ready to go as soon as I arrived. When returning, just do the opposite.

With regards to needing a phone, I used my eSIM (from Airalo - data only) for a month traveling around Germany and Denmark, and never once needed to call anyone locally. I did call some family and friends but did that using FaceTime or WhatsApp, depending on what phones they have.

Oops, I almost forgot this link, which is handy for iPhone users with eSIMs. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT209044

Thanks, Mardee!

Finem, Orange e-sim is easy to set up and use. I used the Orange e-sim on 3 separate occasions over October, November, and December this past year on a new unlocked android phone. Full disclosure: my new phone was not connected to any mobile company.
Orange will send you an email with attachments. I am old school and like a hard copy so I printed off the first 2-3 pages of the activation attachment and used them to activate the service. It is also important that you keep the MSISDN number which is the number your phone will be assigned. Also keep handy the NSCE number.
Here is the link to the orange website to purchase https://travel.orange.com/en/offers/all-inclusive/
8GB for 19.99 euro should be more than enough for what you need. If you can find an all inclusive plan (voice, text, data) for even 5GB that should be enough. I used the internet, mapping, facebook, and Instagram for 10 days on our cruise and I believe i used much less than 5GB. If you need any more info or help DM me.
Also look into O2 mobile out of England or Vodafone out of Germany. I believe Vodafone requires a German address to register.
If you are taking the Viking cruise understand that their on board internet is slooow.

Thanks, John... First trip to Europe and first ever cruise... we are taking AMA Waterways. It may not even be necessary to have the phone number but the wife would feel better. Also will try to use Wi-fi when on the boat and elsewhere.

I sent customer service Orange an email asking a question about how they count service days and they did not answer my question, but sent this which did confirm another question I had.....you can set up in the USA but it isn't active until it detects a Euro connection.

You can buy your Holiday eSIM before you leave. You will need an internet connection to buy online and receive it by email.
Next, you need to install your eSIM. You can install it before you travel or when you arrive.
Your device must have an internet connection to install your eSIM.
The eSIM card comes with a French phone number. Your SIM number is listed in the Welcome Pack and QR code pdf file that was sent to you by email following your order.
Activation will be done automatically once the SIM card is under European network coverage. Note that you will need this number to register your Esim and extend its line validity to 6 months. If you encounter difficulties once you arrive in Europe, do not delete the SIM card because you will not be able to download it twice and contact our Customer Service
We remain at your disposal,

Can anyone who has used Orange answer the following:

How do they count the 14 days? If I turn it on (arrive in Europe) on the afternoon of the 1st day of a month, is that first day counted as one day, or does it count by 24 hours (in that case the 24 hours would end on the 2nd day of month). It makes a difference to me because I will be in Europe 15 days counting arrival and departure day (and want to have calling access on departure day in case of plane delay).

@Finem, I bet the people who missed our boat at one stop thought they wouldn't need to use a phone either :)
@Lynn, I am sorry that I can not answer your days of use question. Sadly, Orange only has a 14 day option from what I can see.

I have used the Holiday Zen eSim that provides a French number twice - and the Spain only Orange plan once. And I regularly use Airalo for data only. Depends on the trip and my anticipated need.

So yes, about 2 weeks before my trip, I buy the Orange plan online (https://travel.orange.com/en/offers/europe), set it up whenever I get to it, turn it off till I arrive.
Edit: With this plan, you don’t have to give them an activation date like I did for the Spain plan. You simply install and turn it off under Cellular.

Then turn it on when you are ready to use it (don’t forget to make sure your home number is turned off - it may not happen automatically), and make sure Data Roaming is on. I do this process on the plane while my phone is in Airplane Mode.

John is right - you will need those important numbers that come in the email. I don’t print, but I do save them to my travel spreadsheet so I have them accessible and also write the telephone number down for my wallet. Temporarily lost my phone once in Jordan and realized I needed to have my Jordan phone number quickly more accessible in some way than just my spreadsheet so someone could call it to look for it. 🤣

Lynn, I am not sure, but I suspect it is by day, not by 24 hrs. If I were looking at such a close timeframe, I think I would plan to use only WiFi on my first or last day (with my trips I would use the first day for WiFi).

John, oh the people that missed the boat…. Lol!

I get prepaid data SIMs all the time in Europe, never added an eSIM. I do have a T-Mobile eSIM in my iPhone 14 Pro Max and I know you can have more than one eSIM active and assign one to do data and one to receive calls.

But I usually put the nano SIM into an iPad instead and use hot spot if I need data on my phone.

T-Mobile charges 25 cents a minute for international calls. I believe that's for both calling and being called.

Otherwise, with data, either Wifi or mobile data, you can call out to any phone in the world using apps. like Viber. They can't call you though unless you buy a Viber number. I think Skype is similar.

The other possibility, a lot of people have WhatsApp numbers. The numbers they give you can be their WhatsApp number. You can call or chat them. I often ask them if they have WA and they will tell me the number.

I rarely call though. Much easier to chat them. Lot of people speak English but it's easer to read than to listen.