SIM Card Recommendations for Traveling

[Mower Man]

Good day to you all,

What sim cards do people use for the internet in a motor home/caravan? How much data are we likely to use if we are away approx 1-2 weeks a month and sometimes travelling abroad? Can you purchase one that you can disable when not using and then reactivate when needed and what are the best networks?

Many thanks

 

[rob1234]

Hi tesco mobile ..you can use your data abroad no extra charges at the moment..

 

[Birdy67]

Good day to you all,

What sim cards do people use for the internet in a motor home/caravan? How much data are we likely to use if we are away approx 1-2 weeks a month and sometimes travelling abroad? Can you purchase one that you can disable when not using and then reactivate when needed and what are the best networks?

Many thanks

Hi
There are loads of options and a few threads on here about this already. We've recently just been in France for just under 4 weeks. We had an IQ Mobile 100gb data sim which just about covered our usage but the Euro's did start part way through our trip and I watched quite a few matches. You buy the sim for 1 month and then buy again mid-month or the following month if you need more. No contract but you do have to pay £20 for the sim card which is an annual fee. So in the above example we paid £40 total and another 100gb next month (or any month in next year) would be another £20. Roaming is unlimited, it was usually a stronger signal than the campsite wifi, and I never struggled to get a service, anywhere in France. Oh and their support (Frazer) was first class and helped me no end when my router wouldn't connect at first install.

 

[HarryML7]

Hi
There are loads of options and a few threads on here about this already. We've recently just been in France for just under 4 weeks. We had an IQ Mobile 100gb data sim which just about covered our usage but the Euro's did start part way through our trip and I watched quite a few matches. You buy the sim for 1 month and then buy again mid-month or the following month if you need more. No contract but you do have to pay £20 for the sim card which is an annual fee. So in the above example we paid £40 total and another 100gb next month (or any month in next year) would be another £20. Roaming is unlimited, it was usually a stronger signal than the campsite wifi, and I never struggled to get a service, anywhere in France. Oh and their support (Frazer) was first class and helped me no end when my router wouldn't connect at first install.

Cant ask for a better service than IQ mobile, in a TP link mifi.

 

[MichaelT]

IQ mobile as above you just buy the data as and when you need it. We are away Thursday for a month or so, so I bought 100gb to start Thursday and will monitor and top up when needed.

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[Soycd]

I've got the IQ Go sim. Used it in a TP link last week in Holland, Germany and France, no problems. Have just ordered the ZTE U50 - 5G Mobile Wi-Fi router from IQ as well. We also have ID Mobile for our phones which give us 30GB roaming each.

 

[Mower Man]

Hi
There are loads of options and a few threads on here about this already. We've recently just been in France for just under 4 weeks. We had an IQ Mobile 100gb data sim which just about covered our usage but the Euro's did start part way through our trip and I watched quite a few matches. You buy the sim for 1 month and then buy again mid-month or the following month if you need more. No contract but you do have to pay £20 for the sim card which is an annual fee. So in the above example we paid £40 total and another 100gb next month (or any month in next year) would be another £20. Roaming is unlimited, it was usually a stronger signal than the campsite wifi, and I never struggled to get a service, anywhere in France. Oh and their support (Frazer) was first class and helped me no end when my router wouldn't connect at first install.

Thank you for your valued information regarding the IQ mobile and i take it that this works purely abroad? Was hoping that we could get one which we could use in the UK and also abroad? Not too clued up on modern tech as you can tell ha ha

 

[grasscutter]

Most UK sims have a fair usage policy of 25gb a month when roaming.
We have changed over to Popit sims. £25 month for 100gb and no restriction when roaming. Can be paused for £1 a month.

 

[starquake]

If you want one sim and never want to swap, IQ is probably simplest.

However, it's not the cheapest, that would be to get a UK prepaid sim (can be from £2-5 a month for near unlimited data), but doesn't roam, and buy and swap sims on arrival in Europe. A prepaid 300Gb sim in France is around 20 euro and that lasts 30 days (there are deals from many of the French networks).. You will need a VPN with this option in France to be able to watch UK tv and iplayer on it as you will appear to iplayer to be in France.

We prefer our motorhome to always be "online" so have a 3 unlimited sim at £5/mo at moment in there -> allowing us to control some items in there from home.

Above is probably the most economical, but will require you to be familiar with how to setup a new SIM in the mifi router. It's actually quite simple, but you need the APN and username and password for the networks you use ideally printed out on a piece of printed paper before you go!

 

[rod_vw]

We use normal O2 SIMs in our mobiles and tether a PC to either as we need it. O2 SIMs like this have a 25gb usage in Europe (30gb in the UK) and we find them perfectly adequate for all we need. On-line TV carries just as much rubbish as does Freeview at home so we never find anything worth watching.
We both have a monthly deal at £8.70 which gives the above data plus unlimited voice and text.

We've been in Europe for three weeks now and by no means bust the allowance.

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[Solwaybuggier]

Thank you for your valued information regarding the IQ mobile and i take it that this works purely abroad? Was hoping that we could get one which we could use in the UK and also abroad? Not too clued up on modern tech as you can tell ha ha

No, you can use IQGo in the UK as well, but I guess the main advantage of it is for roaming abroad. It works fine in the UK, but has stiff competition from other providers who are more limited in their roaming offer. We use Tesco (SIM only) in the UK, and in phones abroad.

 

[MichaelT]

Thank you for your valued information regarding the IQ mobile and i take it that this works purely abroad? Was hoping that we could get one which we could use in the UK and also abroad? Not too clued up on modern tech as you can tell ha ha

No it's an EE sim so works here as well. Both our phones are IQ too.

 

[Mower Man]

We use normal O2 SIMs in our mobiles and tether a PC to either as we need it. O2 SIMs like this have a 25gb usage in Europe (30gb in the UK) and we find them perfectly adequate for all we need. On-line TV carries just as much rubbish as does Freeview at home so we never find anything worth watching.
We both have a monthly deal at £8.70 which gives the above data plus unlimited voice and text.

We've been in Europe for three weeks now and by no means bust the allowance.

Thank you for all the info

 

[Mower Man]

No it's an EE sim so works here as well. Both our phones are IQ too.

That’s very handy to know and many thanks

 

[Mower Man]

If you want one sim and never want to swap, IQ is probably simplest.

However, it's not the cheapest, that would be to get a UK prepaid sim (can be from £2-5 a month for near unlimited data), but doesn't roam, and buy and swap sims on arrival in Europe. A prepaid 300Gb sim in France is around 20 euro and that lasts 30 days (there are deals from many of the French networks).. You will need a VPN with this option in France to be able to watch UK tv and iplayer on it as you will appear to iplayer to be in France.

We prefer our motorhome to always be "online" so have a 3 unlimited sim at £5/mo at moment in there -> allowing us to control some items in there from home.

Above is probably the most economical, but will require you to be familiar with how to setup a new SIM in the mifi router. It's actually quite simple, but you need the APN and username and password for the networks you use ideally printed out on a piece of printed paper before you go!

Thanks for the info and we shall look at all these possibilities

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[starquake]

Thanks for the info and we shall look at all these possibilities

Some of us use sims from amazon from Scancom store for EE and Three, there are many threads already on here about which ones offer best value. If you have a Ltd I would deal with Three direct however as a multiple sim deal with Three cannot really be beaten. On a personal contract I'd look at using a reseller like the above, as personal contracts are .. somewhat higher in price.

 

[Mower Man]

Good day to you all,

What sim cards do people use for the internet in a motor home/caravan? How much data are we likely to use if we are away approx 1-2 weeks a month and sometimes travelling abroad? Can you purchase one that you can disable when not using and then reactivate when needed and what are the best networks?

Many thanks

Can I thank you for all your valuable input and replies and also knowledge and it has certainly given me food for thought

 

[Landy Andy]

Hi
There are loads of options and a few threads on here about this already. We've recently just been in France for just under 4 weeks. We had an IQ Mobile 100gb data sim which just about covered our usage but the Euro's did start part way through our trip and I watched quite a few matches. You buy the sim for 1 month and then buy again mid-month or the following month if you need more. No contract but you do have to pay £20 for the sim card which is an annual fee. So in the above example we paid £40 total and another 100gb next month (or any month in next year) would be another £20. Roaming is unlimited, it was usually a stronger signal than the campsite wifi, and I never struggled to get a service, anywhere in France. Oh and their support (Frazer) was first class and helped me no end when my router wouldn't connect at first install.

Any thing to know about iQ sim install in router?
Got iQ sim arriving today and will install it before Friday when we head off.

 

[MichaelT]

Any thing to know about iQ sim install in router?
Got iQ sim arriving today and will install it before Friday when we head off.

Just look up the APN settings on their website, any issues great service on WhatsApp or email, even weekends.

 

[MichaelT]

APN

The correct settings for IQ are:
Name - Internet
APN - everywhere
Proxy / port - Not set
Username - eesecure
Password - secure
MMSC - Not set
MMS Proxy - Not set
MCC - 234
MNC - 33

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[stevewagner]

I use an iD mobile sim 250gig for £12:50 a month. It has a fair usage policy of 30 gig abroad but on a recent 3 and a half week trip to France I used well over 100 gig as we watched all the Euro games and it worked perfectly with no extra charge!

 

[Solwaybuggier]

Any thing to know about iQ sim install in router?
Got iQ sim arriving today and will install it before Friday when we head off.

Not sure if this helps - we bought ours originally in a Huawei mifi, so it was preinstalled. But when we recently changed van to one which had wifi built in, the IQGo sim simply slotted into the router. But as others have said, if you do have any problems, Fraser offers excellent service and a quick response.

 

[Jewellbags]

I only use hotpot at the moment but I have an unlimited sim with ID mobile for £18 a month including unlimited calls . Been on two trips around Europe so far with decent reception and only picked up extra charges in Switzerland (my fault )

 

[51LVER F0X]

Hi
There are loads of options and a few threads on here about this already. We've recently just been in France for just under 4 weeks. We had an IQ Mobile 100gb data sim which just about covered our usage but the Euro's did start part way through our trip and I watched quite a few matches. You buy the sim for 1 month and then buy again mid-month or the following month if you need more. No contract but you do have to pay £20 for the sim card which is an annual fee. So in the above example we paid £40 total and another 100gb next month (or any month in next year) would be another £20. Roaming is unlimited, it was usually a stronger signal than the campsite wifi, and I never struggled to get a service, anywhere in France. Oh and their support (Frazer) was first class and helped me no end when my router wouldn't connect at first

Good day to you all,

What sim cards do people use for the internet in a motor home/caravan? How much data are we likely to use if we are away approx 1-2 weeks a month and sometimes travelling abroad? Can you purchase one that you can disable when not using and then reactivate when needed and what are the best networks?

Many thanks

We

 

[nexxo698]

I came across these if you want unlimited data, obviously more expensive but no limits...

Holafly | International eSIM card for travelers

Buy an eSIM card for travel and don't pay for roaming abroad. Holafly is the highest rated eSIM store by travelers.

esim.holafly.com

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[51LVER F0X]

We have used IQ mobile for over a year both in the Uk and Europe. Had a few coverage problems in Spain but I’m sure it was the area we were in. Great back up service, highly recommended. Free 90 day roaming in Europe. EE coverage in Uk.

 

[starquake]

I came across these if you want unlimited data, obviously more expensive but no limits...

Holafly | International eSIM card for travelers

Buy an eSIM card for travel and don't pay for roaming abroad. Holafly is the highest rated eSIM store by travelers.

esim.holafly.com

Fiar usage policy on these ... is they will slow you if you use too much data in a day (they state as much opaquely in their terms). The fact they limit to 500Mb a day on the tethering suggests this would work well for about half of a TV program. Not remotely comparible with even a 100Gb sim from anyone where rate limits won't apply. Remember an average TV program episode is 500Mb, and a sports game of football is often 4-7Gb.

Honestly buying a local sim from the local carrier is a far more reliable proposition given 300Gb is about 20 euro or so in most EU countries on prepay.

Unlimited is usually "fake" as they put horrible use limits on it. I would wager these sims won't allow streaming of a single match (but you welcome to try it... at 6 euro a day what is to lose). But it's worth considering 4 days "unlimited" buys 300Gb, which is about a month of our motorhome use.

 

[freda52]

Good day to you all,

What sim cards do people use for the internet in a motor home/caravan? How much data are we likely to use if we are away approx 1-2 weeks a month and sometimes travelling abroad? Can you purchase one that you can disable when not using and then reactivate when needed and what are the best networks?

ID mobile, 50gb £8 monthly contract, data roaming included, test and calls unlimited, used my phone as sat nav all way down to Portugal and didn't lose signal ... brilliant ..

 

[Welsh girl]

My phones do not accept an eSIM. So any other ideas welcome

 

[MichaelT]

My phones do not accept an eSIM. So any other ideas welcome

IQ mobile