SIM card?

[josephmcclain]

A very mundane question. Will a SIM card bought in Saint Jean Pied de Port work without crazy roaming charges in Spain. Probably not. Despite the EU. How soon after crossing into Spain could one buy one. Will not be in Spain on this trip until I start off from Saint Jean. Thanks!

 

[Anemone del Camino]

I thought the roaming charges were now a thing of the past in the EU?

 

[Bradypus]

EU roaming charges have been abolished. If you buy a French SIM in St Jean you will pay the normal domestic rates set by the French network per minute/text/MB during your time in Spain. There are now no additional charges.

 

[Jill81]

Bradypus is correct. You can buy a SIM card from Orange in France at one of their stores, load up some credit on it, pop it in your phone and you'll pay the same charges per minute wherever you are in Europe.
Their no contract SIM card is called a "Mobicarte" and costs €3.90.

There is specific legislation in effect now that requires you to show suitable identification when buying SIM cards so don't forget to take your passport with you when buying it at the shop.

 

[MichelleElynHogan]

One important item. Make sure your cell is not locked. If it is, get it unlocked before you travel. Then you can change SIM cards anytime.

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

A very mundane question. Will a SIM card bought in Saint Jean Pied de Port work without crazy roaming charges in Spain. Probably not. Despite the EU. How soon after crossing into Spain could one buy one. Will not be in Spain on this trip until I start off from Saint Jean. Thanks!

No more roaming in the EU .

Wish you well,Peter.

 

[Jersey]

Bradypus is correct. You can buy a SIM card from Orange in France at one of their stores, load up some credit on it, pop it in your phone and you'll pay the same charges per minute wherever you are in Europe.
Their no contract SIM card is called a "Mobicarte" and costs €3.90.

There is specific legislation in effect now that requires you to show suitable identification when buying SIM cards so don't forget to take your passport with you when buying it at the shop.

Bradypus is correct. You can buy a SIM card from Orange in France at one of their stores, load up some credit on it, pop it in your phone and you'll pay the same charges per minute wherever you are in Europe.
Their no contract SIM card is called a "Mobicarte" and costs €3.90.

There is specific legislation in effect now that requires you to show suitable identification when buying SIM cards so don't forget to take your passport with you when buying it at the shop.

I paid 20 euro yesterday in Madrid for a Spanish SIM card.
6 GB of data. Had to show passport. They did ask me if I was going to any other European countries. Not sure why.
Much stricter than in the USA

 

[aname4me]

This begs a Question....

Does anyone know (specifically) where to go in SJPdP to buy and Orange SIM card?
And... do they speak English or Spanish (French is not going to help)

My first days walk is to Orisson, so I should have time in the morning before starting.

 

[Jill81]

I have just had a look at their website and they don't have a shop (they call them boutiques) in SJPP. If you are travelling through any of the larger towns and cities beforehand it would be easy to find one.

If you can manage it, this website (in French) will give you their locations in whatever city you are interested in.

https://agence.orange.fr/

Best wishes

 

[KinkyOne]

...They did ask me if I was going to any other European countries. Not sure why...

The reason for this might be kind of a roaming time restriction. I believe that allowed time of free roaming is set to 2 months and then you pay additional roaming fees (different charges with different providers). Otherwise one could go to EU country that has the cheapest mobile rates, buy SIM card there, return to own country and using service at much lower rates than with local providers.

 

[Jill81]

This is worth being aware of if you are planning to use the phone mostly in a country other than the country where you bought the SIM card. Although roaming charges were abolished earlier this year there can be limits imposed on the roaming element of your calls due to EU legislation on "Fair Use Policy".

I guess there had to be a get-out clause in there somewhere! So to be on the safe side, buy the SIM card in the country that you plan to make the most calls.

Here's the info on the restrictions on roaming:

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/telecoms-internet/mobile-roaming-costs/index_en.htm[/QUOTE]

 

[KinkyOne]

This is worth being aware of if you are planning to use the phone mostly in a country other than the country where you bought the SIM card. Although roaming charges were abolished earlier this year there can be limits imposed on the roaming element of your calls due to EU legislation on "Fair Use Policy".

I guess there had to be a get-out clause in there somewhere! So to be on the safe side, buy the SIM card in the country that you plan to make the most calls.

Here's the info on the restrictions on roaming:

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/telecoms-internet/mobile-roaming-costs/index_en.htm

[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the link, Jill,

I thought it was 2 months but seems like it is not really carved in stone as you have to spend more of your calls etc. in your country than abroad:
- "As long as you spend more time at home than abroad, or you use your mobile phone more at home than abroad, you can roam freely at domestic prices when travelling anywhere in the EU."
and:
- "As part of their fair use policy, your operator can monitor and check your roaming use over a 4 month period. If, during this period, you have spent more time abroad than at home and your roaming exceeds your domestic usage, your operator may contact you and ask you to clarify your situation. You will have 14 days to do so. If you continue to spend more time abroad than you do at home and your roaming consumption continues to exceed your domestic usage your operator may start applying a surcharge to your roaming consumption. "

I think that (and the link provided) explains it all.

 

[Bradypus]

- "As part of their fair use policy, your operator can monitor and check your roaming use over a 4 month period. If, during this period, you have spent more time abroad than at home and your roaming exceeds your domestic usage, your operator may contact you and ask you to clarify your situation. You will have 14 days to do so. [/QUOTE]

The fair use policy applies mainly to caps on data use. For most people who make moderate use of mobile data during their camino journey I think it is unlikely to have much effect in practice. A four month period of monitoring by the operator before any action on other roaming charges is triggered also seems to provide enough time for most people to complete their journey. It is certainly contrary to the spirit and intention of the new EU roaming arrangements to buy a SIM card from a provider in one country with the specific intention of using it almost exclusively in other countries. I do not think that those who framed the policy had the very peculiar and specific needs of walkers along the Camino Frances in mind - where many people spend only one day in country A before crossing an international frontier for the remainder of their stay. There appears to be a loophole of sorts in the new roaming agreements. I think it is up to individuals to decide whether or not it is useful and worthwhile for them to exploit it.

 

[long trails]

Yep roaming has been abolished.

Another small step towards a federal Europe.

 

[andycohn]

This is a wrinkle on what everyone said above. While there are now no roaming charges for phone calls, data mostly does not carry over from country to country. Thus, in May, I bought a sim card through Vodafone in Portugal. When I hit Spain, I was able to make phone calls without roaming charges. HOWEVER, only 100 mb of data -- very little -- carried over. So, I bought a new sim card in Spain through Orange. Same thing happened later in June, when I flew from Santiago to London. No roaming charges for phone calls, but very little data carryover. Thus, if you're going to be counting on your phone's ability to connect to the data network, you'll need to get a new sim card in every country. (Even without a data connection, though, you'll still be able to access wi-fi).

 

[tpmchugh]

A very mundane question. Will a SIM card bought in Saint Jean Pied de Port work without crazy roaming charges in Spain. Probably not. Despite the EU. How soon after crossing into Spain could one buy one. Will not be in Spain on this trip until I start off from Saint Jean. Thanks!

No problem within the EU. If you are resident in the EU, you bring your contracted minutes text and data with you and use just as if you are at home. In Spain you can ring Spanish numbers out of your minutes. As far as I know though, if you ring a Spanish number from France it is still an international call. If you are from outwith the EU, buy your sim as soon as you land if you wish or wait until you cross into Spain. It wont matter, there will be no roaming charges

 

[James Peter McDonald]

So if I land in Barcelona and will be walking CF, any suggestions on what company I should buy my chip through. Is there one company better than another for service along that route. I am interested in data more than phone calls.
Thanks

 

[notion900]

When I am in Spain my phone seems to very often log onto Movistar. This leads me to think their coverage is best.