Being able to stay in contact with loved ones while traveling is essential to me because I travel so frequently and it gives me the freedom to travel as frequently as I do. Unlike many people, I do not have one strategy because it is not always the least expensive strategy and you know I am a big fan of financial strategies that keep costs as low as possible. So I wanted to share with you the various ways that I use to save money on cell phone expenses while traveling (i.e., no pesky roaming charges for me).
This post contains affiliate links as explained in my Affiliate Disclosure Policy.
TEMPORARILY UPGRADE MY CELL PHONE PLAN TO STAY IN CONTACT WITH LOVED ONES WHILE TRAVELING
I sometimes upgrade my cell phone plan just for the trip. This works best for longer trips where the cost of the temporary upgrade basically breaks even for me in terms of ultimate costs. It is important to note that cell plan upgrades do not work for every country (because my cell phone coverage provider (and possibly yours) may not have agreement with a local serve provider to provide cell phone coverage or sometimes the upgrade cost for the length of the trip isn’t worth it given other options.
USE A PERSONAL HOTSPOT
If the trip is particularly long and to a location where my cell phone company does not have a partnership with a local provider, I will use a personal hotspot and then solely use WiFi calling or WhatsApp to make calls. The one I’m using right now is SkyRoam (https://www.skyroam.com/?rfsn=2149629.c0c0f7). I have a 10% off coupon code if you are interested. It is TBMSKYROAM.
RELY SOLELY ON WIFI
If the trip is going to be very short, then sometimes I do nothing but make sure to keep my cell phone on airplane mode and use an app to find free WiFi. I like to use the WiFi Finder + Map app (available in the IOS app store) to see where I can get free WiFi in the area. I like this app because I don’t need to be online to use it. You just download the related city map before traveling (or while on WiFi) to find free WiFi locations while offline overseas.
BUY A LOCAL PRE-PAID SIM CARD
I have an international cell phone that I sometimes use when traveling (usually use when I’m visiting family and friends overseas and I am not sure how reliable their phone services or internet services will be). When I do this, I buy a Pre-Paid SIM card and buy the amount of minutes I think I might need for the trip. Many airports have kiosks where you can buy pre-paid SIM Cards pretty easily.
Hope these tips save you some cash next time you are planning an overseas vacation!
