Happy Travails

Searching for the Data SIM in Istanbul

This one was annoying, and I don't yet know if I will run into a registration problem. This is a different registration than France, which registers the SIM. In Turkey they register the phone. We ended up paying TL70 for a Vodaphone SIM, and then applying the TL50 credit towards data. The TL20 balance is for the SIM. Voda offers 1 gig for TL21 and 4 gig for TL39. The balance of the credit - TL11 or TL29 respectively - goes the phone time and. SMS.

TL70 is around US$40.

For a mere TL4 we could have bought cheaper international calling. I skipped that, as I use an app called Talkatone which lets me initiate and receive calls to and from the US for free by using my Google Voice number, including free calls to my fellow travelers on this trip to their Google voice numbers. Funny to call the States and have it ring next to you while wandering around Cappadocia! If I were a European traveler, this option would have been useful.

All three carriers are in the airport. I first went to Vodafone, and they quoted me TL110 ($60). I went to Turkcell and got a quote of TL70 plus TL24 for the 1 gig data package. (In retrospect this deal may have been ok but broken English made it hard to discern if the TL70 had a credit to be applied to the data plan and the extra TL24 was confusion.) I then went to Avea and got a third quote of TL55, the best deal of the bunch.

Problem was, my technically astute daughter had also queried the Voda store. They wouldn't deal with her - a woman !? - so I came by and got a quote of TL100. Two different quotes from the same shop. Are we in a Turkish bazaar? Rather than find out we quit the airport and searched for the SIM elsewhere. The impression we got - and it may be erroneous - is the airport vendors rip off tourists.

We found one in a business area. Actually all three - in a mall near our hotel. We got no quote from Avea due to lack of English and got a quote from Turkcell of TL45 for the SIM and TL 25 for the data plan. In the end we chose Voda due to better language skills, and did the TL70 deal discussed above. I am not sure we couldn't have found a better deal - say, a tablet only data plan that would work in our phones - but didn't want to continue to struggle with language and time.

As to registration, both Voda and Turkcell assured me that IMEI registration is not necessary for a short-term tourist. Turkey requires phones brought into the country to be registered. Online stories vary as to what happens without registration - sometimes the service is just turned off in a few days. I guess we'll find out. We are here a week.

Searching for the Data SIM in Greece

Athens airport is new and pretty nice, but we didn't find a mobile carrier store. Instead we asked our driver to stop at one on the way into town. We chose Vodafone. He did, and we bought 3 SIMs. The process is pretty easy, and 500mb costs only €10 each. (1 gig is €20 if you feel like a data hog.) They copied my passport and registered all three me.

It worked well even on Santorini, one of the Greek islands. The SIM was locked so make sure you carry the lock code with you. Occasionally I would lose network connectivity - it would appear to be connected but no data would flow. I switched to airplane mode and back to reconnect. Also, I saw noticeable latency. For the price, great service.

Searching for the Data SIM in Paris

This one is hard. France requires the SIM to be registered. You can buy one and do this in advance, by mail or fax; or do it there. Recommendation: do it at an Orange store. Don't buy a SIM, even an Orange SIM, anywhere else. And make sure they register you on the spot.

Here is my story, full of missteps.

We arrived late on Friday, too late to go to an Orange store (open 10-7 generally, sometimes 930-730). We did not see a mobile carrier booth in the airport, just a third party reseller, Relay, and skipped it.

The next morning we had a train trip to Caen to take a tour of Normandy, leaving before the stores open, and returning after they close. The next day was Sunday, when they are all closed. Stuck until Monday?

Before boarding the train, I went into a Relay shop - they are all over the place, like 7-11's - and bought a €10 SIM plus a €10 Data Pak for 500mb. Problem: the SIM worked right away, but couldn't be recharged with the Data Pak until registration. A mail package comes with the SIM to register by post. Only takes 8-10 days! Not an option for a tourist.

I found WiFi during the tour and went online to find an online way to register. I couldn't find a registration page in the Orange.fr site, but did find a traveler site that allowed online registration. It looks legit but then most Phishing sites do. Unfortunately, it doesn't really solve the time problem since the registration needs to be approved during normal working hours - Monday.

Sat and Sun were shot. Disconnected!

On Monday I took a train to Chartres, leaving before the Orange stores open in Paris, and found the Orange store in Chartres after I arrived. It is behind the McDonalds, up the hill from train station. (It is NOT where Apple maps says it is.) McD's has free WiFi which helped me find the Orange shop.

At the store I registered online at the counter, or so I thought, and went off to see the Cathedral (well worth it - take the free tour from the inimitable Malcolm Miller, an English docent who has been there since 1958 and says he will be there until the Second Coming).

This too didn't work. I still couldn't recharge the SIM, even after waiting until the end of business hours.

I went to another Orange store after I returned to Paris, and they finally got me connected. They said they couldn't make the fast online registration (which they handle for you) work off the Relay SIM, so I bought a new SIM for €10. They got me registered online, and did the 500mb recharge. This worked. Viva la France!

Searching for the Data SIM in Sydney

The Lucky Country is easy: when you get out of customs with your bags, and are in the entry hall, wander over to the mobile carrier booths (I go with Optus) and buy a short term data plan. Make sure the APN is configured, then walk away and enjoy.

Rates are reasonable for a traveler. I buy the daily unlimited plan ($2 per) and count days: $20 for ten days. Using airplane mode, you can skip days when you don't need it. It only counts a day in which the phone is in-network and connects.

Keeping the number is a bit complex. It expires from non-use after six months, but it is possible to refresh online from overseas. I plan to try that before I go next time, allowing me to walk off the plane and be connected.