My family and I will be traveling to Vevey (Switzerland), Chamonoix (France) and Aosta Valley (Italy) from the US. I believe that I need a Type J converter for Switzerland, Type L for Italy and, Type F for France. I have found lots of conflicting information online. I would like something that will protect my electronics and allow me to charge multiple devices at once. Can you recommend a good universal charger that will work for all three countries? *Bonus if it will work in Canada too, because we have a layover on Montreal and it would be nice to be able to recharge in the airport.
Posted by
Green Bay
21145 posts
If this is for electronic devices, look at all your chargers and you should see "120-240 VAC, 50-60 Hz. They will work anywhere in US Canada, France, Italy and Switzerland. So you only need plug adaptors that are 2 prong and will work in sockets in all 3 European countries. None needed for Canada.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Q1: Do your appliances accept European electricity (110-230V 50/60 Hz AC), or North American only (110V 60 Hz AC)?
Q2: Do your appliances have 2-pin or 3-pin plugs?
Answer 1: If they accept European electricity, no problem, if not you need a voltage converter which will be big and heavy. Leave the appliance at home or get one that accepts both systems.
Answer 2: If your appliances have 2-pin plugs, then a 2-pin C-type adapter is good for all 4 countries. If one or more has a 3-pin plug, then you need to buy 3 different adapters 3-pin adapters, F for France/Germany, J for Switzerland and L for Italy.
If all your electronic devices are charged via a USB cable, you can just buy a USB charger when you arrive, which will have a 2-pin C-type plug and be good in all mainland European countries.
Posted by
OP
62 posts
We will be charging our iphones, tablet and camera battery. That will be about it.
Posted by
31 posts
I bought some from RS and they worked really well. Then of course I found some on Amazon and bought those. They sucked they kept falling out of the sockets. We were in Iceland, Switzerland, Greece and Italy.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32350 posts
c_l,
In order to provide a more detailed answer, it would help to know which types of phones, tablet and cameras you're planning to take. In any case as the others have mentioned, you'll need to check the Input Voltage specifications for each of the devices. If this states Input 100-240VAC, you won't need a Voltage Converter.
Canada uses the same voltage and plug styles as the U.S., so if you can charge your gadgets at home you'll be able to charge them here.
If your electronic products are newer, they will likely all have two-pin Plugs. In that case, this Plug Adaptor should work fine - https://www.amazon.com/Ckitze-EU-Europe-Power-Adapter/dp/B0012S304W/ref=sr_1_8?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1523246152&sr=1-8&keywords=plug+adapters+for+europe . I'd suggest taking several as they're small and easy to misplace.
If you'd like to pack along something that can charge several devices, have a look at devices like this - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VH8G1SY?ascsubtag=AgEAAAAAAAAAAPZEAAAAAD34_y8AAAAAWsrlBA&linkCode=g12&creativeASIN=B00VH8G1SY&tag=thewire0f-20