Post by Eagle on Oct 23, 2009 2:33:43 GMT -5
daisy,
Renting a Cellphone in Europe is not really a realistic option. There are not that many firms providing rentals there, and those that do charge huge fees. It would help to know where you're from and whether you currently have a cell phone at home?
There are three basic choices regarding Cell phones for travel:
1.) Roaming with your home Cell phone - if you're with one of the GSM networks in North America and have a quad-band handset, you can roam with your normal phone. However the costs can be high if making lots of voice calls, so it's a good idea to minimize those. Text messaging is usually the most inexpensive way to keep in touch with family back home. Those using "Smartphones" such as IPhones or Blackberrys can rack up HUGE charges for data roaming when using their phones to surf the Net or check E-mail, so it's a good idea to disable the data function when travelling and use only the Wi-Fi portion.
2.) Using a rental or purchase phone from one of the "travel phone" firms - several firms offer rental or sale of GSM phones for those that don't already have one. They also offer SIM cards for those travelling with an unlocked GSM phone. One of the advantages of these firms is that their rate structures are fairly consistent throughout most of the western European countries, and in some cases these might be less expensive than roaming with the home cell network. For examples of "travel phone" providers, have a look at websites for Cellular Abroad, Call In Europe, Roam Simple, Mobal or Telestial (there are others, but these are the main ones).
3.) Buy an inexpensive Phone when arriving in Europe - Some travellers prefer to stop at a Cell phone shop when they arrive in Europe and buy an inexpensive PAYG phone. These provide very inexpensive rates when used in the country of origin, however when travelling to other countries the rates are higher as the user is considered to be "roaming".
I've been travelling with a Cell phone since about 2004 and so far I've only used Option (1). I tend to use voice calls very sparingly, and prefer to use text for the most part. However, my cell network recently increased their international roaming rates considerably, so I might consider buying a SIM card from one of the travel phone firms and try that on the next trip.
Cheers!
Renting a Cellphone in Europe is not really a realistic option. There are not that many firms providing rentals there, and those that do charge huge fees. It would help to know where you're from and whether you currently have a cell phone at home?
There are three basic choices regarding Cell phones for travel:
1.) Roaming with your home Cell phone - if you're with one of the GSM networks in North America and have a quad-band handset, you can roam with your normal phone. However the costs can be high if making lots of voice calls, so it's a good idea to minimize those. Text messaging is usually the most inexpensive way to keep in touch with family back home. Those using "Smartphones" such as IPhones or Blackberrys can rack up HUGE charges for data roaming when using their phones to surf the Net or check E-mail, so it's a good idea to disable the data function when travelling and use only the Wi-Fi portion.
2.) Using a rental or purchase phone from one of the "travel phone" firms - several firms offer rental or sale of GSM phones for those that don't already have one. They also offer SIM cards for those travelling with an unlocked GSM phone. One of the advantages of these firms is that their rate structures are fairly consistent throughout most of the western European countries, and in some cases these might be less expensive than roaming with the home cell network. For examples of "travel phone" providers, have a look at websites for Cellular Abroad, Call In Europe, Roam Simple, Mobal or Telestial (there are others, but these are the main ones).
3.) Buy an inexpensive Phone when arriving in Europe - Some travellers prefer to stop at a Cell phone shop when they arrive in Europe and buy an inexpensive PAYG phone. These provide very inexpensive rates when used in the country of origin, however when travelling to other countries the rates are higher as the user is considered to be "roaming".
I've been travelling with a Cell phone since about 2004 and so far I've only used Option (1). I tend to use voice calls very sparingly, and prefer to use text for the most part. However, my cell network recently increased their international roaming rates considerably, so I might consider buying a SIM card from one of the travel phone firms and try that on the next trip.
Cheers!
- 2-3 nights 
