As we all know, using your Swedish mobile phone subscription to surf abroad is often unrealistically expensive. So how do you use the internet while travelling? We've been travelling in Europe for two months now, and we've done it in three ways.
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1. Wifi
In some places there are Wi-Fi in Europe and of course we use it, for example in campsites, cafés and McDonalds. Here in Portugal it is usually easy, but in some countries it is more complicated. McDonald's in Germany and Italy have free wifi, but to access it you have to register with your German/Italian phone number, to which a code is sent...
2. Internet sim cards purchased locally
Here in Portugal we have been buying internet SIM cards in shops. In some countries it is easy (like here in Portugal) while in other countries it requires some kind of registration. Here, for example, we bought a 7-day card with 4 gigabytes for 120 SEK. There are also open-ended cards, such as 2 gigabytes for around £250.
The cards can be used to surf on the phones, and also to share the Internet with the computers. Some of the caravans, which stay in Portugal throughout the winter, have opted instead to register for a low-cost Internet subscription, with unlimited gigabytes.
3. Internet sim card via Holiday Phone
Even before we travelled, we bought a number of internet SIM cards through Holiday Phone. The cards we bought were 1 gigabyte each and the prices were different depending on the country. We bought a number for France, Spain, Italy and Croatia. We are not sure that this has always been the cheapest option, but it has been very convenient! This way we've been sure to have internet access as soon as we enter the country, and haven't had to deal with the hassle of registrations and such.
The cards have to be activated before they are used and you can do this yourself before travelling. Since we are travelling between different countries, we get help from Holiday Phone with the activation - we just contact them three days before we enter the country! The cards have worked excellently and when we, at some point, have had difficulty getting them to work, we have received support from Holiday Phone, via email (wifi) or text message. The cards can be used to surf on the phones, and also to share Internet to the computers.
Update: Roaming charges are cancelled
Since we wrote this post, roaming charges have been abolished in the EU and many other countries, both in Europe and worldwide. This means that in many countries you can surf on your own mobile phone plan, which you bring with you from home. If you are unsure about the rules in the country you are travelling to, contact your mobile operator and ask!
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Camilla- ActiveDays says:
Great tips, I will save this! Thank you so much!
25 January 2015 - 13:22
Ditte says:
Good that the "Hollyday card" works but then you have to know when you change country so that it is registered. I have usually in Europe, not in Spain where we have wifi at home that can be paused, bought local sim cards and it has worked very well.
When travelling outside Europe, Thailand, China, Vietnam for example, I have brought a stick from Sweden, Kjell & Company and bought a local sim card for x amount of money for it and had direct access to the internet. Sometimes an expensive solution.
Sometimes I have changed the sim card for the mobile phone to local and used it/shared it with the computer. Nice to hear what you think of the box now for seven days.
25 January 2015 - 13:50
BP says:
Thanks for the tips. Quite easy if you are good at planning trips in and out. Also, you have to like surfing from your mobile phone, something I find very difficult, especially as I like to edit the photos I post.
25 January 2015 - 13:54
Maggan and Ingemar says:
Wifi is now the biggest issue when you arrive in a new country. Portugal has always been expensive. 🙁
Greece's WIND was probably the cheapest with 17€ for a month and 10G. Now we have one here in Italy TIM for 20€ and 10G/month. I think it has become better and cheaper over the years 🙂.
But your cards seem expensive. 🙁
In Spain we have used Masmovil which you can put on hold until you come back. We would like to Skype and that has not been possible with Vodafone the last few years so we have skipped them 🙂.
We have not tested MC Donald. It's a jungle to find the right internet service provider.
25 January 2015 - 15:59
admin says:
Ditte, we need to know about 2-3 days before we change countries, but that's it. Hard to know which is the best solution, but sim card and sharing to the computer works well, we think.
BP, no, you don't need to surf from your mobile phone at all! I almost only use the computer. I'm like you, I want to be able to edit pictures and stuff. So: you put the SIM card in your phone and select "internet sharing" - then you have internet on your computer!
Maggan and Ingemar, it sounds like you found cheap internet in the countries you visited! No, it's not easy to know what's best not ...
25 January 2015 - 19:01
Lennart says:
It is a sport to find "Free Wifi"!
Have been blogging every day for two years without paying!
When I go to a restaurant, I ask if they have Wifi!
YES and we have food too they reply!
Live well!
25 January 2015 - 19:21
Matts Torebring says:
Thanks for the tip! I have also thought about the Holiday Phone. In the summer, when we stay in southern Europe, we have always stayed at a campsite. The first condition for us to stay at a campsite is that there is wifi, otherwise we do not even turn off the engine. Hugs & Continued pleasant journey
25 January 2015 - 19:37
Mr Steve says:
Oh dear, how lucky I am not travelling anymore.
25 January 2015 - 20:02
admin says:
Lennart, haha, you seem to have gotten good at that sport!
Matts, wifi means a lot! We think the Holiday Phone has worked well! Maybe expensive if you want a lot of gigabytes, but convenient if you want to be sure to have Internet when you arrive in a new country.
Steve, haha, it's actually a bit of a jungle...
😉
25 January 2015 - 23:45
Marina says:
New times, new problems...;)
26 January 2015 - 4:21
Snows says:
It is important that it works anyway because you want the internet. Has become a habit 🙂
26 January 2015 - 7:29
Allis & Stellan says:
Thanks for such great tips, you want to have the internet when travelling and preferably without too much hassle!
Have fun!
26 January 2015 - 10:01
admin says:
Marina, that's right...
😉
Znogge, yes, we have become addicted to the Internet!
😉
Allis & Stellan, that's the way it is and it's not easy, especially since there are changes and new options all the time....
26 January 2015 - 10:18
Ama de casa says:
We have a "reserve wifi" on a Spanish subscription. It's a fixed cost of €3.50/day and has a maximum limit which means that you can't stream, for example, but it's fine for browsing and blogging and so on. When you reach the ceiling, it does not turn off, but it is slow. And it does not cost anything more anyway, which is nice to know. This was perfect for example when I went into hospital for 12 days. Anders was working and I was surfing without any problems (well, with the internet...).
😉
But here in Spain you have to register to buy a SIM card. This follows the terrorist attacks in Madrid, which apparently had something to do with mobile phones.
26 January 2015 - 10:56