Sorry, i know this is an old video but was in need of info for phone usage while in London. My family of 5 are going to London, Paris and Barcelona for 2 weeks. 4 of us have and iPhone 7 up to 7 plus with Verizon Wireless. Is it cheaper to get a plan with VW or do i have to buy a sim card in each country we go to?
Hi Caitlyn. It's a good question. It's likely going to be costly to get an international roaming plan from Verizon, especially for multiple phones. Getting SIM cards would be cheaper, but you might need to get a new one for every country (which is a hassle). Plus, you would need to make sure that your phones are unlocked by Verizon, which usually requires that your phone is paid off. Verizon used to keep iPhones unlocked, but I believe that they changed the policy last year. Another solution that you might want to consider is renting a portable wireless hotspot with unlimited data that can be shared with your entire family. I used one a few years ago when I visited London and Paris, and it was very easy to use. I picked it up at the airport and dropped it off when I came back to the airport at the end of my trip. There are several services out there, but here's the one that I used: tripast.link/tep Hope that's helpful! Please let us know if you have any other questions. 😊
Also, I reached out to TEP Wireless to see if I could get a discount code from them, and they said my audience members can get a 10% discount using the following code: TRIPASTUTE Just thought I'd share in case you decide to go with the wireless hotspot option. 😊
What phone do you use? Great useful content! What phone do you use? Not a lot of people know this yet but if you have an iPhone 11, XR or XS, you will have the eSIM feature. That means you can load data from all over the world virtually. No need to mess with physical SIM cards. You can keep your number back home with your physical SIM cards. Try Airalo.com. they have wide coverage and as cheap or cheaper than local rates.
I bought a OnePlus X phone specifically for when I travel abroad. It's unlocked as all OnePlus phones are. It has two SIM trays so I take my T-Mobile SIM out of my US handset and put it into the first SIM tray, and when I get overseas I buy a local SIM at the airport and put it into the second SIM tray. I can easily switch between either SIM card to make or receive calls. My address book is saved in the cloud and so I have access to it too. By default I save all my phone numbers with the country code so I never have a problem trying to remember that.
Wonder what to do? Might be going to Prague but don't own a smart phone. Maybe you'll do an updated version of this video soon. I heard Google Fi now works on IPhones but the catch is that it's in beta so not everything works quite right.
So I'm confused. I'm not that savvy when it comes to cell phones. I'm going to Italy for a week in October. If I get a plan from T Mobile, do I still need to get a sim card? I have never travel internationally before, and I'll be traveling by myself. So I like to see If I can get as much set up as possible before I go
Hi Sandra. No worries -- this stuff is confusing! If you get a T-Mobile ONE or Simple Choice North America plan, you should be able to roam without needing to swap out your SIM card. The plan will give you free data and text messaging while you are in Italy. Phone calls will be $0.20 per minute. The only catch is that the data speed is slow (i.e., 2G speeds, which is similar to old dial-up internet speeds). However, I don't mind it since it's usually enough to load a map or a web page, even if it takes a bit longer than usual. Plus, you can usually find hotspots while you're at cafes and restaurants. Hope that's helpful. Please let us know if you have any other questions. We are happy to help! 😊
That is right-- I tried to get a dim card at Denmark but I will be going to Germany at few days and a SIM card won’t do it --/- buying a ore paid card is the old fashioned that I prefer to not have internet
My daughter is going to Italy for a month. We have the Cricket phone and plans. They do offer a International plan as well, I'm just not sure when I should sign her up for it? Also how reliable is it? Anyone else have experience with Cricket International? Regards
You are very smart know a lot about this issue. I am not phone savvy and never traveled any countries. I have t-mobile simple choice plan if I plan to go to Bangladesh do I have to set up my phone for roaming or buy sim card? I don't know what should I do?
Hi Tahrin. I did some digging online, and it looks like Bangladesh is not one of the covered countries for T-Mobile Simple Choice Plans: www.t-mobile.com/landing/simple-choice-international-plan-countries.html However, it is covered if you're on a T-Mobile ONE plan: www.t-mobile.com/coverage/roaming?country=Bangladesh It might be worth considering switching to a newer ONE plan. Otherwise, you could just buy a local SIM card when you're there and swap it with the T-Mobile SIM card. However, I believe your phone has to be completely paid off in order for the phone to be unlocked. Hope that's helpful! Let us know if you have any other questions. 😊
I had nightmares in Thailand with Sprint who told me they unlocked my new phone before I left. All I could use it for was the camera. Had to buy a new cheaper phone in Asia and buy a sim . I changed to TMobil as soon as I got home. Now I'm having less problems. Itravel to much for a CDMA phone. Yes it was the GSM/ CDMA issue.
I live in Auckland New Zealand but I travel to USA for vacation once every three to six years and I am now wondering about getting a US SIM on my next vacation to LA and NY but I don't know what the best carrier and plan would be for the five weeks I will be in USA
Unfortunately, we don’t have as many prepaid SIM options in the US. Most Americans have some sort of contract plan, so prepaid has never been very popular. That being said, I would check with a T-Mobile store when you get to the US. They have prepaid plans, and the coverage should be good in both cities. 😊
In my country we have a thing called sim2fly which is really cool for asia and Australia 8days 6gb is less tgan $10 and world sim which is 6gb 15 days for $25 and 15gb for a year $90
It should work, as long as you’re on one of the newer plans. We’ve used it in Spain without any issues. The data won’t be fast, but it’s definitely usable with Google Maps. Though I would suggest downloading the offline maps just to be safe. 😎
I usually just get a SIM card and use that as a hotspot for WiFi calling. Yes that requires two phones. Lol Recently in Japan, it was rather difficult to get a SIM card without a plan so I just used AT&T. It was unlimited everything for $10/day. I wasn’t there for too long so the fee was manageable.
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Once you travel with connectivity, it’s hard not having access to info & apps. 😊 I need to check out your Japan videos! I’ve haven’t been back there in a long time, so definitely want to check out your travels.
I've definitely purchased prepaid SIM cards in the past when traveling and it works great. The only problem I encountered is that it's difficult to get one in certain countries. Things might be different now, but trying to get one in France and Germany around 5 years ago was a total pain. They wanted proof of an address before I could buy one, and my hotel's address wasn't sufficient. Again, things might be different now, but I just prefer not having to look for a card. 😊
@@muadhnate just don't lose or have your usa cell stollen. No more contact with USA banks- no way to verify your foreign ( Banks send text verifications) purchased phone. A total nightmare. °°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°° ° 👁️👁️ ° ° 👅 ° °°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
Trip Astute well in all fairness phones were much slower than, so the internet speed didn't matter much. Also we dealt with dial-up for a very long time before we got faster internet.
Yeah, T-Mobile is awesome! There is something really satisfying about turning on your phone when you land at your destination and having a voice and data connection without needing to swap the SIM card. Even being able to use services like Uber or Lyft when abroad is possible when you have data. 😎
I just got back from Mexico. I ended up buying a SIM card while I was there and I downloaded the maps for the areas we were visiting from Google Maps so that I didn't have to use data for that. It worked out well.
You can probably use another VOIP app like Vibr or FaceTime (if they are an Apple user). Otherwise, you might have to call using the traditional method, but it can be pricey (depending on your phone plan).
@@marconyewtv4477 but.. you are dodging the 2G speed issue. Good only for; 1 texting 2 sending short emails 3 reading internet pages °°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°° ° 👁️👁️ ° ° 👅 ° °°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
I could have used that SIM card when we were down in the Caribbean this past March for a week. I have an older Samsung Smartphone and we had no service. Even though we didn't really mind but it would have been good to know that back at home our city was in the midst of a 2 foot snow storm. Though who knows, knowing that may have ruined our vacation...Lol...Thanks for that good information!
Thanks! I totally agree with you - being “connected” can definitely keep you from enjoying your vacation. I love having the connectivity, but I really have to keep myself from getting sucked into work and emails! 😄
Sorry, i know this is an old video but was in need of info for phone usage while in London. My family of 5 are going to London, Paris and Barcelona for 2 weeks. 4 of us have and iPhone 7 up to 7 plus with Verizon Wireless. Is it cheaper to get a plan with VW or do i have to buy a sim card in each country we go to?
Hi Caitlyn. It's a good question. It's likely going to be costly to get an international roaming plan from Verizon, especially for multiple phones. Getting SIM cards would be cheaper, but you might need to get a new one for every country (which is a hassle). Plus, you would need to make sure that your phones are unlocked by Verizon, which usually requires that your phone is paid off. Verizon used to keep iPhones unlocked, but I believe that they changed the policy last year.
Another solution that you might want to consider is renting a portable wireless hotspot with unlimited data that can be shared with your entire family. I used one a few years ago when I visited London and Paris, and it was very easy to use. I picked it up at the airport and dropped it off when I came back to the airport at the end of my trip. There are several services out there, but here's the one that I used: tripast.link/tep
Hope that's helpful! Please let us know if you have any other questions. 😊
Also, I reached out to TEP Wireless to see if I could get a discount code from them, and they said my audience members can get a 10% discount using the following code: TRIPASTUTE
Just thought I'd share in case you decide to go with the wireless hotspot option. 😊
Trip Astute cricket works in Mexico
Caitlyn Soto old lol it’s not even that old
What phone do you use? Great useful content! What phone do you use? Not a lot of people know this yet but if you have an iPhone 11, XR or XS, you will have the eSIM feature. That means you can load data from all over the world virtually. No need to mess with physical SIM cards. You can keep your number back home with your physical SIM cards. Try Airalo.com. they have wide coverage and as cheap or cheaper than local rates.
This is a great topic to cover. Please post more like this in the future. Excellent!!!
Thanks Friedrich! 😊
I bought a OnePlus X phone specifically for when I travel abroad. It's unlocked as all OnePlus phones are. It has two SIM trays so I take my T-Mobile SIM out of my US handset and put it into the first SIM tray, and when I get overseas I buy a local SIM at the airport and put it into the second SIM tray. I can easily switch between either SIM card to make or receive calls. My address book is saved in the cloud and so I have access to it too. By default I save all my phone numbers with the country code so I never have a problem trying to remember that.
Wonder what to do? Might be going to Prague but don't own a smart phone. Maybe you'll do an updated version of this video soon. I heard Google Fi now works on IPhones but the catch is that it's in beta so not everything works quite right.
Thanks Kevin! I'll consider doing an updated video since there are other options out there. 👍
I see a nice Honu Ukulele in the back, I hit like!
Mahalo! 😊
So I'm confused. I'm not that savvy when it comes to cell phones. I'm going to Italy for a week in October. If I get a plan from T Mobile, do I still need to get a sim card? I have never travel internationally before, and I'll be traveling by myself. So I like to see If I can get as much set up as possible before I go
Hi Sandra. No worries -- this stuff is confusing! If you get a T-Mobile ONE or Simple Choice North America plan, you should be able to roam without needing to swap out your SIM card. The plan will give you free data and text messaging while you are in Italy. Phone calls will be $0.20 per minute. The only catch is that the data speed is slow (i.e., 2G speeds, which is similar to old dial-up internet speeds). However, I don't mind it since it's usually enough to load a map or a web page, even if it takes a bit longer than usual. Plus, you can usually find hotspots while you're at cafes and restaurants.
Hope that's helpful. Please let us know if you have any other questions. We are happy to help! 😊
@@TripAstute T-Mobile will still work in France or Spain by personal experience
Tmobile can temporarily unlock phones too even while you are paying it off! useful when you go to a country they dont cover or want to buy a 4g sim
Good to know! Thanks for sharing. 👍
That is right-- I tried to get a dim card at Denmark but I will be going to Germany at few days and a SIM card won’t do it --/- buying a ore paid card is the old fashioned that I prefer to not have internet
My daughter is going to Italy for a month. We have the Cricket phone and plans. They do offer a International plan as well, I'm just not sure when I should sign her up for it? Also how reliable is it? Anyone else have experience with Cricket International? Regards
You are very smart know a lot about this issue. I am not phone savvy and never traveled any countries. I have t-mobile simple choice plan if I plan to go to Bangladesh do I have to set up my phone for roaming or buy sim card? I don't know what should I do?
Hi Tahrin. I did some digging online, and it looks like Bangladesh is not one of the covered countries for T-Mobile Simple Choice Plans: www.t-mobile.com/landing/simple-choice-international-plan-countries.html
However, it is covered if you're on a T-Mobile ONE plan: www.t-mobile.com/coverage/roaming?country=Bangladesh
It might be worth considering switching to a newer ONE plan. Otherwise, you could just buy a local SIM card when you're there and swap it with the T-Mobile SIM card. However, I believe your phone has to be completely paid off in order for the phone to be unlocked.
Hope that's helpful! Let us know if you have any other questions. 😊
I had nightmares in Thailand with Sprint who told me they unlocked my new phone before I left. All I could use it for was the camera. Had to buy a new cheaper phone in Asia and buy a sim . I changed to TMobil as soon as I got home. Now I'm having less problems. Itravel to much for a CDMA phone. Yes it was the GSM/ CDMA issue.
Sorry to hear about your situation! I'm hoping things get less complicated as all the carriers move toward LTE. 👍
Make sure you turn off your cellular data too just in case you accidentally take your phone out of airplane mode.
Good tip, especially for those without an international data plan. 👍
Thank you it was really useful
Thank you! Glad the video was helpful. 😊
I live in Auckland New Zealand but I travel to USA for vacation once every three to six years and I am now wondering about getting a US SIM on my next vacation to LA and NY but I don't know what the best carrier and plan would be for the five weeks I will be in USA
Unfortunately, we don’t have as many prepaid SIM options in the US. Most Americans have some sort of contract plan, so prepaid has never been very popular. That being said, I would check with a T-Mobile store when you get to the US. They have prepaid plans, and the coverage should be good in both cities. 😊
Cricket runs on ATT and is GSM compatible. There are plans ranging from $25 with no data all the way up to $60 for high speed unlimited data.
John-Paul Ginley In the US just go to Walmart. If you just want to make phone calls you can get a month's calling and a phone for under $50.
In my country we have a thing called sim2fly which is really cool for asia and Australia 8days 6gb is less tgan $10 and world sim which is 6gb 15 days for $25 and 15gb for a year $90
Very cool! Thanks for sharing. 👍
I’m planning a trip to Spain 🇪🇸 and I have T-Mobile. Would google maps work there? iPhone 📱 5.
It should work, as long as you’re on one of the newer plans. We’ve used it in Spain without any issues. The data won’t be fast, but it’s definitely usable with Google Maps. Though I would suggest downloading the offline maps just to be safe. 😎
Trip Astute Thank you sir. I was learning about the Google off maps yesterday. I feel more confident now.
I usually just get a SIM card and use that as a hotspot for WiFi calling. Yes that requires two phones. Lol Recently in Japan, it was rather difficult to get a SIM card without a plan so I just used AT&T. It was unlimited everything for $10/day. I wasn’t there for too long so the fee was manageable.
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Once you travel with connectivity, it’s hard not having access to info & apps. 😊
I need to check out your Japan videos! I’ve haven’t been back there in a long time, so definitely want to check out your travels.
Why not just buy a prepaid SIM card? Just make sure your phone is unlocked. That’s the best, fastest, and cheapest way to go.
I've definitely purchased prepaid SIM cards in the past when traveling and it works great. The only problem I encountered is that it's difficult to get one in certain countries. Things might be different now, but trying to get one in France and Germany around 5 years ago was a total pain. They wanted proof of an address before I could buy one, and my hotel's address wasn't sufficient.
Again, things might be different now, but I just prefer not having to look for a card. 😊
@@muadhnate just don't lose or have your usa cell stollen. No more contact with USA banks- no way to verify your foreign ( Banks send text verifications) purchased phone. A total nightmare.
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
° 👁️👁️ °
° 👅 °
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
2G speed for data in 2018 is NOT gonna cut it!
That's true. Whenever I'm on 2G, I can't believe that we tolerated those slow speeds for years. 😄
Trip Astute well in all fairness phones were much slower than, so the internet speed didn't matter much. Also we dealt with dial-up for a very long time before we got faster internet.
+LtexprsGamimg Good point! 👍
T-mobile I think is the best!!! My photo was a little slow but it works good in New Zealand 🇳🇿...good info 👍
Yeah, T-Mobile is awesome! There is something really satisfying about turning on your phone when you land at your destination and having a voice and data connection without needing to swap the SIM card. Even being able to use services like Uber or Lyft when abroad is possible when you have data. 😎
Do you use prepaid with Tmobile?
I have their regular T-MobileONE plan, which I think is post-pay. It has the international roaming built into the plan.
I just got back from Mexico. I ended up buying a SIM card while I was there and I downloaded the maps for the areas we were visiting from Google Maps so that I didn't have to use data for that. It worked out well.
That's awesome! Good to know that it's fairly easy to get a SIM card in Mexico. 😎
No need to swap out sims…you will be charged accordingly..but in an emergency, who cares…
thank youuuuuuuu
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the video. 😊
It did not work for me - New question: How do I call a person in Malaysia who does not use WhatsApp?
You can probably use another VOIP app like Vibr or FaceTime (if they are an Apple user). Otherwise, you might have to call using the traditional method, but it can be pricey (depending on your phone plan).
2G speeds def not fast enough, you can barely pull up a map
Yeah, 2G definitely requires some patience. For maps, I recommend downloading offline maps so it's quicker. 👍
Trip Astute I recommend unlocking your iPhone then traveling
@@marconyewtv4477 but.. you are dodging the 2G speed issue. Good only for;
1 texting
2 sending short emails
3 reading internet pages
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
° 👁️👁️ °
° 👅 °
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
Orange, or Lebara…..
Thanks for the tip! 👍
I could have used that SIM card when we were down in the Caribbean this past March for a week. I have an older Samsung Smartphone and we had no service. Even though we didn't really mind but it would have been good to know that back at home our city was in the midst of a 2 foot snow storm. Though who knows, knowing that may have ruined our vacation...Lol...Thanks for that good information!
Thanks! I totally agree with you - being “connected” can definitely keep you from enjoying your vacation. I love having the connectivity, but I really have to keep myself from getting sucked into work and emails! 😄