UKC

Hi All,

I'm heading to Spain for a few months and would like mobile access to the internet whilst away. Can anyone recommend a good (cheap) company for Pay As You Go sim cards or 30 day contracts? I'm not too fussed about free minutes or texts, just need regular access to data for emails/surfing the web etc.

Cheers
E

Advice still needed (bump!)

In reply to Eann: I was researching a similar question last night and sadly I don't have the results of my searches with me at work, but I did find a lot of info online by searching with terms like "Europe dongle" and "Internet Europe" etc. Although I am sure you've already done so and this is not much use to you right now, I know!

I''m really keen to know more about options for internet access whilst abroad for longish periods of time (other than obviously seeking out wifi hotspots). Roaming with a UK SIM costs a fortune and I want to be able to access the internet regularly. It seems that the best option is purchasing a dongle (either here or abroad) and then either buying local SIM cards or perhaps one of the European options that are available. Any information or advice would be gratefully received by me as well as the OP.

In reply to Ben Farley:

Fortune? Since last July the maximum data roaming price for one megabyte is 0,45 cents (without VAT) in EU countries. So that's less than five pounds per 10Mb.

If you skip all the YouTubes and huge pictures and just read the news and write emails, it's not that expensive.

In reply to Eann:

By a modem and sim from one of cheap providers. Yoigo springs to mind. They usually use the bigger provider's networks and have therefore good reception.

In reply to Ben Farley:

My own searches have revealed Carrefour as a good option and relatively cheap, I'm hoping they will offer micro sims which will work in my unlocked iPhone, however I don't arrive in Spain until 1st January, so I won't be able to let you know if this actually works until then...
http://www.carrefour.es/telecom/internet-movil-prepago/tarifas/

In reply to Eann:
We use Ortel for our iPad and iPhone in Spain
www.ortelmobile.es

Relatively cheap.

mike

In reply to Sierra Nevada Guides:

Have a look here.

http://prepaidwithdata.wikia.com/wiki/Spain

When I was living in Spain about 18 months ago Yoigo had a deal on prepaid sims which gave you unlimited data when you top up €20/month but I'm not sure that they still do this deal.

In reply to Eann: some useful responses from people, thanks. Sounds like there are plenty of options.

I've seen some Europe wide packages being offered. Has anyone got any experience of those?

In reply to Ben Farley: and by Europe wide I meant a package not specific to say France or Spain but available for up to nine countries. Just in case I wasn't clear.

In reply to Eann:

IIRC it's a bit of a hassle getting a cell phone/SIM in Spain. I had to go through the process of filling in a form for the police (the shop will give you one) with my ID (passport) and an address in Spain.

In reply to Trangia:

Really? I heard that was the case in France, but didn't realise its the same in Spain? Perhaps for contracts, not just Pay As Go Sims?