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International Calling Plan?

I have been researching for my German Trip June 7th to 22nd. Please tell me If I should be getting an International Calling Plan? I currently have AT&T as my phone provider and need to know how I would go about setting up this plan and when should I set it up?

Thank you,

Patty

Posted by
561 posts

We've shut down our cell phones (put on airplane mode) and still been able to contact people thru whats app when we've had wifi access. Everyplace we've stayed at in Germany has had easy wifi.

Posted by
32517 posts

Please tell me If I should be getting an International Calling Plan?

that might depend on how often you will be calling, and where

Posted by
60 posts

OP,

What is your use case?

Unless you want a local number in Germany, you can either use AT&T's free WiFi Calling feature when you are on WiFi, or, if that is too restrictive, get an eSIM from a provider like Airalo and use Google Voice or WhatsApp over whichever mobile network the eSIM is roaming on.

During our recent trip to Europe, we noticed that a large number of businesses were on WhatsApp.

Posted by
33 posts

Thank you everyone for your quick responses. I finally figured it out after doing the research and asking the questions. I talk with my German cousin every Sunday thru Messenger. So I do have an option if I should need to call home ... I can call my younger son in the same way! Another thing to check off on my checklist....

Patty

Posted by
5687 posts

Patty, if you install the Google Voice app on your smart phone before you leave for Germany, you can use the app to call US numbers for free from Germany, even landlines. While you could certainly use Messenger or some other app, it requires the other person to have it too. (What if you need to call someone who has only a flip phone or a landline? Your bank or credit card company?) Google Voice gives you a second phone number (free), and you can text people using the Google Voice app too, using that number.