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It's so nice to not have to spend the first day of a trip wandering around looking for a SIM shop that's open and will sell to you with a foreign passport. Las

It's so nice to not have to spend the first day of a trip wandering around looking for a SIM shop that's open and will sell to you with a foreign passport. Last time I was abroad, I set up an eSIM while I was waiting at baggage claim, so I had service on my multihour train connection.

schwartzworld 4y ago
> It's so nice to not have to spend the first day of a trip wandering around looking for a SIM shop I went to three different countries this summer and all of them had sim cards available on your way out of the airport. In Armenia, it was in the baggage claim.
- thekid314 4y ago
  This is sometimes true. Like in Tunisia where they give a free SIM in baggage claim. But I crossed a lot of land borders through west africa where it would be a day or two of traveling before I could find an official store that had a physical SIM. Experiences differ.
- SpectralTheory 4y ago
  I did not notice this in Ireland, but I may have missed it. It was this easy in London though.
- throwaway29812 4y ago
  Also all EU sim cards roam in the whole of the EU automatically.
- nikau 4y ago
  A lot of asian countries have similar convenience for physical SIMs, order online and just pickup at a stall at the airport.
tinus_hn 4y ago
Can you actually get a European sim without showing ID? That would kind of surprise me, there has been a big push to get rid of anonymous phone numbers.
- wiredfool 4y ago
  Depends, I think you can get them in Tesco pretty easily, and the MVNO I was talking about was giving numbers for their data plan from the UK, but with roaming all over Europe. I think it's more difficult in Germany than a lot of other countries.
- jiayo 4y ago
  In France, providers will require you to provide KYC information within 14-30 days of obtaining the SIM, or it will be deactivated. Suitable for a short-term travel use case.
- ugjka 4y ago
  Here in Latvia you can buy sims from all major providers without any ID for as low as 0.99€. The caveat is that you have to top up them regularly because they have expiry times depending on the amount you top them up.
- bsimpson 4y ago
  Swype by Yallo is the eSIM I've used. My Telecom Italia SIM ran out of roaming data while I was in Switzerland, and there was no way to top up. Swype had a first month free promo, so I signed up from my Airbnb. I did have to send a photo of my documents, but the total time from download to data was less than 30m. I took a quick (1 week) work trip to Germany this summer. I was trying to figure out how to get a SIM before getting on the train, when I remembered I still had the eSIM in my phone. I downloaded the app and bought data - $15 per month + $3 per day (since I was roaming). Not only was it super convenient, but I had unlimited data with roaming. I don't think even local cards get you that. For short trips to Europe, I definitely recommend Swype for its convenience.
  - kelnos 4y ago

schwartzworld 4y ago

> It's so nice to not have to spend the first day of a trip wandering around looking for a SIM shop I went to three different countries this summer and all of them had sim cards available on your way out of the airport. In Armenia, it was in the baggage claim.

thekid314 4y ago
This is sometimes true. Like in Tunisia where they give a free SIM in baggage claim. But I crossed a lot of land borders through west africa where it would be a day or two of traveling before I could find an official store that had a physical SIM. Experiences differ.
SpectralTheory 4y ago
I did not notice this in Ireland, but I may have missed it. It was this easy in London though.
throwaway29812 4y ago
Also all EU sim cards roam in the whole of the EU automatically.
nikau 4y ago
A lot of asian countries have similar convenience for physical SIMs, order online and just pickup at a stall at the airport.

tinus_hn 4y ago

Can you actually get a European sim without showing ID? That would kind of surprise me, there has been a big push to get rid of anonymous phone numbers.

wiredfool 4y ago
Depends, I think you can get them in Tesco pretty easily, and the MVNO I was talking about was giving numbers for their data plan from the UK, but with roaming all over Europe. I think it's more difficult in Germany than a lot of other countries.
jiayo 4y ago
In France, providers will require you to provide KYC information within 14-30 days of obtaining the SIM, or it will be deactivated. Suitable for a short-term travel use case.
ugjka 4y ago
Here in Latvia you can buy sims from all major providers without any ID for as low as 0.99€. The caveat is that you have to top up them regularly because they have expiry times depending on the amount you top them up.
bsimpson 4y ago
Swype by Yallo is the eSIM I've used. My Telecom Italia SIM ran out of roaming data while I was in Switzerland, and there was no way to top up. Swype had a first month free promo, so I signed up from my Airbnb. I did have to send a photo of my documents, but the total time from download to data was less than 30m. I took a quick (1 week) work trip to Germany this summer. I was trying to figure out how to get a SIM before getting on the train, when I remembered I still had the eSIM in my phone. I downloaded the app and bought data - $15 per month + $3 per day (since I was roaming). Not only was it super convenient, but I had unlimited data with roaming. I don't think even local cards get you that. For short trips to Europe, I definitely recommend Swype for its convenience.
- kelnos 4y ago