Photo credit: Kai Hendry
Mobile data roaming charges on overseas trips are a perennial headache for frequent travelers. And it’s only going to get worse as our voracious appetite for data increases with new devices like the iPhone 6.
Of course, just turning off data roaming (or switching to airplane mode) is a quick fix to avoid any surprise charges when you get home. Or you could switch to T-Mobile’s unlimited global data plan. Or you could buy a local SIM card and pay local rates, but that means switching to a new phone number, which is probably too unwieldy for a frequent traveler on a quick trip.
But what else can you do to avoid exorbitant overages when you need data when you are in other countries?
Luckily, many cities are moving fast towards ubiquitous public wi-fi, which allow VOIP calls in addition to data usage. But until that becomes more widespread, here are some options…
Comcast customers traveling overseas will soon enjoy inexpensive wi-fi access via a new partnership between Comcast and Liberty Global, a giant cable operator in Europe with about 2.5 million hotspots in countries such as the UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, Ireland and Switzerland.
For Comcast customers traveling to Europe, this looks like a solid deal and can be taken advantage of by downloading the Xfinity Connect App. Trials begin later this year (no hard date set yet) with wider rollout expected in 2015.
Similarly, Boingo provides access to more than a million wi-fi hotspots around the world for just $10 per month—you can sign up for just one month, or get a monthly subscription. (It’s a free benefit on some American Express cards- check yours here.) To find a Boingo hotspot, just download the Boingo Wi-Finder App to your smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
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Call, texts and data in 66 countries in the “Truphone World”
Truphone is an interesting solution for companies with several frequent international travelers on staff who regularly rack up significant charges on overseas calls and data. With a corporate Truphone plan, companies provide frequent travelers with phones (including the new iPhone 6) that work seamlessly in the US and 66 countries. (Just turn on the phone when you land, and go…) Users have a local US number, and can add up to seven local numbers in other countries. Truphone’s benchmark monthly rate is $100 for 1,000 minutes, 1,000 messages and 1 gigabyte of data anywhere in the “Truphone World.”
What about those times you get lost in a foreign city...and there’s no one around to ask directions? In the past, you’ve likely just groaned, logged on to the local phone network and paid too much to access Google Maps. But you can avoid that– before you go out and about in a foreign city, save a local Google map to your iPhone when in a wi-fi zone for easy access: Here’s how to do that.
These are only some of the strategies to manage roaming costs while traveling. What other clever solutions have you come up with? Please leave your comments below.
–Nick Vivion & Chris McGinnis
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On my last trip, I bought a “3” sim card. It worked in the UK and Ireland. Only paid 10 pounds. Remember, all non contract phones can be unlocked. Your carrier will do this for you
Last trip overseas (not counting Canada), I bought a cheapie wifi hotspot and a 5gb plan. That allowed me to keep both my phone, iPad, and, at times, laptop (in customer meetings) rolling in data throughout the trip. I left the phone on my normal number so it could get calls and texts from those who didn’t know where I was, but used Skype when I could to make calls. Kind of overwrought, but it worked well for me…
iPass is another option. Their Open Mobile service has more than 2.5 million Wi-Fi hotspots in its network worldwide. One user experience, one bill, one place to manage roaming.
Not sure how many of your readers are UK-based, but if you are then here is your answer for overseas data roaming. Maybe someday we’ll see similar propositions from some of the big US operators.
http://www.three.co.uk/Discover/Phones/Feel_At_Home
I’m one of those few who have actually been pretty impressed with TMobile. I’m a typer, not a talker, so I maintain a $20/mo data-only plan from TMobile (1.2GB/mo on 4g network , the rest is on a slower 2g). Plug in the SIM Card in one of those old iPhone 4S (unlocked from AT&T) and you have an internationally available phone in no time. “Unlimited” data overseas (I never abuse it) and unlimited text, and you get a US number. No voice calls but there are plenty of low cost or free app that allows you to do VoIP calling thru a 4G/3G/2G network.
Oh and FYI while internationally, your phone roams to the local 3G network. Tried in 4 different countries and actually decent.
Hi Chris, I’d be tempted to leave Verizon for T-Mobile if I traveled more internationally. Many of my friends who went to the Sochi Olympics, either as competitors or to watch family members, switched to T-Mobile just for the international benefits.
I looked into the Verizon Canadian roaming plans recently, and realized that 100 MB doesn’t go as far as it used to. I was looking at close to $100/day while I was in Canada. I decided to just leave my data services turned off while there. Verizon’s voice and text charges in their N. American roaming plan wasn’t too bad, so I went with that. Unfortunately, I couldn’t call/text any of my Japanese friends who were at this particular competition, only US, CAN, and MEX phones.
My family travels to Japan fairly often. We have found http://www.rentafonejapan.com to be very dependable and affordable. Back in June, I rented a phone and a mobile hot spot.
The owner is an Australian ex-pat. Communication with them is easy. They will mail the devices to any Japan post office or to your hotel. Drop it in the mail or leave at your hotel front desk before you leave the country. I wound up using the hot spot way more than the phone.
Thanks for sharing that bad experience! T-Mobile can offer that deal because it’s the underdog in the market right now. I would still have T-Mobile if it worked in my house in SF…but alas it does not and I’ve switched to Verizon…and have had similar roaming charge surprises like yours when overseas. Currently, neither AT&T or Verizon have unlimited plans like T-Mobile. Before you switch, check and be sure T-Mobile works well where you live and work. I suggest you pay the $25 fee to Verizon for its Global Data 100 megabytes deal for your next trip…http://www.verizonwireless.com/wcms/global/plans-and-pricing.html — chris
If T-Mobile can offer such a good deal for international travel, when are the other carriers going to wise up and do it as well? I got charged $150 by Verizon just by turning on my phone at AMS, because I forgot to turn off data download capabilities. By the time I got through passport control and looked at the text messages Verizon had sent it was $150, and it would have gone to $500 if I hadn’t caught it then. I guess apps were updating in the background. I’m seriously considering switching to T-Mobile as a result, but I’d love to know if anyone knows it other carriers have plans to match T-Mobile in this regard.