sim card vs esim card

Some of the technical details a probably best covered by researching how esims work on whatever phones you have, and whatever US carrier you have.

I've looked into eSIMs for Spain, and while they can be bought and set up remotely, all the phone carriers there require you to go into the stores to set them up.

I'd be surprised that the price difference would be so great between Italy and Germany to make it worth waiting.

The "too many adapters" blog covers the best options for pre-paid/tourist sims in many countries.

ktmrtinazzi, here is a link to a post I recently wrote about eSIM data plans. It has a lot of info and links to other sources with even more details. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tech-tips/buying-an-international-esim-data-plan-for-your-regular-phone-with-esim-no-more-burner-phones

I can tell you that switching back and forth is very easy. You should set your US phone to Airplane mode, and then switch to the eSIM line. If you want, you can switch back in the evening if you want (it takes less than 30 seconds) while using your hotel's wireless plan, but you don't need to.

If you still have questions after reading the post above, then let me know.

Thank you Mardee. the information was very helpful. My problem now is finding an esim provider that includes call/text options. I am going down the list in the article, but so far just data plans. Do you know of any that include call/text options. thank you

The cheapest approach is to go to a grocery store in Germany like Lidl and buy a SIM card. Then you can get a prepaid plan like this: https://www.lidl.de/c/lidl-connect-smart-xl/s10007725

If you want help setting it up in English I would go into a Vodafone shop in any city and ask for a prepaid card - these work anywhere in Europe except Switzerland (there’s an add-on available if you are going there). You should be able to get what you need for 20€ or 30€ for 1 month.

I'm not endorsing Travelsim but they offer an esim with calls and texts along with data. Someone else mentioned this one in another post. I read some reviews about this one but they aren't so great. And I think that is the one where I read they limit the switching back and forth from esim to non-esim mode. My readings indicate you pay for the esim or standard sim AND you pay by the minute for calls and texts. This is all new to me; I used Verizon's international plan on all previous trips (haven't been to Europe since 2018) but it has drastically increased in price and my upcoming trip is much longer than past trips so I'm in the market for a sim card or esim.

ktmartinazzi, eSIM data plans (there is no physical card) are just that - data plans. So these data plans for for data only. If you want, some allow you to purchase the use of a phone number to use for calling. However, it's much easier (and cheaper) to use applications such as Skype, WhatsApp, iMessage, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp to message and call other people. Having a plan like this would probably be the cheapest but if you don't want to use WhatsApp or Skype for calling, you should get a physical SIM card.

Keep in mind that your phone number will be different so you'll have to let others know what phone number to call and so on. If it were me, I would use WhatsApp. I used that for calling when I was in the Netherlands a few years ago and it works great. You can call or message on it - you just need to download the app, which is free. And you can use your regular phone number to make calls - you just have to make it through the app. That's what my brother does - he's a pilot and regularly flies to China, Korea and other places. He uses WhatsApp to make calls home and to receive calls.

Here's an article that might help. https://cellulardata.ubigi.com/help-center/faq/esim-data-plan/getting-a-second-phone-number-using-an-esim/