installing and activating sim card

I always go to a brick and mortar phone store, usually once in the city I will be in for a night or two, and then buy the SIM card. They can explain the package options and then install for you and activate. If you go with one of the major networks or chains in the country, then if you have problems later you can stop in for help if they have lots of locations.

I tend to avoid the kiosks in the airport that sell grab and go SIMs to people getting off the plane, if something doesn't work, your stuck.

Both Tim and Vodafone have a plan for tourists that costs 30 Euro for 30 days.

Tim's plan includes 15 giga and 100 minutes of talking time, but zero texts (people use whatsapp in Italy). Vodafone's includes only a few giga, but more minutes and hundreds of texts.

The choice depends on what you need, but be aware: if you keep on texting with Tim you block the SIM. Not included means NOT INCLUDED.

The sim (i.e. the new Italian number) will start working immediately, the plan for tourists can take up to one hour to be activated. Basically you must turn data connection off and do not make calls till you receive a text from the italian company saying that the plan is up and running. That's all, modern phones can download the new internet settings from the Sim.

While waiting you should ask the store staff to disable all VAS services on your italian SIM. It takes 1 minute.

Thank you very much for your information. It is very helpful.
Georg

I bought the Tre (3) SIM card from their store at FCO airport on a recent trip. It worked great. They installed the card and did the setup for me in the store. It took about 15 minutes for it to start working. It provides a ton of data, but can't be used for texting or US phone calls. I don't recall exactly, but it was about 30 euro for 20 gigs of data or something. Far more data than I needed for driving and walking directions.

I used the super-detailed information that this guy posted here: https://www.traveltomtom.net/destinations/europe/italy/buying-a-italy-sim-card-in-rome-airport-fiumicino

To add to what Dario wrote, the VAS services are Value Added Services. These are services that are offered with the package which however cost extra if you accidentally activate them (sometimes it’s sufficient to click on a text). These services include news, weather forecast, sports scores, horoscope, and all the junk you can think of.

if you get your sim in re-sellers' shops expect to pay € 5 more like the above mentioned guy.

The reason the two ladies did not want him to take a picture is that re-sellers must declare they are asking 5 € more for the service. Without mentioning that 65 € for any Vodafone SIM just because you are in the airport is a complete rip-off.

With 40 Euro you can usually get unlimited talking time and 30 giga.

Have a small plastic case (like for an SD card) or a snack-size ziplock bag or similar to put your ATT sim card in when they switch it. . . . unless you have a 2-sim phone.

Whatsapp is great. You can send text messages or photos, make phone calls and video chats. Download it at home before you leave. Ask all your Italian hotels for their whatsapp phone numbers. Then all you need is data in Europe. If you can convince your folks at home to use Whatsapp, you can contact them for free as well while you're away. And of course, use your email. You will need a minimal amount of data - I was in France and Spain for 2 weeks and didn't come close to using 1 GB.