Mobile Phones



Mobile Phones

Row houses, San Francisco

Although roaming charges have recently been capped in the EU, unfortunately these caps do not apply to travel elsewhere.  Sadly, I discovered just how exorbitant mobile roaming data costs are when my (usually quite sensible) husband decided he would save the $50 the car hire company wanted for a sat nav and we would guess how to get from Boston to New Jersey.  We didn’t have a map, inevitably took a wrong turn and I ended up using the GPS on my phone to get us back on track.  Needless to say I ended up spending a lot more than $50 on phone charges!

Don’t run up an enormous data bill from your phone company. Speak to your phone company before you travel to ensure your phone will work in the US and to negotiate a calls/data package at a price you are willing to pay.   Alternatively with many suppliers you can let them know a limit you are willing to go to in terms of your bill, say £40 and they will text you when you are nearing the limit.

Otherwise ensure you turn off the data signal on your smart phone or you could have a nasty shock when you get home.

Money Saving Expert  has a great guide to using your phone abroad, it contains lots of tips for keeping your bill to a minimum and also some information on buying a global or local SIM card which affords you cheaper calls but will mean a different phone number for the duration of your holiday.  Money Saving Expert – How to use your mobile phone abroad for less