How did you install it, via a QR code or did you go to a shop?

IIRC, there were some kind of religious events and they advertised some pilgrim’s special where they’d email you a QR code, which none of the main Italian carriers did for postpaid.

In Europe, I usually use the O2 Europe travel esim from esim.net. 48 countries, 20gb for $20 USD, 35gb for $23, includes +44 phone number with free local in-country calls for each of the 48 countries (i.e. when in Italy you can call Italian numbers for free and the same with the other countries). Biggest limitation is you can't send SMS except in UK. You can receive them in all 48 countries.

NOTE: the 30 days start the moment you buy the plan (based on whatever day it is in the UK). So I normally buy it at time of departure to Europe.


Coverage in 48 countries, Austria, Azores, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Islands, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, French Guiana, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guadeloupe, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madeira, Malta, Martinique, Mayotte, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Reunion, Romania, Saint Martin, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and Vatican City.

https://www.esim.net/o2/travelplus

Is there much difference in quality (coverage, speed) among eSIM providers these days, at least assuming you can get it to work at all (customer service seems much more variable)?

Yeah that's a key question. Some carriers will segment their own prepaid products with speed caps, so the lower priced one may only allow up to 1 Mbps and the higher priced bundles will let you get full 4G or 5G speeds. That is if they offer 5G prepaid.

So when these MVNO eSIMs roam on some of these networks, they may not get the full speeds or even 5G, even on carriers which offer 5G prepaid.

In reality I just need google maps and read restaurant reviews. I know that most of those plans are rip-offs but what can you do?
$20-$25 for a week is ok. Especially that my Tmobile plan works in EU, but I've learn the hard way that even though it works in Europe it doesn't work always and everywhere. So having a regional plan for CH, AT and DE for under $30 would be ok.

For one week 3G is plenty if that is all you need it for. I usually buy 5G for 2 weeks and I have never used it all.

If you’re mainly using Google Maps and doing light browsing, 5 GB should be enough for an 8-day trip. However, keep in mind that data usage increases quickly if you often look at photos or watch videos (e.g. in Google Reviews), which can consume a lot of data without you noticing. A useful and often underrated tip: download offline maps in Google Maps for the regions you’re visiting. This can significantly reduce your data usage and is very helpful when the signal is weak.

One more thing to consider regarding Switzerland: if you’re traveling outside major cities or well-known ski resorts, coverage can be inconsistent with some providers like Sunrise (including Yallo) or Salt. If you want the most reliable network, Swisscom generally offers the best coverage, but it’s also the most expensive. A good alternative I’d recommend is Wingo, a subsidiary of Swisscom. You benefit from the Swisscom network without paying full Swisscom prices. For example, they offer a 7-day pass with unlimited data for CHF 10, which can be a great deal.

Hope this helps, and enjoy your trip! 😊

Believe Switzerland requires KYC, up to you if it's a hassle or it

I saw esim.dog has 3 network support (salt, sunrise, swisscom) and exits UK/NL, and not too bad price 10GB $6... But haven't used it, and same caveats (their network list may be outdated) , and you'll need another esim for Austria

Or get wingo plus one of the payg esims. Those would connect to salt/sunrise if needed, plus backup whenever you need a small amount of data (eg transit or layover). Esim.sm, unisim, Roamless, nxtlmobile, there are a few now

Just for your price comparison: You shouldn't be paying more than $1-2/GB for a travel EU esim ($1.5-4 for payg). Country specific esim would even be cheaper, or a local Euroepan esim that does EU roaming

Cheaper eSIM options
 

Honestly I think 5$ for 500MB of data is kinda very expensive. As I often travel and spend on data a lot, small changes can make big differences on my card at the end of the month. I tried Ubigi, Holafly Saily and many other, what they have in common is that their internet speed, quality of eSIM is somewhat the same. But for the pricing I can say Strong eSIM is a good one as they have reasonable prices and the same esim as the other providers too.

Worth taking a shot

fwiw. Strongesim is reselling from redteago (like a bunch of other resellers). All have different markups

This travel data eSIM may be useful depending on particular needs. Freedom Mobile offers this standalone eSIM with two options. This currently works 120+ destinations per the Freedom webpage information and lasts for 12 months.

Gave this a try and it worked well in several destinations. It was easy to set up and connected to roaming partners quickly.

https://www.freedommobile.ca/en-CA/travel/travel-esim

https://jetogo.com

min signup $5, LAUNCHDAY promo until Dec 31 2025
you then get $5 bonus (expires 12 months) in home country, and a $10 bonus (expires 3 months) in any country.

Europe seems to be starting at $1/GB. balance can be shared across 4 eSIMs. says it routes via UK

I used Roamless on my iPad for my last UK trip, speed was great, decided to do the same with my iPhone and ditched Airalo (speed was terrible in North Yorkshire) Roamless on my iPad seemed much quicker. Came across a great pricing promo and the fact that their plans don't expire and allow switching between devices made it an easy decision.

Updated my instructions to make sure AT&T doesn't get me on roaming charges

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2b07aaff5.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1327db3a6.jpeg

Are Airalo calls local?
 

I’m heading to London and plan to use an Airalo plan for data and calls. When making phone calls in London to other London phone numbers using the eSIM, will I be dialing as a local number (i.e.without the country code)? I’m assuming yes, but wanted to confirm. Thanks for the help!

If your Airalo plan includes voice and if it's actually a UK eSIM (vs. an eSIM issued elsewhere that includes UK roaming, which most of the travel eSIMs are), you could probably get away with dialling 020 1234 5678, but it never hurts anything to just dial the full +44 20 1234 5678--that ensures you get the correct number.

Whether you dial the country code has no bearing on how the call is charged on mobile phones.