sim card for europe recommendations

[Ex-Airbalancer]

7 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

Not dumb, just technologically challenged as it nears its fifth birthday next month. 😇

Still can get the latest upgrades also it will be able to use IOS18 , so still get 95% of the features 

 And those 5% missing we wouldn’t use it anyway 😁

 

[calliopecruiser]

On 8/3/2024 at 10:32 AM, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Have to make money to write it off

Yup, but if your business isn't making money, perhaps cruising isn't a good vacation choice, LOL.

 

[CDNPolar]

11 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

Yup, but if your business isn't making money, perhaps cruising isn't a good vacation choice, LOL.

 

 

Cruising is ALWAYS a good vacation choice.  That budget is there regardless of how much money the business makes!

[Ex-Airbalancer]

12 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

Yup, but if your business isn't making money, perhaps cruising isn't a good vacation choice, LOL.

 

It about saving money where you can, 

when the busines was operating, I rather put my money in my  retirement plan than giving it to Rogers or Bell 

 

[Roxxy]

I'm looking at purchasing this Europe Easy Roam from my Telus plan.  Has anyone used this?

 

[CDNPolar]

On 8/27/2024 at 3:35 PM, Roxxy said:

I'm looking at purchasing this Europe Easy Roam from my Telus plan.  Has anyone used this?

 

 

Looks like a great plan.  Wish Rogers had something like this.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

A deal from Vodafone, 2 gigs for $4 for a week in the EU , not sure if that is USD OR CAD 

https://travel.vodafone.com/product-details?i_code=CS-F-12-CTA&utm_medium=paid&utm_source=fb&utm_content=120211107970740157&utm_term=120211107865100157&utm_campaign=120211072091870157

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

A deal from Vodafone, 2 gigs for $4 for a week in the EU , not sure if that is USD OR CAD 

https://travel.vodafone.com/product-details?i_code=CS-F-12-CTA&utm_medium=paid&utm_source=fb&utm_content=120211107970740157&utm_term=120211107865100157&utm_campaign=120211072091870157

Currency is US$. Top right corner you can see  $/€ which is a drop-down menu to select currency. 

[debfed65]

Hello everyone.  I hope someone can help me with some questions about sSIM for Japan.  I have been searching through CC but can't seem to get a comfort level on how they work. 

 

I have never used an eSIM before so bare with me please as I try to figure it out.

 

I understand that I install it before I leave Toronto and my iPhone stays on Airplane Mode the whole time while away. 

 

My questions are:

 

1. Will I still be able to connect to Celebrity wifi while onboard? 

2. Will my family still be able to iMessage me using my phone number as if I was at home?

 3. I do not need use WhatsApp to make calls, as I keep in touch via iMessage & email, so can I safely assume these will continue to work while using an eSIM?

4. I am on a B2B to NE Asia, and will not need to use the eSIM for the second cruise, so can I toggle back to my regular sim on my iPhone while on airplane mode?  

 

Please be kind with your replies I am not very tech savvy. I have travelled internationally many times, but have never used an eSIM, but feel it is something I will defiantly need for Japan and as we all know, our Canadian carriers charge exorbitant rates for international usage. 

 

Any and all information would be greatly appreciated. We are leaving October 3 2024. 

 

Thank you....Debbie

[bookbabe]

4 hours ago, debfed65 said:

Hello everyone.  I hope someone can help me with some questions about sSIM for Japan.  I have been searching through CC but can't seem to get a comfort level on how they work. 

 

I have never used an eSIM before so bare with me please as I try to figure it out.

 

I understand that I install it before I leave Toronto and my iPhone stays on Airplane Mode the whole time while away. 

 

My questions are:

 

1. Will I still be able to connect to Celebrity wifi while onboard? 

2. Will my family still be able to iMessage me using my phone number as if I was at home?

 3. I do not need use WhatsApp to make calls, as I keep in touch via iMessage & email, so can I safely assume these will continue to work while using an eSIM?

4. I am on a B2B to NE Asia, and will not need to use the eSIM for the second cruise, so can I toggle back to my regular sim on my iPhone while on airplane mode?  

 

Please be kind with your replies I am not very tech savvy. I have travelled internationally many times, but have never used an eSIM, but feel it is something I will defiantly need for Japan and as we all know, our Canadian carriers charge exorbitant rates for international usage. 

 

Any and all information would be greatly appreciated. We are leaving October 3 2024. 

 

Thank you....Debbie

Okay, in layman’s terms, here’s a few things to know…apologies for the length.

The first helpful thing to know is that an eSim is an electronic version of the little physical chip in your phone that provides the cell phone provider info (like your phone number and plan) to your phone.  
 

You need to know whether you already have an eSim in your phone or a physical chip, and whether your iPhone is new enough to run multiple eSims.  Older iPhones might not.  You can google your iPhone model and the term “multiple eSim” or ask at the Apple store.

 

Getting a travel eSim is essentially buying a second phone plan that works while you are away.  You don’t put your phone in airplane mode, you make the necessary changes in the settings to activate the correct plan for where you are physically located.  We usually make these changes while the phone is in airplane mode during the flight to our destination, but putting the phone in airplane mode isn’t what makes the change, if that makes sense.

 

Wifi use is unrelated to the phone plan parts of all of this.  You can turn wifi on and off, connect to different wifi services, etc both with your phone in airplane mode or with your home or travel phone plans active.

 

iMessage can be used with wifi or with cell phone data, that part of things won’t change.  Same with email.  Both of those things work pretty much the same way no matter how your device is connected to the internet (wifi or cell data plan).

 

Now, the harder part…

 

If you want to have access to the internet while travelling, you have a few options:

A - put phone in airplane mode when leaving home, turn on wifi and just use a ship internet package onboard and public wifi hotspots while on shore (easy technologically, and cheap, but limits where/when you have access)

B - buy a travel eSim from Airalo or one of the other providers and learn how to switch cell phone services back and forth on your phone so that you only have the right stuff turned on at the different points in the trip (cheap and gives you good access but hardest technologically)

C - pay the stupidly overpriced roaming fees from your main provider and just use your phone as normal (easiest technologically and convenient but hardest on the wallet)

 

There are lots of videos and how-to guides on YouTube that explain how to activate and use a travel eSim.  Use “how to use a travel eSim” as your search term.  I’ll link a couple of sample ones below.  I’d watch a few to get an idea of what using a travel eSim will require of you before buying one.  Then, once you know what it is and what you’ll need to do to use it, then you can decide for sure what you’d like to do.

https://youtu.be/CujQmwCK3dE?si=MrkeVnY59wVAxLmr

https://youtu.be/O2hGwPV4K_s?si=UI9yWIJDS2LU0yzV

 

 

 

Edited September 28 by bookbabe

[debfed65]

9 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

Okay, in layman’s terms, here’s a few things to know…apologies for the length.

The first helpful thing to know is that an eSim is an electronic version of the little physical chip in your phone that provides the cell phone provider info (like your phone number and plan) to your phone.  
 

You need to know whether you already have an eSim in your phone or a physical chip, and whether your iPhone is new enough to run multiple eSims.  Older iPhones might not.  You can google your iPhone model and the term “multiple eSim” or ask at the Apple store.

 

Getting a travel eSim is essentially buying a second phone plan that works while you are away.  You don’t put your phone in airplane mode, you make the necessary changes in the settings to activate the correct plan for where you are physically located.  We usually make these changes while the phone is in airplane mode during the flight to our destination, but putting the phone in airplane mode isn’t what makes the change, if that makes sense.

 

Wifi use is unrelated to the phone plan parts of all of this.  You can turn wifi on and off, connect to different wifi services, etc both with your phone in airplane mode or with your home or travel phone plans active.

 

iMessage can be used with wifi or with cell phone data, that part of things won’t change.  Same with email.  Both of those things work pretty much the same way no matter how your device is connected to the internet (wifi or cell data plan).

 

Now, the harder part…

 

If you want to have access to the internet while travelling, you have a few options:

A - put phone in airplane mode when leaving home, turn on wifi and just use a ship internet package onboard and public wifi hotspots while on shore (easy technologically, and cheap, but limits where/when you have access)

B - buy a travel eSim from Airalo or one of the other providers and learn how to switch cell phone services back and forth on your phone so that you only have the right stuff turned on at the different points in the trip (cheap and gives you good access but hardest technologically)

C - pay the stupidly overpriced roaming fees from your main provider and just use your phone as normal (easiest technologically and convenient but hardest on the wallet)

 

There are lots of videos and how-to guides on YouTube that explain how to activate and use a travel eSim.  Use “how to use a travel eSim” as your search term.  I’ll link a couple of sample ones below.  I’d watch a few to get an idea of what using a travel eSim will require of you before buying one.  Then, once you know what it is and what you’ll need to do to use it, then you can decide for sure what you’d like to do.

https://youtu.be/CujQmwCK3dE?si=MrkeVnY59wVAxLmr

https://youtu.be/O2hGwPV4K_s?si=UI9yWIJDS2LU0yzV

 

 

 

Thank you @bookbabe for explaining this for me!  Its perfect! I will watch the YouTube videos you have posted.  I do know that my iPhone is compatible to use eSIM - I have checked that already. 

[gold1953]

15 hours ago, debfed65 said:

Thank you @bookbabe for explaining this for me!  Its perfect! I will watch the YouTube videos you have posted.  I do know that my iPhone is compatible to use eSIM - I have checked that already. 

we love the e-sim option and the fact that we toggle off our home sim so no accidents happen!. We like Airalo as it has an app so we can follow our usage. If you choose this one I will share my code and we both get a discount

[debfed65]

2 hours ago, gold1953 said:

we love the e-sim option and the fact that we toggle off our home sim so no accidents happen!. We like Airalo as it has an app so we can follow our usage. If you choose this one I will share my code and we both get a discount

Thank you for this information & that is a good idea to toggle off the other one! I am going to watch the videos that bookbabe posted above to get a better understanding of it all 😊

[Atlantic Girl]

We have used Airola also on many trips and just kept our Bell sim turned off. I did once have to make a quick phone call so I turned the Bell sim on , made the call, then immediately shut it off again. I made sure before I left that I didn’t have a daily “Roam Like Home” plan activated. That way I just paid for the actual minutes used to make the call. It was just over a $1. We recently were away for 2 months and I loaded 4 different esims for the countries we were going to. I looked at a global esim, but it was actually cheaper, with more data, to buy individual esims. Also every time I bought an esim I got a credit, so the last one was basically free. The trick is loading all the esims while you are still at home. Some people have had issues getting them loaded if they wait until they arrive. If you have multiple eSIMs loaded, only turn on the one for the country you are in, and it automatically activates. 

[debfed65]

3 minutes ago, Atlantic Girl said:

We have used Airola also on many trips and just kept our Bell sim turned off. I did once have to make a quick phone call so I turned the Bell sim on , made the call, then immediately shut it off again. I made sure before I left that I didn’t have a daily “Roam Like Home” plan activated. That way I just paid for the actual minutes used to make the call. It was just over a $1. We recently were away for 2 months and I loaded 4 different esims for the countries we were going to. I looked at a global esim, but it was actually cheaper, with more data, to buy individual esims. Also every time I bought an esim I got a credit, so the last one was basically free. The trick is loading all the esims while you are still at home. Some people have had issues getting them loaded if they wait until they arrive. If you have multiple eSIMs loaded, only turn on the one for the country you are in, and it automatically activates. 

Thank you for this information 🙂 I have one question….do I select the eSIM when I am leaving Toronto airport and before I go on airplane mode ? And then when I arrive in Japan and go off airplane mode I assume it will automatically default to the eSIM I set before leaving Toronto? 

[Middleager]

Some people have been offered this Rogers new $65/month plan.

 https://www.rogers.com/support/mobility/infinite-premium-plan-travel

covering 64 countries.  We're travelling at end of Nov., and would look at something like this as we get closer.  Maybe other carriers will come up with something similar.

[bookbabe]

On 9/29/2024 at 8:33 AM, debfed65 said:

Thank you for this information 🙂 I have one question….do I select the eSIM when I am leaving Toronto airport and before I go on airplane mode ? And then when I arrive in Japan and go off airplane mode I assume it will automatically default to the eSIM I set before leaving Toronto? 

Turn the different eSims on/off on the plane while in airplane mode to avoid accidentally roaming on the wrong eSim.  (Most Airalo eSims need Roaming turned on for them to work properly.)  Then when you get to Japan the Airalo one will automatically connect when you turn airplane mode off.

[Atlantic Girl]

Exactly like that. It has worked every time in countries all over the world for us. I am going to post a reply from Airola that we received in regards to us burning through our data in a couple of hours. We got a message from Airola that our data was running low, within 3 hours of turning the esim on. Thinking it was a mistake, I contacted customer support and they sent a very detailed reply about what might have happened. We were on a Celebrity cruise from Australia and had several ports that we didn’t buy eSIMs for. Taking lots of photos and videos every day. Because Celebrity has recently throttled back their Starlink internet our iCloud Photos couldn’t upload to the cloud. At the first port where we had purchased an esim, it started uploading all our photos and burnt through all our data in 3 hours. Lesson learned, so we just added more data. But we will be implementing all of the suggestions in the Airola email.

[Atlantic Girl]

[debfed65]

29 minutes ago, Atlantic Girl said:

Exactly like that. It has worked every time in countries all over the world for us. I am going to post a reply from Airola that we received in regards to us burning through our data in a couple of hours. We got a message from Airola that our data was running low, within 3 hours of turning the esim on. Thinking it was a mistake, I contacted customer support and they sent a very detailed reply about what might have happened. We were on a Celebrity cruise from Australia and had several ports that we didn’t buy eSIMs for. Taking lots of photos and videos every day. Because Celebrity has recently throttled back their Starlink internet our iCloud Photos couldn’t upload to the cloud. At the first port where we had purchased an esim, it started uploading all our photos and burnt through all our data in 3 hours. Lesson learned, so we just added more data. But we will be implementing all of the suggestions in the Airola email.

I will definitely follow the instructions on the Airalo email as well! This is valuable information - thank you for posting!!

 

[bookbabe]

I have found Airalo to have great customer service, I have no complaints and we’ve been using them for a few years now.

[calliopecruiser]

Thanks for posting that letter - there are some interesting tips (for example using different browsers and WiFi Assist).

[debfed65]

@bookbabe also posted two really good YouTube videos in post #160 which were very helpful for me as I have never used an eSIM before. Also, the gentleman who is in the second video, has also posted 8 things to be aware of in the settings when using Airalo. Everything on this board has been very helpful  😊