SIM cards in Spain

Hi Trecile, I'm using a Vodafone pre-paid international Sim which I purchased in Pamplona. I get 2gb of data and 30mins of international calls for €15, I believe it expires in 30days and can easily be recharged using the Vodafone app at anytime.

In hindsight I probably wasn't very clear about my needs in the shop as I really just require data and I wonder if there was a better option, however this is working well for me.

There seems to be an abundance of wifi and I think you could easily get by without a SIM card.

Hope that helps and good luck!

trecile said:

I'm giving a presentation locally about Camino Logistics, and I'm looking for ideas about which SIM cards are best to purchase for the Camino, and where to buy them. I will be talking about the necessity of making sure that the phone is able to accept a foreign SIM card, and other options, like using T-Mobile or Google's Project Fi, or checking with your carrier to see if they have an affordable option for travel. I'll also talk about just using wifi, apps to use, etc.

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If your phone is AT&T or T-Mobile, it will work with a Spanish SIM card. Head to the nearest Vodafone store and buy a monthly SIM card. It's about $15 with 1 hour outgoing calls and free incoming and internet. Your phone will need to be unlocked.

I had an O2 card from the UK, which is Movistar in Spain, and seemed to have better connectivity than my fellow pilgrims on Vodafone, though there's still areas where you can't get signal at all. I only wanted GPS ability and data, really; the wifi was often terrible in most locations so I just used data.

For approximately a year and a half there are no roaming fees in EU so it would make sense NOT to buy Spanish SIM card IF you are depending on a good phone/data signal. For example, if you are flying into Paris or London etc. purchase SIM card there (with on-line top-up option) because "foreign-to-Spain" SIM card will seek and receive the best possible signal wherever you are whereas Spanish Orange/Movistar/Vodafone will try to connect to their transmitters which can be scarce in certain areas.

But if the price is of importance then you should check different options on-line. Plenty of them.

@trecile I used an Orange prepaid SIM card and it worked out great. There were only 2 ~ 3 times that I did not have a signal somewhere like Hotantos. Here is a link to the Orange Prepaid cards. I bought the Go Walk plan with 4.5GB of data for 9.95. You can check your usage statistics on your phone before you buy to get an idea of how much data you might need.

You can purchase the SIM cards in most of the larger cities. I found it easy to renew (30 days) at an Orange Tienda. I put a tickler in my calendar to ensure that I renewed while I was near an Orange Tienda (30 days). I took a pic of the SIM card PIN etc., just in case I forgot. It is also a good idea to understand how to check your balance on the SIM card before you leave the tienda. Maybe a series of screen shots etc. to help you navigate. Orange also had an English support phone number that I saved in my contacts. I am still wrestling with my Spanglish.

You may also want to include a little something about WhatsApp. I kept my same phone number with the new SIM card. I did not transfer my number to the new SIM card number.

Unlocking an iPhone is a bit of a process that requires a little lead time through AT&T.

¡Buena suerte!

In April 2015 I used Lebara that a purchased Madrid Airport, it worked fine in my Samsung Note 3. In 2017 I purchased a Lycamobile card on Holy thursday in Pamplona, at a the only little grocery store open. They were not very busy and were extremely helpful and friendly they even cut the card down to fit in my phone and it worked. FYI I am on the Verizon network in the US. I would love to find a phone for Verizon in the US which can switch between sims without needing to swap them out.