Originally Posted by
tomjtx
Are you going to a region that uses gsm? e.g.. Europe. Verizon uses cdma in the US but the iPhone and many android phones also have a slot for a sim card. Verizon will usually unlock the sim part and you can buy a prepaid sim in your destination country.
I have a German sim that has good rates. I can buy 5 gigs of data for 15 euro!
I am now on Tmobile which has great international rates. My iPhone has automatic wi fi calling so I call call any phone in the US for free. Non wi fi calls are only .20 per minute.
up to 3G data is unlimited as are texts.
None of the VZW 4G "world" phones are locked by default, so you just need to pop in a SIM and set the correct APN settings. However...
Originally Posted by
Hoyaheel
We have Verizon and android phones. In 2013, we did a sailing trip in the british virgin islands and I opted for the international data plan for that month. In December, we went on a river cruise mostly in Germany and opted to get prepaid SIM cards in Germany at the start of our trip. (one data only, one data and voice just in case). And I've started reading this forum to figure out what my options might be when we do an Asia cruise next year. I'm ok with my options when I'm in one country, but multiple countries on the same trip adds complexity (for me, as tech isn't my forte ;-)
This is my primary reason for just using Verizon service when abroad. Most of my trips span multiple countries or goes to countries like India that are still on CDMA. Managing a SIM for each place gets to be a hassle, and is potentially even more expensive than just signing up for the Verizon plans IF you only use your phone conservatively and don't need a local number at your destination.
Even when local SIMs provide savings, I haven't found the savings to be worth the hassle of getting them. So, pretty much the only time I'll use a local SIM is when I need a local number, and I usually do that on top of my Verizon plan using a separate, cheapo voice-only prepaid phone.