Phone in Europe?

Jenn, there are a few different options you could consider. You could buy an unlocked, quad-band GSM phone off E-Bay and use it either with PAYG SIM cards from Euro networks OR with a "travel SIM" from one of the travel phone firms - Roam Simple, Call In Europe, Cellular Abroad, Telestial or Mobal. ¶ A Euro SIM will provide inexpensive calls when used in the country it was purchased, but the rates will be higher in other countries since you'll be roaming. There could also be issues with "topping up" once you leave the country where the SIM was purchased. ¶ Using a "travel SIM" will provide a Euro phone number (usually based on one of the UK cell networks) and ALSO consistent rates for most of western Europe. The travel SIM's are usually post paid and billed to a credit card, so no worries about topping up or "running out of minutes" in the middle of a call. ¶ Regarding Verizon, I don't believe that will be an option. First of all, you won't be able to "extend your plan to include international calls", since your phone won't even work in Europe. While Verizon does have a program where they provide their customers with a Euro-compatible phone, that's probably not realistic as there's a one month limit and the rates are somewhat "steep". ¶ I travelled with an unlocked GSM phone with a travel SIM this year, so that's the option I'd suggest. That way you'll have the same number for the duration of your trip. Happy travels! *EDIT * The travel SIM I used was from Roam Simple - be sure to compare rates with all the firms!

Anoter option, if you have internet access would be Skype. Cheap and you can do computer to computer and use the camera in the laptop to see each other. If I remember correctly, computer to computer is free.

International calls over Verizon is probably the worst as far as pricing goes. Skype is the cheapest but if you need a cell phone and don't want deal with a weird call back system, you need a service like call in europe. I've used them and it's very dependable without having to "charge up" the phone with minutes. It just bills your credit card for minutes used. Word of warning though Data is a different deal and is expensive so if you plan on using a smartphone check the rates and be careful. the site is www.callineurope.com

We spend 2 months at a time in France and have had good luck with our phone from www.callineurope.com and with the magicjack device sold over the internet or in Best Buy or Walmart stores. Of course the magicjack only works when you have an internet connection, but we believe the quality of the calls is superior to Skype in that there are fewer dropped calls. This is probably due to the fact that it is voice only and therefore uses less band width on the internet. I would strongly suggest the callineurope route if you wish to set things up ahead of time, and not be bothered with finding SIM cards and a quad band phone. Good luck and have fun.

To answer your question, yes, obtaining a PAYG phone is easy and inexpensive. It's probably your cheapest option, especially if you mostly want it for local calls.