Using My iPhone in Europe

[Doheny]

[3lsmc7]

If your phone is unlocked, then it should be as simple as buying a pre-paid sim card and use. Not sure how Verizon's plan are though.

[therealnickb]

We used T-Mobile account from here. Everything was included in the One plan. No extra charges.

May not help, but that’s all I got.

[Ora Serrata]

Verizon iPhones are already unlocked

[3lsmc7]

If Verizon phones are already unlocked, then you can just buy a pre paid sim and use that. At least that's how it is with an unlocked phone I have ever used.

I would've mentioned T-Mobile One plan, which is really nice. My wife is currently in the Philippines and we text and video chat with no extra charge. Same thing when she flew to Malaysia and Cambodia.

[sanjoseskater]

T mobile is great unlimited data and texting for free, 20 cent a minute for phone calls but you can use WhatsApp for free calling using unlimited data. Contact Verizon to make sure 100% your phone is unlocked it’s took ATT 3 days to unlock my old phone before transferring to T-MOBILE. Buy a tourist SIM card or ask Verizon if they have travel plans they probably do. I would never travel without my phone now use it for google maps and Uber. Using Uber instead of taxis will pay for the travel plan alone.

[RikSors]

We got a Vodafone pre-paid sim card. I-phone must be unlocked. It’s good anywhere in Europe. Roaming must be turned on to be active if crossing to another Schengen Area - we learned the hard way. We used it primarily for internet - restaurant, gas, lodging search, and Waze navigation. Cheap. Served us well for a couple of weeks for $35 no contracts and with spare until we left.

[Marauder2003]

How much calling do you plan to do? I took my Galaxy S5 to Italy when it was new. Just paid for Verizon International plan for the time I was there.

Try to use local wi-fi for data as much as you can.

If you buy a local SIM no one from the States can call you unless you tell them the phone number.

[timdps]

How long is your trip? Just recently used a CelluarAbroad sim card. $60 for 30 days for a fair amount of data as well as calls.

T

[musick]

Headed to Europe to see my daughter. Verizon’s plans are hugely expensive. What are my options for using my phone there? If I were to buy a SIM card there, does it come with its own number, how would it work, etc?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

That all depends on how you want to use the phone. If you want to use it as you do at home (w/mobile data, net, text and phone) a sim card purchased locally is a good choice. Ill be travelling for a year so I will be dropping my plan and using it as a wifi-only device.

CONS
No phone calls
No net/texts when I dont have a wifi connection

PROS
Zero costs
I can download off-line apps, maps and documents and make due with intermittent connectivity.

Another option is to use your phone in airplane mode for online activities and buy a burner phone once you arrive to place calls. That should run you $20-25.

[67Cuda]

My wife and I were in Central/Eastern Europe this last summer. We have AT&T.
I went on my account and ensured I would be able to use AT&T services in Europe. I paid $10 a day for full access to my traditional services, just like I was at home. If you want to go cheap, use wifi.

[Z ME FLY]

Verizon iPhones are already unlocked

easiest way to use your phone. if you are paranoid, i would see if they have a pay per use day pass just in case for whatever reason you can't get a sim card the first day.

[tomk556]

Getting sims is easy. Look for a vodafone kiosk, show them your passport (maybe), and you'll get more than enough data for navigation and browsing for 40 euros.

[WAMO556]

If you have a iPhone XR or XS you can turn on E-Sim which is essentially a SECOND SIM card without having to remove your current sim. Dual Sim card phones in europe and elsewhere in Africa and Asia are an imperative. Passport/registration/activation are required.

Good Luck

[Ora Serrata]

FYI if you buy a pay as you go SIM card there it will only work in the country you bought it in unless you go and register it at a store. A couple years ago I bought a Danish card when I landed in Copenhagen. It stopped working just across the bridge in Sweden. And when I got into Germany later it didn't work so I bought a German one and registered it in the T Mobile store. Then it worked no problem in Holland, Norway Iceland and back in the US.

If you stay in one Country t
You're good