Czech SIM Card

For information about Czech cell phone providers, look at this page on Prepaid GSM dot net. If you need more information, go the their Europe Forum. Beware - the discussions there can get very technical, so don't be afraid to ask for clarification. If you absolutely have to have a working phone when you arrive, you can buy a SIM card here, but it will be much more expensive than one bought there (unless you can find someone "unloading" one on EBay, and then you have to make sure it's legit).

If you will have decent wifi why not just use Skype on the iPad and only deal with a phone if you have problems...

I agree with Nigel. While it's nice to have a cell phone for local calls, Skype will be a much cheaper option for calls home. Dialing land lines requires a $10 deposit but calls are only a few cents a minute so you probably won't use your initial deposit up during your trip. I do think it's nice to bring a pair of earbuds with a microphone. I used my Ipod touch but it only works with wifi, which could put you in places with background noise, so the built in mic and speakers may not work well. I think buying a phone in the US is a bad idea. I considered buying another Razr phone after my old one died last year. Not only was it significantly more expensive than getting a phone in Europe, there were many negative reviews that the phones either didn't work at all or weren't unlocked. In either case, the phone is no better than a paperweight and you will have to buy a phone locally anyway. In Spain, I found multiple options for 25 euro that included 10 euro credit for calling. I don't think you can beat that. The phone will now be my travel phone until it dies of old age. I'll just pick up a local SIM card when I need one.

I spend about a month each year in Hungary. You would think that would be enough to make a local prepaid phone or a international chip of some sort useful. Ive tried and its not worth the bother. My US TMobile phone has worked from the far reaches of Bulgaria to downtown London with no service problems beyond those i have in the US. For a local call to request a Taxi it costs about $1.00 in most places. Thats a lot for a 30 second call but i dont do it but a couple of times while on vacation. I try and stay in places with WIFI so if i do have to make a call home i can use the WIFI calling function on the phone. Works pretty good and its free. Worst case scenario if an emergency were to come up I guess i would be out something less than $50 in phone calls. Hasnt happend yet so I'm going to consider it nill when averaged against 15 years of traveling.

Gary, It would help to know what type of Cell phone you're presently using, and which network you're with? Also, do you have an unlocked quad-band GSM phone? The answers to those questions will have a bearing on the best solution to suggest. Cheers!

My Razr was T-Mobile too, they advertised $1 a minute rates for international calls, and tried to dissuade me from unlocking my phone. Unfortunately $1 a minute doesn't include everywhere. In Russia, the most expensive place I visited, it was $8 a minute - and many countries are in the $4-5 dollar a minute range - and of course always rounded up to the nearest minute. Emergency use only or making just a couple, very brief, calls during a vacation may work with international roaming, but I wouldn't use it for a daily call home or regular calls within the country you're visiting (let alone data).