My husband and I will be traveling to France (first country to be visited), Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Hungary in August 2017. I currently have Verizon on an IPhone 6 plus and was planning to either switch to T-Mobile for their international plan or buy a SIM card in France when we arrive and use it throughout the trip. After reading the latest post on the forum about T-Mobile and the need to use it well in advance of international travel or risk being cut off, I am leaning towards buying a SIM card in France upon arrival. Has anyone tried using a France SIM card in Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Hungary since the new EU roaming rules have taken effect? I'm particularly concerned about the ability to use a French SIM card in Switzerland (non-EU). We are renting apartments so we will need a phone for calls/texts and I like having access to data when wifi is not available such as when we get lost and are standing on a street corner, haha. I hate to pay $10 a day for the Verizon International plan if there are better alternatives. We have always just travelled within one country and purchased that country's SIM card. If anyone has travelled recently throughout the various countries with a French SIM card under the new rules, I would love to hear how it worked for you or any other suggestions you might have for cell phone usage in various European countries. Thank you.
Posted by
Queens, NYC
548 posts
The Orange Holiday SIM card might work for you?
For €40 you get a SIM card with a French phone number with 120 minutes, 1000 texts, 10 GB of data valid in the "European zone" (which includes all the countries you are traveling to) and is good for 14 days after the first use.
Posted by
OP
Northern New York
68 posts
Thank you, Andrewesque! This looks great! Only issue is that we will be in Europe for 28 days so I'm wondering if we could either buy two SIM cards or top it up. If not this would get us through part of the trip and I could get another SIM card in Austria for the Austria/Hungary portion of the trip. Thanks again!
Posted by
Houston
3518 posts
The new roaming rules only apply to phone numbers issued within the EU. So, your existing number is not covered by that ruling unless it is issued by one of the phone companies within Europe. This means to be fully covered you need to get a SIM while there.
Posted by
Queens, NYC
548 posts
Some googling resulted in this page indicating (in question #27 of the FAQ) that they offer various top-ups, which should extend the life of your card. However, this might not be feasible if you will not physically be in France -- you could certainly buy the top-up before leaving France, but I don't know if you can activate the card while not in France. Something to ask the Orange store, probably.
Posted by
OP
Northern New York
68 posts
Thank you again, Andrewesque. I reviewed the link you provided and I think I will be able to purchase a top up card and activate it online at the end of the initial 14 days.