kwarters

OK, so I'd put this in the stupid questions forum, except there are six pages of stupid questions and smart responses in there, so I'm sure my post would get buried/ignored. So it's here instead.

Last time I went to Europe I stupidly, very stupidly, just went ahead and called the US from my cell phone. Even more stupidly, I left the phone on for huge amounts of time while waiting for return calls -- and so there were enormous roaming charges. When I got back home, a $400+ bill was waiting for me.

Obviously, I'm not going to make the same mistake this summer. I do have to call home because I have peeps there/here who worry about me too much, so I can't go phoneless like I'd like to. So basically, what's the cheapest/best way to phone home? I know it ain't a cell phone . . .

KQ

beergal

Get a phone card which you can buy at any of the newsagents. There are plenty of phoneboxes here in Europe that you can use

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TheJake

call your cell phone company and talk to them about international plans for the time period you are going to be there. The plans generally tend to cost a bit more but for me it's a better option than phone cards.

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bluepea

I never had an issue with using phone cards. They're cheap, easy to find and easy to use. You may want to have your cell on hand for emergencies, but leave it off.

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tumblezweedz

Phone cards should work fine. If you're in the states, check about getting a prepaid AT&T card which you can use from overseas (they sell these by the gazillion to the military, so they have the system all worked out), when you dial you get a stateside operator which can sometimes make life easier, if you're having difficulties calling.

iomaggio

It seems the consensus here is that prepaid calling cards are the way to go. If that's your decision, I'd recommend OneSuite cards, which I and my friends have used in the past. They're cheap as hell and have good service. Try their website for specific rates for each country.

I agree with bluepea about keeping your cell with you for emergencies, but definitely keep it off this time. Happy travels.