If your bringing along a laptop or PDA/smartphone you can use Skype. Once you install the free software at Skype.com, you can make free computer to computer voice calls, and dirt cheap computer to land-line/mobile call for around .05 cents a minute. If your not bringing along any sort of device, many internet cafes have Skype already installed on their terminals.

You can buy an international phone card with a PIN at convenience stores and newsstands in virtually any European country. The card will be good for the phone in your hotel room as well as in pay phones. Rates are very cheap. The cards come in a variety of price ranges, usually starting around five euros. You'll need a new card in each country you visit so buy ones in low denominations.

If it is too late to buy an unlocked used cell phone here and a SIM over there, buy one there. Then you have a number at which you can be reached at any time. See my posting in Technology section about finding a phone here for use in Europe. It allowed me to call locally to my wife's cell when we got separated; to call hotels; and by leaving it on at night, the peace of mind to be reachable at any time from home.

email works...but a phomne card and use Ricks instructions...just returned from a trip to spain and france...no problem with phoning home.

Best way or cheapest?

Best way when you land go to the nearest phone shop and buy a cheap cell phone. Make the first call one to home and give them your new number.

I bet in Italy you could do this for less then 100 Euros and it would include some time. If you only receive calls then you wouldn't even use the included credit.

When you get back stick the phone on Ebay.

It may not be too late to contact verizon. They FEdEX'd mine.

The positive part of using the Verizon one is the INCOMING calls are completely free, if you are in the UK, and the best part is you can forward your local verizon phone number for free.

If you are traveling outside the UK, you're best bet is to pick up a prepaid at the country you are in. Cell phone places are everywhere and you can get a phone + sim card for cheap.

Just email your family the European # (or call!) and they can get in touch with you anytime.

From suggestion we found here, my husband called and had our cell phones activiated for international roaming. When we got to Italy, my phone worked (it is a Motoral Razor - about 1 year old). He has a much older phone and it did not work, probably because of it's age. Is there a local cell phone store for your service? We seem to have them in our malls and shopping areas. You could go in and have them look at it. We did use our phone a few times in Italy to check in with my mom. It was about $1.50 a minute, so we didn't stay on to long. Just used it to see how she was. We also used it when we could not find our hotel in Venice. They gave us directions. You need an adapter for your phone but it will work without a converter. I learned that on this web site. I also printed out a list of the places we were staying and their phone numbers and hotel email adresses and emailed it to my sister, my neice, etc in case they needed to contact us. Our parents are in assisted living.

I used an ekit phone card. Its only 5-6 cents a minute even from europe. Your friends and family can call and leave you messages for free. It also gives you voice mail and you can listen to your messages via the internet as well. www.ekit.com Or you can purchase a prepaid international phone once you get there but they are quite pricy. They have them all over the place.

I really understand the problem.
I never put all my eggs in one basket, I use 3 tried and trusted methods.

1 I give 3 members of my family the phone, fax and email of the hotel I'm staying in ( if I'm staying in a hotel ). I check that there are no messages every time I enter and leave the hotel.

2 I check my emails every day at an internet cafe ( if there is one ). The 3 family members know my email address and will use it if my mother is ill.

3 I give my airline booking reference to 3 trusted family members. If there is a problem I tell them to phone the airline's reservations department in the UK and ask them to put a CHECK-IN remark into the booking that says 'PLEASE PHONE HOME'. When I arrive at a foriegn airport I go straight to the airline ticket desk, explain the problem, ask them for a phone number and a good time of day to phone ( they always oblige ) and I write it down and use it. I just phone once a day and ask if there are any check-in remarks saying phone home.

I have used several methods to keep in touch while in Europe. Prices and deals seem to change all the time so you'll have to check them out at the time of your trip.

I had very good luck with PIN Cards that I purchased at smoke shops and train stations. It seemed the best were the ones that only covered one country (i.e. Germany) vs. the ones that could be used in multiple countries. I used one up before crossing borders and then purchased another in the next country.

The best deal ever was at an internet cafe in Austria. I wasn't going to be in the country long enough to buy a PIN Card so I went into an internet cafe that advertised international calls. My first call got an answering machine and cost the equivalent of 20 cents. My second call was 30 minutes and cost about $1.20.

These two options seemed to give me the best price per minute. The most convenient is a cell phone. It works well for local calls and calls home but costs a lot more.

Thanks everyone for some good suggestions, I just knew you would be a big help. Since I am leaving in a few hours I am going to print this page out and just take it with me and I will figure out something.