Cell Phone Service Abroad: Finding the Right Option for You
My first trip abroad to Rome, Italy, I was clueless about cell phone service abroad. With that being said, I opted for the basic and free, only-use-your-phone-on-wifi service. I didn’t purchase an international phone plan or a SIM card for my trip. That meant my cell phone usage was restricted to exactly what that “service” entails: I could only access messages, email, and internet on wifi. In the age of technology and globalization, I felt like a caveman trying to navigate myself around the city the old fashioned way…by identifying landmarks and familiar streets I would mentally catalog as I traversed the city. While I 100% support “old-fashioned” map use, my limited cartography skills and memory of the city failed me when I got lost on the way back to my hotel from Roma Termini!
We had just returned to Rome after spending a day exploring Florence. At Roma Termini, the train and bus station, we searched for a bus that would take us back to Piazza Navona, the location nearest to our hotel. Not a person was in sight at the station, as we arrived late in the night to make the most of our day trip to Florence. Like the naive tourists we were, we decided that the best course of action would be to hop on a random bus and hope it stopped nearby our hotel! My phone was dead and Lily’s was dropping charge quickly. Google maps couldn’t save us because we didn’t have cell phone service! However, an unlikely hero came to our rescue: Snap Maps, Snapchat’s location tracking function.
We watched as Lily’s Bitmoji (a digital avatar used on Snapchat and iMessage) shuffled across the map with every turn of the bus. Each time her avatar would move away from the piazza, we would gasp. When the Bitmoji moved closer to our destination, we cheered with joy! Her phone’s battery was steadily decreasing but we had hope that our random bus selection would take us close enough to walk to our hotel.
On that bus, not only did Snap Maps save us, but we also had a guardian angel watching us cheer with joy or distress. An Italian man witnessed our plethora of emotions and asked us where we needed to go. We told him we were trying to get to Piazza Navona, and asked if we were on the correct bus! Alas, he gestured something that told us our tumultuous journey back to the hotel was successful: two thumbs up! The Italian man told us we needed to get off in two stops, then we could walk to the piazza.
It was definitely an adventure in Rome without cell-phone service! Since my first international trip, I have learned a lot about cell phone service abroad…and how to make your life (and navigation) easier than trying to decipher a map!
If your country’s phone plan offers a pay-by-the-day international plan, this is one option for extending your cell phone service abroad. However, international add-ons can add up! When I studied abroad in Florence, my roommate used a $10/day phone plan and we were there for almost 200 days! Do the math! I was shocked that she could afford to pay that amount just to keep her American number! Pay-by-the-day plans (or pay-if-you-use) may be a good choice for short term travel, but for extended periods of international travel, international plans are unaffordable, and oftentimes unreliable!
So…
Here’s what I recommend for international cell phone service options:
Buy a local SIM Card:
My favorite option for AFFORDABLE international cell phone service! When I moved to Florence for my study abroad program, the first thing I did when I arrived was go to a local cell service provider (Vodafone) and buy a SIM card. You can purchase plans based on your budget and trip duration! For example, I bought unlimited data so I could send my family pictures of my adventures as I was experiencing them, rather than sending photos when I got back to my homestay to use the wifi! Many local SIM cards will also allow you a set number of international minutes so if you have something to write (or call) home about from a different country, local SIMs are a great option!
travel tip!
Purchasing a local SIM card requires you to have an UNLOCKED cell phone, meaning you can’t be tied to a specific carrier or contract! You’ll need an unlocked phone to exchange your SIM for the local SIM. The fun part is you get *temporary* new number for your local SIM! Say goodbye to those annoying phone scams!
Purchase an eSIM:
Electronic SIM plans allow you to purchase online cell service that will connect you to data overseas. ESIMs are similar to purchasing local SIM cards, but have the added convenience of purchasing via an expedited online process. Airalo is a great online cell phone service provider for purchasing local (one specific country), regional (a geographical region of the world, i.e. Europe) and global (extended coverage worldwide) eSIMs that work with your data requirements!
