I hate the idea of buying one to only use it for 2 weeks. Are there any shops in the airports where I could pick one up on arrival in Venice then return it when departing Rome 2 weeks later?
TIA - R.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32201 posts
Rob,
I doubt you'll find any phone "rental" agencies in the airport. If you buy a phone, just save it for furture trips.
Cheers!
Posted by
Stillwater, NY
90 posts
Rob,
I have just found a US company called Call in Europe. It is based in Connecticut. I ended up getting a phone and an Italian SIM card from them. Incoming calls free, outgoing in Italy .39 and beyond .49. I actually heard about it through a promotion through Flying Blue, the Air France FF program. Because of the promotion I was able to get the basic phone at no charge and only paid for the SIM card and shipping, which was about $40. They have SIM cards for other countries too, so I figure I will be able to use the phone again. Check out the website. All who I spoke with were anxious to assist.
Posted by
Belmont
12 posts
we bought a calling card for 5 bucks from the tobacco shop and used the hotel phones to make calls.....was convenient...and not having to carry a cellphone made our vacation feel like real vacation!! have fun on your trip!
Posted by
Portland, ME, USA
26 posts
Check with your wireless carrier. We just returned from a 2 week stay in Italy. Our wireless carrier, Verizon wireless, has a global cell phone program. We borrowed a cell phone, free of charge (just had to pay $9.99 for shipping, for a 30 day period. On top of the shipping fee, we paid $1.29 per minute. On the expensive side, but we only used the phone for limited phone calls. Turned out to be easy and inexpensive.
Posted by
little rock, ar, usa
62 posts
Why can't you use your regular cell phone in Italy? I'm with AT&T, and am getting service in Italy for around $6 dollars, turning it off when I return. Will still pay a bit over a dollar per minute. Will this be a problem?
Posted by
Loomis
27 posts
I too have AT&T and for $5.99 you can add on European/International coverage. They have a promotion that you have to quiz them about. It's 59 cents a minute for calls in/out of Europe. You cancel the coverage once you get home, but they say wait a couple weeks because not all calls get posted quickly.
Posted by
indianapolis
2 posts
Last summer for a trip through Spain & France, we used the ATT $5.99 deal - and are very happy. One caveat: be sure you have the country codes you need for all of your calls & practice making a few calls before you go. We had a mini-emergency & my boyfriend got flustered. The flight attendant had to make the call for him. A little embarassing for a couple a fairly seasoned globe trotters...
Posted by
Long Beach, New York, USA
56 posts
Every carrier is different. Verizon does not operate on the same system as they do in Europe; it's different technology and therefore you cannot use your regular phone. They do have a new global phone system in place, as mentioned by another poster, and it is relatively easy. All the info is listed on their website if you want to read about it more in depth.
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
7543 posts
We have ATT as well, but our plan includes international roaming for the $1~$1.25 a minute. Key was, we only used it for key calls, arranging to meet when separated basically. For regular calls home, we bought 5 euro calling cards.