Mobile/Cell phones

Peronally when I'm traveling except in an emergency I don't feel the need to be in very much contact with home. Yes I text when I arrive to say all is well, yes I call once a week, "yep having a great time, LOVE YOU" call over in under 5 min., yes I occasionally call ahead to a B&B to say traffic sucks (well, a polite varation thereof) and we'll be there whenever. With Cingular the whole thing for an entire 4 week trip is about $40/50 and no worries. In an emergency I don't really care much about the $1.99 a min. fee. Seems to me to be a whole lot of fussing about saving a few bucks (especially when compared with the overall cost of the trip) when really, you are in Europe to "get away from it all". All this said I am in my 50's and don't feel the need to be connected all the time (especially in a public bathroom stall talking on my cell -what's up with that?)

Michele,

My travel method is much the same as Marie described. I normally just use roaming with my home network using text most of the time and occasional short voice calls (whether in-country or to call back home). I've been using this method for several years and it's worked well and hasn't been overly expensive.

I can understand those on CDMA networks looking at travel SIM's or other options, but it doesn't seem to be worth the effort for those on GSM networks. I'm assuming you're either with Rogers or Fido and using a quad-band, unlocked phone?

I've looked at the rates for some of the firms that provide travel SIM's, and in many cases the cost would be about the same or even slightly more expensive. These would be more of a hassle than a benefit for me.

Be sure to check the Charger for your Phone, to ensure it's designed for use on European electrical systems.

Happy travels!

Michele, I couple of years ago I bought a cell phone from Telestial. (My regular cell phone won't work overseas.) Last year we took a trip to three countries, so I bought a SIM card that covers most European countries; I think it was called a passport or something like that. It worked quite well. In researching all the different providers, I thought Telestial's web site was the best organized and easiest to understand.

I also used cards from Telestial successfully on two trips, but they were an earlier generation card. I had a terrible experience with the Explorer card on my last trip - barely worked anywhere, and could never receive and incoming call the whole time. So, I am hesitant to try the passport.

I just upgraded my t-mobile phone to a quad band and with global access - free - I will pay .99 per minute incoming or outgoing. I may take my unlocked phone and buy a sim card while I am there to get free incoming. I don't talk a lot, but I have been taking each of my kids to Europe one at a time the summer they are 11, so my other kids and my husband do like to stay in touch. This would also let me give my 11 year old a phone to carry in case of an emergency. We have never had that before, but nor have we ever needed one.

Count me as another Mobal customer. I first bought it for a Girl Scout trip I was doing as I needed the phone number BEFORE I left to give to the parents. I have used it numerous times since then and my basic "confirmation" calls etc cost around $10. Hardly worth buying another phone for.

I also planned a couple of trips to Europe this summer and I am looking at the Passport SIM card which gives the best pricing for my need. However, from what I've read on the website, the Passport SIM card has a lengthy dial sequence. In other words, you have to dial an access code and wait for some prompt and dial your account # and then the number you want to reach. Is this still true? And I like to ask those who have used it, how's your experience with it?

With Mobal (www.mobal.com) you buy the $49 once, and receive a permanent international SIM card that works in something like 140 countries. Then you only pay for the calls that you make -- no running out of minutes, no changing cards for changing countries, no monthly fees. The per-minute cost is higher than some methods, but I find it to be the most trouble free for me. The calls, whether from Finland or the mountains of northern Spain, are crystal clear. And there is no lengthy dialing sequence, just dial the US number as you would normally do -- country code, area code, and number.

I just ordered a Mobal phone this past week. I wasn't planning on using a phone when we went on our trip to Germany and France this summer, but then I thought about having to call the next hotel/hostel to confirm our reservations and decided maybe I would go ahead and get one for convenience.

At home I only have a Tracfone that stays in my car for emergencies. I would never want to be in constant contact with anyone, never did understand that need.