Esim card

It really depends on your needs. I personally don’t travel without an eSIM any more. My phone is key to navigating and keeping track of my plans. I used Airalo in Turkey.

It doesn't have to be an eSIM - you can buy a physical SIM at the airport and the staff will install it for you. Alternatively you can use roaming your carrier offers a good plan.

If you are using a Turkish SIM, be aware you have 120 days of use before you need to register your handset and pay a fee, otherwise it will be blocked. But that doesn't affect a short term visitor.

Not to be too pedantic, but:

• your phone may already use an eSim as opposed to a physical Sim card. One
  of the two is necessary to get cellular phone service anywhere.

• if we are talking the use of a second Sim card, which is normally to avoid using
  the home cellular roaming plan and save $ it can be, as already noted, an eSim
  or a physical Sim card.

If you are good with your existing carrier's international plan options, then you don't
need a second Sim card at all.

• your phone needs to support dual Sim's and eSim's. Most newer phones are good, but if you have an older phone, you need to check.

If you are not that technically savvy at this point, you may want to read up on
previous Q&A's in the Technology Tips section and other places as there are
more than a few nuances to the overall situation.

Hi frister4, if you really want some specific advice, it would help to know what kind of phone you have, and who your cell phone carrier is. For example, there are some cell phone carriers that provide a free international plan, depending on your specific plan, and others offer it for a separate fee. Also, just an FYI, an eSIM is not a card; it is strictly digital and is installed online.

That said, if you do not have any kind of international plan, paid or free, and you do not get an eSIM, you can still make it work, but it requires some discipline on your part. For example, you would only be able to access the internet when you have Wi-Fi available, which probably would not be when you're driving (unless you rent a wifi router from the car rental company), or when you're walking along the streets. Some cafes might have wifi, but it would require you to go inside each one and check it out.

With that in mind, you can still access the internet without wifi, but you would pay a LOT of money for the roaming costs.

In short, unless you have a free international plan like T-Mobile or you pay for an international plan like Verizon has, an eSIM will give you internet access without wifi for a very low cost. That is why it's recommended for when you travel abroad.

Thank you. This is very helpful 🙂