I am planning a three week solo trip to Europe next spring which will generally follow part of the Rick's Best of Europe itinerary (Amsterdam through Germany and Italy and finishing in Paris. In previous trips with family I have simply bought an international phone card to call home (rarely used because of the time difference) and the local country phone card to make calls in that country. I presently have an iPhone 5S and an iPad that I plan to take with me and my service provider is Verizon. I hope to use both of these to stay in touch as necessary, to search the Internet and purchase tickets, make reservations, etc. when needed. I would appreciate any thoughts on what I need to do in preparation for my trip to make sure I get the most out of this technology. Also, in traveling alone I'm assuming there will be challenges, and maybe benefits that I will see that are not there when traveling with others. I would welcome any advice, suggestions and recommendations anyone may have. Thank you.
Posted by
2081 posts
Jim
make sure your provider and your plan includes data roaming. if not, see if you can transfer or buy addiional coverage for data.
here is what i learned just recently on my trip. I went all paperless and got a phablet for use.
wi-fi is there, but the question really is: can you access it?
The starbucks i used, i was able to access the wi-fi after buying some coffee and snacks. So there is an option there. Some of the train stations i used (not just in germany) had free wi-fi, some didnt. My hotel in Munich had free wi-fi, but the reception in my room, sucked. So i had to always move down to the lobby to do use it. THis wasnt the only time it happened either.
if you have any of your information on the www or cloud, what i would do is:
any of the important stuff like plane/train tickets/reservations and such, or anything with reference/codes, i would make a PDF file of it to have access without needing the www.
lodging. same here. i would get the address/phone number and such accessible off line. you can make a pdf of the web site with that info.
cash. Have some handy and coins. Many places in Europe charge to use the toilet. How would you like to need to use the toilet and not have change or any paper money to get change? Many times when the train/plane arrives many people head to the nearest ATM. So you either wait in line or find another one.
one other comment. you may want to look into getting a copy of Rick Steves, "Europe through the back door". it has some info on how he thinks and travels and also scams.
im sure others will chime in with other suggestions
happy trails
Posted by
San Francisco
1008 posts
I just added some intl data, text, talk to my plan... it was not very expensive and I thought it was easier than figuring out the sim card thing! I just kept my cellular data off, and only turned it on when I was actively using it.
We used our ipad on wifi when at hotel or apt. to upload to our photo blog, and check maps, details, email etc... and only the phone when we needed it while out!
Have a great trip!!
Kim
Posted by
San Francisco
14980 posts
"...there will be challenges...." Sometimes it's better to be solo while traveling, sometimes it's more advantageous having a person around. I'm not refering to the safety aspect, which is NOT a problem unless you really take extreme chances. In Germany and Austria I mostly do solo traveling, no issues or problems doing exactly just that.
You can buy phone cards for international or local calls at the big train stations, such as Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin Hbf, Berlin Ostbahnhof, Köln., etc. Which cities are you staying in while in Germany? Some like Frankfurt and Munich have internet cafes close to the train station, ca. a few minutes walking.
Posted by
Hong Kong
31 posts
I bought data card of 3GB when at Munich 3 days ago and am still using it at Frankfurt. I can share hotspot to other devices from my Android phone.
Card cost €6.xx and 3GB data cost €15. Expire in 30 days.
Can buy card in store at train/underground station and on streets easily both in Munich n Frankf.
Hope this is useful to you.