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Multi country SIM card

Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 2:33 am
by Pana
Hi, looking for a sim card that I could use in Columbia/Dominican Republic/ Brasil. Idealy one that would last a whole year. Anybody have insight ?

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:55 am
by Hugh2
From my experience it is not worth trying to do that. The SIM cards are cheap, just get one in each country.

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:08 pm
by Pana
Hugh2 wrote:
Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:55 am
From my experience it is not worth trying to do that. The SIM cards are cheap, just get one in each country.
For one you can’t get activated in Brasil unless you have access to a cpf number.
Two, only 2 weeks in columbia.
3 you must change numbers each time wich complicates things.

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:59 pm
by BWD
Last time I traveled you could get verizon to work pretty much anywhere for a quoted $10/day rate.
But the rate was often lower, as most partner networks in other countries only billed for the actual data used.
So I would travel for 5-10 days and use data every day, but only get billed for some of the days.
In my case, it wasn't a lot of data, since I was mainly sightseeing or on the water whenever possible!
And they had better options for long term, but still not as good as a local sim and plan probably.
Does let you keep your phone, number, and service you are used to though.
Sorry I don't have a better answer.

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:22 am
by Hugh2
Okay, so for me I used to pay ATT for overseas service outside of the continental North America, originally about $50 per month, then $60, then $70, and now they don't even offer this Passport option, instead charging $10 per day (and from my experience they actually do charge that every day you have your phone connected to a network, that is, do not have airplane mode selected). That is highway robbery, so for Panama and South Africa, my two destinations over the past two years, I've gotten cheap local SIM cards with cheap data and just used WhatsApp for all communications, plus email. So, I don't have my usual phone number for simple phone calls or messaging (although here in SA I have a local number), instead I just buy data and everyone here and in Panama uses WhatsApp for messages and calls. Cost per month has been around $10, with reasonably intense data usage for navigation, messaging, photos and videos sent and received, some music, and news sources, plus of course lots of wind forecasts and KiteForum Spots etc. About 2Gb for each month here. Same for Panama.

An alternative you might want to check into is Google Fi, which last I checked is supposed to work on most phones now. It allows usage of the same phone and number worldwide. Friends who joined us in SA two years ago used it very successfully on their Samsung phones, and it is their network back home in the USA too. And lots of globe-wandering yachties use it too. https://fi.google.com/about/

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Sat Mar 02, 2024 5:24 pm
by Splynter01
Sorry for reviving this thread. I thought I'd share how I do it; maybe it'll be helpful to someone.
Buying local SIM cards is usually your best bet. That's what I've always done whenever I've traveled to Europe. It's convenient, cost-effective and you have reliable coverage wherever you go.
As for bank verifications and other SMS-based services while traveling, I've used AnonymSMS. It's a convenient way to receive verification codes without needing my phone number.

Re: Multi country SIM card

Posted: Sat Mar 02, 2024 6:18 pm
by Toby
get E-Sim.

many offers, and the easiest. e.g. this CPF stuff in Brazil is a nightmare !

A friend of mine had one for Brazil and worked perfectly !