iPhone newbie seeking advice

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/02/how-to-take-you/ Pretty detailed in how to use the phone in Europe. Hope it's helpful to you.

I am only speaking about iphone on the Version network which, of course, does not work in Europe. Go to settings, put phone in airplane mode - turns off everything, go to WIFI (same screen) and turn it on. That will connect to any wifi available and not access the 3G network. Also under Setting - General - Network. You can turn off Data Roaming which gives you sort of a double off.

Barbara, call your provider and they will make sure that you know how to turn of the data. I have taken my iphone to the UK and I turn it off through general settings. If you put it on Airplane mode you can't use the phone. So, I just use general settings procedure that was explained to me by AT&T. I have had no large fees. Pam

Just to be clear. With airplane mode on, just the telephone part does not work. All other functions, including wireless, email, etc. all work.

Barbara, The information that Steve provided is spot-on! It's essential to place your iPhone in "Airplane Mode" when travelling by air, in order to comply with flight regulations. When in "Airplane mode", ALL transmit functions are disabled including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. GPS operation is also disabled. Have a look at This Website for the details. When you arrive at destination, go to the "Settings" and re-enable the Wi-Fi portion if you're planning on using that for net access or whatever. Happy travels!

Follow the steps Frank outlined in his first post and you're good to go... Once you put the phone in Airplane Mode, and then manually turn on WIFI ( all done on the same screen in the Settings, your Iphone will now be an Ipod essentially ( the phone will not work either to send or receive calls). Now, when you go back to your main screen, you'll see a little airplane icon in the top left corner of the screen. As long as you see that airplane icon, you do not have to worry about any roaming charges. To use your Iphone to make a call after that, you will have to turn Airplane Mode off, and then you will be hit with roaming charges if you make a call. If Airplane Mode is turned off, you will also get hit with roaming charges if you try to access the internet when not connected to a wifi network ( ie connect using 3G ). If you want complete peace of mind, keep the Airplane Mode turned on, and if you want to place a call, drop in to any of the many internet cafes( most of which also have phone booths for telephone calls) that are everywhere in Europe. The rates they charge are very reasonable, you pay immediately after your finished using the phone, and no worries about charges showing up on home phone bills when you get back.
Yes, you will still be able to access your calendar, contacts, etc while in Airplane Mode. Again, an IPhone in Airplane Mode is essentially an IPod

Barb, Frank and Pam have explained it perfectly. Go to the AT&T website and read all of the info about taking your phone overseas. Confused? Read the following tutorial: http://www.lodgephoto.com/blog/set-up-iphone-for-europe-travel-save-money/277/ If you need more info call AT&T l them ask questions; they are great at answering them. One more thing that you need to know is that all calls to your phone (voicemail, etc,) will be charged at the overseas rate unless your forward your voicemail to something like Google mail, etc. I don't worry about the small charges I will incur when people CALL my phone: but I do change my voice mail message telling them to send me an email, if it is not an emergency. I take my Iphone overseas each year. I put my phone on Airplane mode when I get on the plane. Once I get off the plane, I shut off Airplane mode AND shut off data roaming, and turn on Wi-Fi. (Follow the AT& T instructions!) Then I use it for phone calls, and use the free ! wi-fi (Email, internet, Skype) I need to be able to receive calls from home, so I sign up for two packages that reduce my calling/phone charges. I buy World Traveler ($5.99/month). It drops my call charges from $1.99 min to .99 cents a minute. (I use Skype for all planned out going calls.) I also paid $10 for Global Messenger, with gives me 50 super-cheap text messages. You can also buy reduced rate data packages, and turn your data on, watch your data counter, and use data for emergencies, etc.

Thank you all for the advice and links to more information, and especially for having patience with my lack of knowledge. I'm feeling like I can handle this now, thanks to all of you!