... am travelling to germany later this year and it looks like getting a local sim is fraught with local requirements ... is there any way to do this without a local address?
I bought a Vodafone paynow sim for Germany on ebay similar to this one.
I can answer you about international roaming...you have to ask your connection provider to facilitate you with that.And it takes few days to get the system working really...obviously there are additional charges for the same.
Wonder if they surcharged you for roaming/any other charges - could you tell from a pre-paid Optus account?
Quote:
Originally Posted by henare
travelling to germany later this year and it looks like getting a local sim is fraught with local requirements ... is there any way to do this without a local address? i'm looking to make calls and use internet on my mobile and, separately, to use 3g internet with an expresscard).
They didn't even ask me for an address only your passport. If they ever ask for an address just give them the local marriott. Just don't tell them it is a marriott.
just my 0,02$. If you need a sim-card in Holland I think it costs about 5-10 euros. but you'd be better of going to the Mediamarkt or Saturn. They often have deals where you can buy a GSM with a sim card and telephone Nr. for 20 Euro and this is often including 20 Euro of prepaid minutes.
Programs: UA 100,221 , VS Silver, Hilton Diamond , *wood Gold, Marriott Silver, Hertz 5* and PC since 1985
Posts: 5,130
I need advice on a German Sim Card?
My wife will be visiting family for a couple weeks and need to figure the cheapest way for her to call our little ones.
Any suggestions and advice are appreciated .
Please and Thank you
__________________
Travel & Geek
Halfway to Evangelist status!
AldiTalk and blau.de both offer prepaid calling cards for which you can get a German landline flat-rate for €15/mo. You can then use calling cards with a local German access number (onesuite.com, future-nine.com, callcentric.com, voipdiscount.com) to make cheap calls.
Callback is also a option and would require landline access (Internet access helpful) but no cell phone.
There are many good sims to choose in the sim card thread. I would either go with blau or phonic. I think both of these are under the e+ network. I would choose phonic because to recharge you only have to enter a couple of digits plus the code to recharge. With blau you have to dial 1155 press 4 enter the code and then press 1 after it repeats the code(plus it is all in German). They are both around 9 euro cent for calls to the us. Avoid vodaphone like the plague. It was 59 euro cent per call. Also make sure she has the store set the sim card up. She will need a passport and a address(hotel will work)
Another option if you have a usb sim modem is to purchase a o2 prepiad internet sim and it includes a month of internet for 25 euro. (They also sell a prepaid sim stick called loop stick 2 for 70 euro. This includes the month of internet) Then call home on skype as it works and she would have internet for free..
My wife will be visiting family for a couple weeks and need to figure the cheapest way for her to call our little ones.
Any suggestions and advice are appreciated .
Please and Thank you
You should look for blauworld Blauworld International Calling SIM. I think they are the cheapest to make international calls from a cell phone. Domestic calls are more expansive than with other prepaid cards but their international rates are the best you can find.
I bought the Mobal service which includes a Motorola phone with SIM card and a $49 credit as well. Used it in Europe in several countries and it worked well. The Mobal service has numbers for just about any country in the world.
Planning to take it on a Panama Canal cruise shortly but don't know what to expect, since it seems that most calls are routed through the UK. I am hoping that their service is still less expensive than using my ATT phone.
It's probably better for Europe than other areas, but it does have service all over the world and comes with several adaptors so you can recharge it just about anywhere in the world.
I'm not sure just what the charges would be from areas outside Europe, but for any Eastern European country or Europe in general, I found it worked well and charges were not unreasonable.
What is the best UK sim card for a week or 2 trip , but which will still be good in 6 months or a year ?
Calls will only be in the UK,
My friend is flying over for 10 days in the UK ,
I will loan him my unlocked GSM 4 band phone ,
But it would be nice to have this sim working if we make another trip in a few months , or even Christmas time ,
The phone number is not important , so maybe its smarter to just get a new sim every trip if they expire when not in use....
Programs: UA gold, Hyatt Plat Marriott silver,Hilton Gold, Hertz Gold
Posts: 190
Quote:
Originally Posted by rally
What is the best UK sim card for a week or 2 trip , but which will still be good in 6 months or a year ?
Calls will only be in the UK,
My friend is flying over for 10 days in the UK ,
I will loan him my unlocked GSM 4 band phone ,
But it would be nice to have this sim working if we make another trip in a few months , or even Christmas time ,
The phone number is not important , so maybe its smarter to just get a new sim every trip if they expire when not in use....
Thanks for your help
Rally
Some of the people here will no doubt disagree with me. I have a vodaphone sim card pay as you go. I have had it for around two years. If you live in the US you can get CS to accept your US credit card for top ups. This must be done in the UK. This is so you can use the web site for top ups. You will need a UK address. Use the hotel or if you have a friend use his/her address. You must have some type of activity every 180 days. This is done by a simple text message or phone call, or top up. I hope this helps.
__________________
Happiness is a good scotch, a good meal, a good cigar and a good woman.
A co-worker of mine used it in London and said the service was good, top-up was easy and it had great rates both domestically and to the US. I've used Orange, but had to choose between good domestic or good US rates.
I need advice on a German Sim Card?
