Hi, we are going to Germany/Austria/Switzerland/Italy/France for our honeymoon. We are exploring options of using our iPhone 6s. Shall we get prepaid SIMs from companies such as Telestial or should we wait until we arrive Munich (our first stop) to get a SIM from a store in town? We'd like to be able to use the phone to call, text and surf the net for researching and navigation while on the road.
Thank you very much.
Anne
I'm not any sort of phone expert. I did once use a Telestial SIM and I wasn't at all pleased with the arrangement. It's a VOIP arrangement through a UK phone number. Dial your number, hand up, wait for the phone to ring back, etc. I have also had a pay as you go phone purchased in Europe. Remember how long it took you waiting in line to get your iPhone? Not much differenti in Europe. I go on vacation to be on vacation not to waste half a day finding a place to purchase and then waiting in line. Maybe things have gotten better as this was several years ago. I use my US T-Mobile account with the world service (or what ever its called) and I have associates that use their AT&T accounts with AT&T world service. Cheap, easy, works, etc.
Anne,
You won't be able to use any other SIM cards unless your phones are unlocked. You might check with your home cell network first to find out what the costs are for their international roaming service. For limited use, that can be reasonably cost effective. You won't be able to use data as you would at home, as the costs are steep.
Ken, the TMOBILE plan comes with unlimited (slow but usable) data.
It's much easier to call your US provider and sign up for international service for the time you will be there. AT&T and Verizon have reasonable plans that will let you call, text, and surf the web while you are there. If you have the T-Mobile simple choice plan, you don't have to do anything--they provide free text and data roaming (it's slow) and phone calls only cost 20 cents a minute.
I believe that iPhone 6s comes unlocked, but you can check with your carrier about that. The easiest thing to do would be to stop at the nearest cellphone store or kiosk in the airport and pick up a SIM there. A local SIM will have the absolutely best prices on calls and data, much better than any roaming or international plan from a US carrier. The store can make sure it is working before you leave. Since you are planning to use it in more than one country, make sure that whatever SIM you buy can have minutes added to it easily online or in a local location. (You could also pick up a different SIM in each country to avoid the slight upcharge for roaming, but it's probably not worth the trouble.) I'm not sure what James E is saying about standing in line, because when I was last in Spain, I walked into an Orange store, bought a SIM and had them set it up, all in less than 10 minutes, no waiting in line at all.
I have never used Telestial, but I do carry a Eurobuzz SIM in my two-SIM phone. It is a postpaid system - no fees at all unless you make calls. Your number is permanent, so you can put it in a drawer between trips, and as long as you update your credit card information, you're good to go. The downside is that it isn't the cheapest to use. I keep it as an emergency backup - it's the number my family has at home to reach me on in an emergency. I use a local SIM in the other slot because it's cheaper to use. Most recently, my Orange SIM cost 9 euros, and had 9 euros credit on it. I called home three times, probably 15 minutes each call, and used it a tiny amount for calls when I was there. I never used up the credit. Of course, I wasn't using data, either.
Thanks everyone for replying. We will start from Munich and drive though Austria, Switzerland, Italy and France. Anyone has experience in getting a SIM in Munich that will work for those countries? A friend suggested us to check with the "Saturn" shop in downtown Munich. I would rather not have to wait in line for hours as we only have about 1.5 days in Munich.
With my research in the last couple of days, I think our options are:
go with AT&T. My husband is still yet to talk to them to find out the exact costs of getting their "Global" plans for our 16 days in Europe. (both phones are unlocked).
Pay $14.95/day to rent a mobile WIFI. I believe with this we will have unlimited data plan and can use Skype for calls and iMessages. The device is not too big, so we could also potentially carry it around when we hike or walkabout.
Purchase an unlocked mobile WIFI on ebay, which costs around $50, then get a prepaid data plan SIM from companies like Telestial, which costs about $100 for 1 GB. We will use the SIM for the MIFI, so more than one phone could use it. However since MIFI uses data plan, 1 GB might not be enough for 16 days.
Renting a car from Autoeurope (the rental co will actually be Europcar) and pay $5/day/device for an MIFI rental, which has 1.25MB/week/device. (It is not offered on Europcar's own website, strangely enough). Also the Rep from Europcar told me that as of now, we'll have to get a different MIFI device and SIM for each country, which will be 3 devices and a total of $15/day. They plan on rolling out an universal device in September but it is no a set plan. Itt does not cover Switzerland and Austria. There is a $40 shipping charge on top of the daily rental rate.
Renting a SIM from companies such as Telestial, which costs @29 with @20 credit for a month. The rates are $.25/call/text/GB. Renting a data SIM for $99 for a month for 1GB (again, this may not be enough).
I still need to find out of the option of getting SIMs from a local store in Munich, the time it will take to get it and costs. If it is not too time consuming and cheap enough, maybe we will buy an unlocked MIFI and get a SIM in Munich to use. I would also appreciate anyone who has information about the various MIFI devices available on ebay. For instance, since we have AT&T iphone6s, should we get an AT&T MiFI instead of a Verizon MIFI (unlocked)?
Anne
I went to the ATT store yesterday to discuss upgrading my 5 to a 6 or 6+. I was told the 6 will be unlocked.
We purchased our iPhone 6s unlocked. :)
Just found "Prepaidzero.com". They offer prepaid data SIM for Euro49.50/500MB, Euro85/1GB, Euro119/2G. It seems that their SIMs are pretty easy to use that require no personal registration. So we could probably buy an unlocked MIFI and get their 2GB SIM or rent a MIFI from them for Euro49.59.
Remember, its 16 days. I make 3 business or holiday trips a year. I don't know your situation but when I am on vacation I don't talk much on the phone & even business doesn't use that much time. Maybe I make 1 phone call related to the trip every couple of days (hotel reservation or a taxi for instance). With TMOBILE that costs me less than a dollar for each phone call. Sometimes its nice to have data when out and about but like the US there is free wifi everywhere if I need it fast or the TMOBILE plan if its just an email. Otherwise all the heavy data usage is in the hotel with wifi. The AT&T plan I understand isn't quite as good as the TMOBILE but I bet its sufficient.
I agree. I am not sure how much data we will need to be honest. However, since we will be doing a lot of driving, I think maybe we will need the data for navigation.
James E.,
I was aware of the T-Mobile 2G data for roaming, but didn't know which carrier the OP was with.
If you can wait until arrival to set up your phone, going to Saturn is a good option. They are a big electronics and appliance store (similar to a Best Buy in the US), with lots of employees, so you shouldn't have to "wait in line" to get service. They will have multiple carriers available, so they can help you select the best one for your needs.
A German SIM will have cheap rates in Germany, and the roaming rates in other EU countries are capped. When the credit runs out, you can reload the SIM if you've gotten that set up online, or you can buy a new one in the country you're in when you need it.
If you want to research options before you arrive in Europe, the Prepaid GSM website has lots of info (too much for some - don't be afraid to ask for clarification on their forums, as they get VERY technical). Here's their page on German SIMs: http://www.prepaidgsm.net/en/germany.html
Here's their page on International SIMs: http://www.prepaidgsm.net/en/international.php
Rent A car with a GPS. My TMOBILE and I suspect the same would be true with AT&T, worked flawlessly from Istanbul across Bulgaria and Romania and Slovakia and Hungary and even in the Soviet Union..... hmmmm, I mean Russia. I don't do that good in the states.
Keep in mind that everytime you change SIM, you change phone number. That might not matter to you, but if people at home need it, you will want to let them know.
