Cell Phone Coverage in Cotswolds

What's a pay phone? Seriously, the little red phone box is close to an endangered species. Different networks will have different black spots. Generally in most towns and some villages service on most networks will be pretty decent. Remember that the "Cotswolds" is an abbreviation fro "Cotswold Hills." If you are at the bottom and the mast with the antenna is on the other side out of view the coverage will be poor. If you are on the top it will be better. What sort of things will the dogs be saying? If your hotel has wifi you could Skype the kids and dogs and make them take the camera around so you can see the mess.

Cindy you would be wise to research cell phone usage in Europe on this forum and by calling your own cell company. You don't simply take your cell phone to Europe and expect it to work because it might not. Nigel is right the red box pay phones have all but disappeared in England. The Skype concept is the best if you have wifi where you'll be staying.

To supplement what Claudia said, to use your home cell phone as is, you need to have a phone that uses the same technology and has the correct radio frequencies for Europe. Since you didn't ask, I'm assuming you know all this. If not, ask again and we'll give more information. (To others with the same question, you need contract-based accounts with T-Mobile or AT&T or a loaner phone from Verizon.)

Maybe I should have phrased my question differently. We were in London in 2009 and used out AT&T phones just fine. Before we left the states we talked to our local provider and made sure we had an international plan. What I am concerned about is coverage. I know here in Oklahoma, there are dead zones, where the cell towers are minimal - even though it's better than it was 10 years ago. I expect that in the Cotswolds, there are dead zones as well - the Highlands of Scotland also. But I did check out the B&B that we are planning on in Stowe and they do have WiFi. We hadn't planned on taking a computer with us on this trip, but may consider it. We have an over-protective daughter that worries about her "old" parents. We also have 2 little dogs that are in their senior years - blind and diabetic. We would like to check on them daily. We have someone that will house sit and give them their daily medications, but we worry - what can I say!! Thank you all for your replies. It's probably not going to be a huge issue for the most of our vacation. We'll do what we can!

Cindy... used my AT&T phone in the Cotswolds and had no problems. Maybe there were dead zones but I never encountered them. With the internation plan I knew calls were a bit pricey, bit I am not going to fool around getting a different phone, etc. Also, they now have a plan that is $5 for 50 outgoing texts over a few week period internationally. I have also done that the last few trips and it was great. No charge for incoming texts. I have an iphone so must turn off the data to avoid expensive charges.

Do you know which network ATT use here? If so you can go to the website of that network, they all have maps showing coverage. You can zoom in, an if it is white where you are looking its bad, if the colour is pale its pretty bad and if there is deep colour you are (or may be) in deep clover.

Cindy, it might be cheaper and easier to buy an inexpensive non-smartphone when you arrive and use it on your visit. You can get good pay-as-you-go deals. Or, if you can, use your U.S. phone but swap in a SIM card from one of the UK carriers. Shops from all the carriers are ubiquitous. (Your phone needs to be unlocked to do this.) I took an iPad with me last fall to Scotland. WiFi was widely available but it varied in quality. If you can run Skype on your current phone and swap in a UK SIM, that would cover you. The best way to see what's available from the UK carriers is to check out their web sites

If you buy a cheap PAYG phone from this place you can choose a Lebara SIM. Lebara specialise in low cost international calls and use the Vodaphone network in the UK http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/pay-as-you-go/deal-finder?&dealType=PPAY. http://www.lebara.co.uk/ Or check with the sales assistant for the best call supplier for your needs, there might be a special on at the time.

Terry, that sounds like a good deal to me! I think I'll do the same. Thanks!

Cindy, To begin with, you shouldn't have any problems with "coverage" in the Cotswolds or anywhere else in the U.K. Cell towers are ubiquitous throughout most of Europe. I've driven in many parts of the U.K. from North Yorkshire to Southhampton, and never noticed a lack of coverage. There could certainly be a few spots where coverage is a bit "weak", but I doubt you'll have any problems. Regarding roaming with AT&T, I'm assuming they use a similar system to the network I use here. If that's the case, you'll find that your Cell phone may change networks as you travel around. One day you'll be with O2, the next day with Orange, and a few miles down the road your phone may switch to Vodaphone. I'm assuming it's set to look for the strongest signal? When you return home, you'll receive a nicely itemized bill, showing your usage on each of the foreign networks. This is determined by formal agreements between cellular networks called Transferred Account Protocol (TAP). Basically, the foreign networks "grant permission" for other users to access their networks, based on pre-determined agreements. If your children also have Cell phones, using text messages is absolutely the cheapest way to keep in touch (received texts are usually free). Also, no worries about time differences - simply send the message and they'll reply when it's convenient for them. Happy travels!