Old iPad question

iPads should all work over WiFi, provided you get a WiFi spot that has the version of WiFi on it that is on your iPad. Most hotel WiFi connections should work for any gen iPad that has WiFi,.

If your iPad works connected to your phone here there is no reason it would not work the same way anywhere in the world. The WiFi connection is between your phone and the iPad regardless what connection the phone has to the rest of the world.

My "first generation" iPad worked on hotel wifi in Italy wherever we went in 2010 and Spain in 2011. I have kept it up to date with IOS upgrades as far as they went, but I haven't used it in Europe since the 2011 trip. I am sure it would still work fine now. Never tried it with a phone hotspot but it should work fine.

You may have problems using new Apps as the software wouldn't be up to date.

The point about apps is important. Any apps already installed are likely to still work, but you should check now before counting on them. However, newer apps may not be able to be installed; they frequently require a newer version of the Apple operating system than you can get for an older iPad model.

Wi-Fi will work, as it is backwards compatible. In other words, if your phone's hotspot supports a newer version of Wi-Fi than your iPad does, that's not a problem.

If you try your iPad here and it works, it should be fine in Europe. If it does not, you can get another iPad (a reconditioned one will be cheaper than a brand new one, and should be fine), or you could get a Bluetooth keyboard and just use your phone. Or, if you don't mind switching from Apple to Android, there are some very cheap and basic tablets available. My sister loved this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/digiland-7-tablet-16gb-black/5246601.p?skuId=5246601

The salesman sneeringly called it "my first tablet" as if it was only suitable for children, but it did everything she needed (again, her needs were basic). While she paid $50, the latest version is only $40. If it meets your needs, there's no need to pay more.

I have a first-gen iPad and sadly it's a brick. No apps will run on it any longer. My iPad Mini is a few years old, and it still works, albeit slowly. Planned obsolescence is dumb.

I'm not very tech savvy so I hope I'm able to convey my experience coherently. I have a first generation iPad and I didn't want to upgrade to a new one. Last time I took it to Europe, I was not able to use it to get Internet access at two hotels. My travel partner is a big and reckless spender who loves to update his gadgets. He had his new iPad with him.

He was able to gain access at all of our hotels. In frustration, in Positano, I came downstairs to the front desk to tell them I could not access the wifi. I showed them the two iPads, one happily on the wifi and my useless one. They called their internet tech support and got all sorts of numbers off my iPad and the tech people were able to create some sort of bypass or direct access so that I could log on. But for that extremely kind front desk staff I would have been out of luck for nearly half my trip.

Once back in the US, I took it to Apple to see if I could update it to get it to "see" those wi-fi systems it ignored in Europe. Apple could not get it to update and told me to get a new iPad.

Since I work when I'm traveling, I felt I had no choice...I bought a new iPad. Worked fine all over China and Egypt.

If you need a good basic newest version iPad, Costco has a special right now-$40 off their ready discounted price. It's the iPad, not the more expensive iPad Pro that is suitable as a work machine.

Do you have to access your documents from the Cloud? Or can the documents be saved on your iPad and maybe you just need to email it to someone or re-save to the Cloud? If it's the latter, then of course you only need WiFi for the last step.

The original iPads often unexpectedly "drop off" wifi and it can be horribly frustrating.
This happens, largely, due to changes in the Internet itself over the years. Networks around the world use a gazillion different types of wifi equipment with differing levels compatibility with "older" computers - it's a crapshoot if it will work dependably. Newer iPads work over a wider range of networks.
Try to find an iPad Air 2 . They are cheap and work pretty well despite being discontinued models.