SIM card, good in both Republic and Northern Ireland

I've been researching the same thing except we'll be in London and the Republic of Ireland. It appears that "3" has free SIMs with 30 day add-on plans that will work in the UK and ROI. I'm confused about the roaming charges though and what the costs are for calling back to the states. Here's the page I am looking at: https://www.three.co.uk/Store/SIM/Pay_As_You_Go
Here's the link to the ROI site: https://www.three.ie/online/voice/prepay/prepay-visitor-trio-sim/?src=p

Thanks, I'll check it out.

I saw a thread on Tripadvisor that recommends Tesco. https://www.tescomobile.ie/

But I'll need to ask them some questions to figure out if they work for me.

If it helps, a couple years ago, roaming fees between EU countries were basically eliminated, so a SIM card bought in one, worked without roaming fees in another.

Of course in a post-Brexit world that may change, but no way to know.

There is uncertainty here at the moment regarding roaming due to brexit. If you have a Irish sim at present, you can roam in the UK and Northern Ireland with most operators for free as its within the EU. If there is a no deal brexit, roaming charges may be applicable as nothing has been agreed.

I use Three, and it's supposed to cover NI as well as ROI. While I haven't tested using it inside NI, I made calls to Derry from ROI & was not hit with any additional charges.

Alas, this is pre-Brexit.

Thanks for your helpful replies.

I guess we'll see what Brexit brings? Most of the time, things are never as bad as people fear they might be. Maybe I'm just optimistic?

It would be great if a SIM worked in UK. My last weekend I'm taking a Ryan Air flight to Leeds to visit a couple I met on a Caribbean cruise last year. I can go without a phone for the weekend but it would be nice if it worked.

I bought a Mobal World Talk and Text Sim card. Works everywhere! No need to switch sim cards in and out for other countries. Just the world sim. You can buy just Talk/Text or buy a Data package too. They issue you a permanent UK phone number. Very fast, free shipping. I paid $15 for the SIM and the rates when you make calls are reasonable. You can visit their website for exact information at www.mobal.com or call their customer service in US +1 212 785 5800 or UK +441543426999.
I tested both of the cards I bought from the US. Calling a US number and calling an Ireland number. Worked great.

Uh, I don't see how $59 for the SIM card and $10 per Gb of data is a good deal. That's pretty darned expensive.

Yeah, Mobal is not a good deal at all in my opinion. I don't quite get why people recommend it - there are much cheaper options.

Different people have different budgets. For me spending roughly 50-60 euros for a two to three week vacation in Europe is a good deal compared to $10 a day (or more) options through American carriers.

Some people prefer to have their regular phone number. It doesn't matter to me. In fact I prefer not having an accidental call from the states, especially since most calls are unwanted sales calls. My girlfriend, on the other hand, is a realtor, it's important to her to be in touch even when she's out of the country. For her an extra $100 to keep her phone number is worth it.

I think some people also value the convenience of just keeping their number even when they could save $100 or more using a local SIM. For me the savings is worth the small amount of inconvenience. Also why I left the banks that charge too much for ATM and foreign card transactions. For me $100 here, $100 there adds up.

FYI- https://www.independent.ie/business/brexit/irish-mobile-operators-rule-out-return-of-mobile-roaming-fees-after-brexit-37979568.html

Thanks for the article

Right now, my note to self is to use a SIM from "3". I'll either post here or as a trip report to let you know my experience and total cost.

Oh, good. I'm curious to hear how well it works in NI.

Just to check back. 3 worked perfectly, both in the Republic and up North. The cost was 20 euro total for 28 days of unlimited everything. I think it refreshes, another 20 euro, the first of each month (check to be sure). Really the best deal yet on a SIM. It would have still been a good deal if I had to refresh in the middle of my trip.

Where did you buy your "3" Sim card in ROI? We will be there on Saturday plan to do the same thing. I have done it before but landed in London first so went to Tesco that time.

I bought mine downtown. Took the bus (747) into town and asked when I dropped my bag at my lodging. I bought my SIM from the store at 35 Henry St in the middle of town. There are probably a dozen, or more, stores in Dublin. Search "3 Mobile" in Google maps.