JeffersonCampervan Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 Hi All- We are Canadians who keep a motorhome in Europe. We have 2 GSM multi-standard phones (Blackberries, actually - 8700 series), which are on a Canadian network (Rogers). When in Europe, we keep one on & turn the other off. We use it for email & web only - phone calls/roaming are too expensive (it works very well for wireless email & internet, though!) We would like to purchase a SIM card for the one we generally turn off, so that we could make local calls in Europe, with minimal roaming surcharges. it would have to be of the prepaid variety, since we are not there long enough to warrant a monthly-charge plan. We'd like to be able to add funds to the card as we deplete our minutes. From searching the various forums, I have a couple of questions: 1) what is the best carrier for rates & coverage in the EU? Where would I purchase it? 2) will I have trouble purchasing one on the basis that I am a tourist with a Canadian address & no EU residency? Thanks, Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianR Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 Whilst they may not be the very cheapest source, the people I use, and have found reliable and helpful are http://0044.co.uk/. They moitor the best deals and you could explain to them your equirements and see what they recommend. You should not have any difficulty in buying one direct from them. Brian Ramsden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughmer Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I think the CarPhone warehouse might be able to help. They sell a sim for about £5 to which you add credit ... er.. somehow. It permits free incoming calls (i.e. you don't pay to receive them) and offers better country - country rates than my Virgin network. While you're here can you propose a way (magazine or website) of contacting the great Canadian RV community with he idea of an RV Swap? I'd like to offer my LHD Hymer and get a reciprocal deal in Canada. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob b Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi Frank, When I travel in Europe, I use Sim4travel. Just top the sim card up when the credits running low by credit card. Have a look at the web site.....www.sim4travel.com. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffersonCampervan Posted January 4, 2008 Author Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hughmer - 2008-01-04 4:20 PM While you're here can you propose a way (magazine or website) of contacting the great Canadian RV community with he idea of an RV Swap? I'd like to offer my LHD Hymer and get a reciprocal deal in Canada. Thanks to everyone who have given me leads on how to do the SIM thing in Europe. It helped me investigate further & I'll come up with a solution before our next trip this summer. One dimension I discovered from following lines of thought initiated here is that in May of this year the EU laid down roaming rate rules - so I may be able to pick the country I'm most likely to be in - likely France or Germany - and take advantage of this new roaming regulatory environment. Or I may use one of the international SIM services suggested here - all good options! As far as swapping over here - there really are no well-visited Canadian-only RV sites. RV travelling is fairly seamless between Canada & the USA. You will hit the most people by posting on http://www.rv.net/forum/ , probably in the general RVing forum, but possibly in the Canada/Alaska forum (but note that that forum is not necessarily dominated by Canadians). The main obstacle I see is insurance. In N.Am. the registered owner of the vehicle is ultimately responsible for liability damages. So let's say you, as the swapper, take out a couple of million liability insurance, in order to protect the registered owner; but then you hit 6 Bay Street stockbrokers & end up with a court judgment of $5 million. The owner of the vehicle is as liable as you are for that judgment. Rental companies carry very large sums for this purpose, but individuals typically don't (or can't even get it). At one time years ago I ran across a couple of fledgling international RV swap sites - you might try a search engine for those, if they are still out there in cyberspace. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naittaw Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Can I move this on a little by asking sim4travel users to confirm for me that if I have a sim4travel sim card and I am in France, calls received by me from a GB land line or mobile will be at no cost to me. I'm sure the web site answers the question but I am never sure I really understand the answer. Age again ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughmer Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Thanks Jefferson for the swap info. How I hate litigious lawyers. SIM 4 Travel If this is the same SIM that Carphone Warehouse sell (and I think it is) then you don't pay to receive calls from any phone in the UK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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