Telephones on the Le Puy Camino

[urbanhiker]

Hi,
I've been using this site a lot lately and it has been very helpful. Thanks. I'm now wondering about buying a phone, maybe in Le Puy, or along the Camino, to use just to make calls within France. I did this last year along the Camino In Spain. I bought it there and and used it to make room reservations along the way. I would put more minutes on it as I needed them along the way. I do not want to bring my phone from home and configured it for use in France. Thanks for any help you might have.

Ray

 

[vicrev]

I bought an unlocked phone for 15eur, prepaid simcard with some minutes on it 10eur in Lyon,from Orange, just about any Orange store does this,worked OK for me.....Vicrev

 

[Deleted member 3000]

For a SIM chip or cheap phone:
Orange
5 Rue Saint-Gilles
43000 Le Puy-en-Velay
France

 

[cecelia]

I walked the Le Puy route this year and bought a cell phone and SIM card from an Orange store (or so I thought) which we never could get to work. I met at least 4 or 5 other people who had the same problem. One guy had put 100Euros on his card and couldn't get it to work. Locals said that Orange was sketchy at best in that part of the country. In the end it turned out that Orange and SFR are sister companies which frequently use the Orange look. We got the phone from an SFR store called an Orange store and there was no way the Orange stores along the way could do anything. So watch that if you do go with Orange. SFR is common along the way and is used more frequently by the locals - or so they said. Had problems in Spain.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I have used Orange several times and found it has good coverage. The credit on the account seemed to mysteriously disappear, and one recharge was lost when the tabac operator applied it to phone service instead of data service. Of course, nothing is in English! Still, it was quite useful. A fellow pilgrim was using an iPhone app that traced his track, added photos to the coordinates where taken, and gave excellent topographical map depictions of the route. He used a lot of data band width!!

 

[cecelia]

oops - re the above...I meant to say I had NO problems with the phone in Spain. I purchased the new phone from an SFR phone in France and although it somehow automatically switched over to Vodafone in Spain there were no bumps in the switch-over.
Another weird note. I also had an Orange Sim card in my ipad in France and Spain but was never able to access them or the internet with the SIM card. However, now that I'm back in Canada Orange contacst me regularly(almost daily) to talk about their latest deals for another SIM card.

 

[jirit]

When we walked the Le Puy route, I originally thought I would buy the Orange BIC phone (the same one that was or is available in Spain.)
In Spain back in 2011, the BIC phone retailed for 29 euro and gave you about 30-45 minutes of calling time, plus you could recharge the unit at any tabak shop. It worked well in Spain. A good investment overall.

However in France the same BIC phone from Orange retailed for 49 euro and gave you maybe at best about 20 mins on free time. It was unclear if you could recharge the phone unless you went into a Orange dealer. We also heard from others that coverage was spotty in places

Therefore we decided to buy 5 euro calling cards along the way and use these. We went through about 20 euro in calling cards during the 5 week walk
We also decided to get the host of the gite we were staying at, to phone ahead (the night before), to reserve and book beds for us. We did about 50% of time.

Overall we found this a very suitable and economical solution as compared to buying a phone

 

[cecelia]

My SFR phone cost me 20 Euros and included 20Euros of phone time which was enough to get me almost all the way across Spain and I spent a few calls just chatting with my son in France.

 

[Seymoursmum]

My SFR phone cost me 20 Euros and included 20Euros of phone time which was enough to get me almost all the way across Spain and I spent a few calls just chatting with my son in France.

Hi, I've just finished the le Puy route. I bought a €34 Samsung phone in Lyon and had to go to the train station to buy orange credit. I had coverage everyday. The only problem was getting more credit. None of my 3 Australian credit cards were accepted. At one point a kind French walker used his credit card for me ( in exchange for cash ) however, when I tried again later in the walk with another French walkers card, it wouldn't accept it as the card was different! Most newsagent ( tabac/ presse) sell credit and I always had the staff call to add it. Very impressed with the coverage of Orange.

 

[billmclaughlin]

I'll just report my experience. I brought my iPhone. I called my provider (Verizon) before I left and they -- not I -- did what was required to allow me to call the US from France and to make calls to French phone numbers. The rate was expensive at US 1.29/minute, but I only used it to make reservations and never spoke for more than a minute.

I also had Miam Miam Dodo on the phone, so I never had to enter telephone numbers. I just clicked on the phone number in the guide. Worth every penny.

Bill

 

[Deleted member 3000]

From Orange in France; you get five Euro of phone call service for 1.90E:

1.90 €
au lieu de 7.90 €
vente flash
Plus que :
72j 11h 39mn 06
Carte prépayée sans engagement

- 5€ de crédit de communication
- services gratuits et inclus
- messagerie vocale, suivi conso, présentation du numéros
- Crédit offert sur toutes vos recharges, appels illimités
- Carte sim non compatible avec les mobiles intégrant une micro sim et nano sim

 

[cherie]

I bought an Orange sim card for my unlocked iPhone in Le Puy and found I generally had good coverage. For 10E you get 500mg data which lasts (from memory) 10 days and for 15E you get 60 mins of International Phone Calls and this lasts for 14 days. I found both very useful. A lot of the Gites have WiFi. Orange stores are only in the larger towns but they may be closed Saturday afternoon, all day Sunday and Monday as well. A Tabac store can recharge for you. I also found that I could not recharge online as my Australian CR Card was not accepted.

 

[biloute]

Would it be easier to find an inexpensive option for a cell phone in Paris, or are prices for phones+sim and talk time reasonable in Le Puy? When I was an English assistant in a small town in France, the least expensive pay-as-you-go phone was 50€, not including the sim or minutes.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

You can gauge cost here:

http://www.orange.fr/

Prices are consistent across France, so buying a phone or SIM chip in Le Puy will work for you.

 

[irishgurrrl]

With just under 7 weeks to my Le Puy adventure I am reading this thread with interest. I like the idea of just using phone cards but was wondering are there enough public phone boxes along the way?

Also wondering if it still might be prudent to carry a mobile phone for safety reasons (given we might be walking in isolated areas or in snowy conditions at the start) or is the coverage really patchy?

I had my phone unlocked for the Camino France Sept/Oct 2012 - 'scuse my igorance but does that mean its unlocked for France too? (!)

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Public phones are disappearing in France. You need a card from the post office to operate them.

When a cell phone is unlocked, it stays unlocked for other SIM chips, Spanish or French.

 

[Kanga]

With just under 7 weeks to my Le Puy adventure I am reading this thread with interest. I like the idea of just using phone cards but was wondering are there enough public phone boxes along the way?
(!)

I don't recall many public telephones.

We needed our mobile phone to call ahead to book into gites and chambre d'hôtes, especially during the weekends. Our hosts were often happy to phone ahead for us but sometimes it just didn't happen for various reasons, we also needed to change bookings or notify that we had to cancel - very important to do this as soon as it becomes obvious, so the establishment does not lose out and also so other walkers can get a bed. We've needed to call our hosts to be collected because one of our party got suddenly sick. We've also had to change return flights due to a strike on the railways (disconcertingly common and unexpected) and that required having a number for return calls.

Last time we used an unlocked iPhone and "Le French Mobile", purchased before leaving, mainly because the year before I found it difficult to set up a local SIM card (although it was good, and cheap, once it was set up). That was in 2011, I suspect it would be easier now.

 

[irishgurrrl]

I don't recall many public telephones.

We needed our mobile phone to call ahead to book into gites and chambre d'hôtes, especially during the weekends. Our hosts were often happy to phone ahead for us but sometimes it just didn't happen for various reasons, we also needed to change bookings or notify that we had to cancel - very important to do this as soon as it becomes obvious, so the establishment does not lose out and also so other walkers can get a bed. We've needed to call our hosts to be collected because one of our party got suddenly sick. We've also had to change return flights due to a strike on the railways (disconcertingly common and unexpected) and that required having a number for return calls.

Last time we used an unlocked iPhone and "Le French Mobile", purchased before leaving, mainly because the year before I found it difficult to set up a local SIM card (although it was good, and cheap, once it was set up). That was in 2011, I suspect it would be easier now.

Thank you Kanga I unlocked my old Nokia mobile phone for Spain in 2012 so I assume it would be still unlocked for France too??? (can you tell I'm not well up on these things! lol)

 

[bokormen91]

As a non techie... This is my understanding: Europe uses the GSM network, so does most of Asia, if you have a GSM phone - once it is unlocked, you can get a SIM card from any country and put it in your phone. North America uses both GSM and CDMA - so not sure about providers.

If you have an unlocked GSM phone (applies for most Europeans), you can put a SIM from any GSM provider /country in to your phone. The process of getting a SIM card varies from country to country. Expect to show photo ID, you might have to show proof of address (or give a "local" address as a minimum, IE hostel/hotel/refugio). I normally get my SIM card at airports or large train stations if possible, or if you're couchsurfing/pre-booked into a hotel they might be able to help. Getting "Pay as you go" generally gives worse rates, but you're not locked in for a contract. Expect it to take a couple of hours, if it takes less - great it's a bonus

 

[Kanga]

Yes, that was my experience with a pay-as-you-go SIM card, ie we had to give a local address (I used our hotel's street address) and provide a passport for ID. And then I needed a French speaker to set it up for me with data bolt-on packs etc. It did take hours. The PAYG cards are geared towards the young users.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

with a pay-as-you-go SIM card, ie we had to give a local address

That was my first experience, but for the last three trips, they took the information from my passport, set up the phone in English, and I was on my way. It took about fifteen minutes (after an hour wait for the store to open after midday).

 

[irishgurrrl]

Thanks everyone - all really helpful replies

 

[susiew]

Hi Bill I am technically challenged how do I go about loading the Miam Dodo phone numbers into my phone?thanks
Susie

I'll just report my experience. I brought my iPhone. I called my provider (Verizon) before I left and they -- not I -- did what was required to allow me to call the US from France and to make calls to French phone numbers. The rate was expensive at US 1.29/minute, but I only used it to make reservations and never spoke for more than a minute.

I also had Miam Miam Dodo on the phone, so I never had to enter telephone numbers. I just clicked on the phone number in the guide. Worth every penny.

Bill

 

[Deleted member 3000]

how do I go about loading the Miam Dodo phone numbers into my phone?

Why not just dial them when you need them?

 

[Kanga]

Susie, if you have any trouble with your phone ask one of the French pilgrims to show you. At Monistrol we stayed at La Tsabone too.

 

[Breugel]

Any post office can sell you prepaid phones.