For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here. (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation) |
---|
actually finally bought my first smartphone last week
Hello,
What is the best way to stay in touch with home while on the Camino? Is there access to computers and the internet in the Albergues? Is it costly and slow? Is it cheaper to use your phone for emails, texting? Is there wireless available? I am presently with Rogers in Victoria BC and a travel plan is $40 plus the $66 I presently pay. And the travel plan is only unlimited receiving, 100 sent texts and 100 min of voice. What would you suggest? thanks so much for your help.
Just wanted to add another option- leave the phone at home!Of course this depends on how often you use it and feel you need to be in touch..... I was gone a total of 8 weeks, including 32 days of that on El Camino and LOVED not having my phone with me. Plenty of albergues and internet cafes along the way allowed me to check email whenever I desired (I of course made sure my family knew email was the way to reach me.)
Of course some might argue about emergencies- what do you do if something happens?? Fortunately there are so many people along every step of the Way that I never felt alone or out of touch or in danger.
To each his/her own of course! I've never been completely dependent on my phone in general- actually finally bought my first smartphone last weekJust have to find the best plan for you!
Buen Camino!
Beware of the salesmanship in cell phone international options. My brother signed up for the $30 per month international service with AT&T. It came with about a 200mb data limit per month, which seemed enough. He got home and now has a bill close to $600 for the month. There are no warnings when limits are being exceeded, and some location service ate up data bandwidth at a horrendous rate. He did use Google maps for finding obscure roads when we were avoiding the rain. He thinks that may have been the problem. He did not do any texting, and had very limited international phoning.
My French, then Spanish, SIM chip worked as advertised, and cost about 15E per half month.
Don't be lured by cell phone company promises. They may obscure reality.
There are desktop computers at most albergues for 1 euro per 20 min on average, and most of them are slow, it is not cheaper to use your Rogers phone to call and text, wifi is available at most albergues.
If you can get Rogers to unlock your phone, you can switch out your Rogers SIM card with a Spanish SIM card which costs 15-20 euros with data and local calling minutes. PM me if you have any questions.
*myThank you for taking the time to help me out! If I take out me Rogers Sim Card..will all my info still remain in my phone? Calendar items, notes, contacts? Thanks for your help.
Take a look at simsforspain.com. I used them two years ago, very inexpensive and flawless. Sim cards and cheap unlocked phones.
Thank you for taking the time to help me out! If I take out me Rogers Sim Card..will all my info still remain in my phone? Calendar items, notes, contacts? Thanks for your help.
Most WiFi is in public areas, so you will be entertaining the entire group around you with your half of the conversation! Sometimes TMI...You will be able to call other Skype users
I just read that T-Mobile in the US is now offering free global data roaming and texting, plus a flat 20 cents charge per minute for calls internationally with their standard plans. It covers Spain.
It took me about ten minutes and cost 5 to 15E, which included that amount in phone and data service (the data plan is currently about 12E for a gigabyte, 60 minutes of calling, and 60 text messages). The Vodafone clerk did all the set up. All I had to do was pull out my wallet. My brother signed up for the ATT international service for $30 per month before he left home. He returned to a $800 data bill (he thought he had read the fine print)! He envied the pain in the ass I endured! You can get reasonable international rates as well:Buying SIM cards in every country with new cell numbers--all of which are international calls for family back home--is a pain in the ass.
Llamadas y SMS Internacionales
Con Vodafone Internacional hablarádesde 1 cent./min. a 60 país, las 24 horas y con solo un establecimiento de llamada de 25 cent
Consulta aquí todos los precios por destino y prefijos asociados.
SMS internacionales, las 24 horas: 60 céntimos.
I don't mean to contradict you, but I have an unlocked quad-band GSM phone and used an Orange SIM card purchased from http://www.simsforspain.com/ and was quite happy with the coverage and cost. I chose the Orange Mundo plan which includes calls to the US and Canada for 1C (that's 1 cent or centime, not 1 Euro) per minute + 29C connection charge. Texts; however, were more expensive -- 71C for outgoing texts to the US and Canada (not sure of the cost for incoming texts, but I think it's less than that). I purchased additional minutes as needed at Orange stores in the larger cities.Make sure your phone is unlocked, then wait for you to arrive in spain to buy a spanish sim card. You will save a lot of money. Best for sim card in spain is either vodafone or movistar.
Buen camino.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?