Heading to London, England

[vacek]

I’m heading for London on business and wondering what my options are to call back home while there? Also, do I have any sms or data options at all? I’ll be on wifi a fair bit but when I’m not, like to have the option to call or text back to Canada. Thanks 

[srlawren]

@lheintzman thanks for that!  I may try Skype next time 🙂

[lheintzman]

@srlawren As I recall, voice quality ranged from really good to astonishing every time, except for one Trans-Atlantic call with an annoying echo on the UK side. I think a lot depends on WiFi quality. Fortunately the UK seems to have excellent signal almost everywhere, even on moving trains. The only significant failure was a later call from Ontario to Connecticut where the Yanks couldn't hear anything. In that case, a cell-to-cell couldn't fix it, so it might have been a US network problem. Haven't tried it in over a year. 

[srlawren]

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@lheintzman wrote:

For some reason Skype doesn't get a lot of mention these days but the last time I went to the UK, I ditched the phone and put Skype on a small tablet. Put $14 into the account, made calls to landlines and mobiles throughout Manchester and London, a couple calls back to Canada, and a few calls from Canada to the UK after returning. All came off without a hitch and two years later I still had 8 bucks left on the account. Seemed like a pretty good deal. 

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@lheintzman this is good to know.  How was the voice quality?  I had a similar experience using Hangouts Dialer with some $ credits and a SIM from a Parisian provider (LeFrench Mobile) last summer and it worked reasonably well though the voice quality was a bit rough.  Kept the conversations relatively short and to the point and it worked fine.  

[ShawnC13]

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@slash407 wrote:

i would imagine PM has addons for london, check on the site and see if its there and u like the rates. Otherwise u can use wifi or calling cards, fongo, textnow, plenty of options

[EDITED: Completely wrong info struck through ….. Luddite]

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@slash407, I am so glad that @Luddite, has put a strike through the incorrect info that you have provided.  I am not sure if you are coming on here and just posting incorrect information for fun as it is well known and I know you are aware that PM only offers Roaming packages to the US.

It must be very frustrating for the person looking for help to have your reply with completely incorrect information go and contradict what everyone else is saying.  Luckily we have great members who will provide the correct info and help out the member.

[Luddite]

@vacek I use giffgaff.com when in the UK/EU. Goodybags are your best value but you will need addition airtime credit to call/text home directly. Otherwise I find fongo.com the best best bet for calling back to Canada.

If giffgaff looks good, you could use this link to order a free SIM mailed to you here in Canada: 

https://www.giffgaff.com/orders/affiliate/pds01144

Feel free to send me a private message for more details as needed.

[computergeek541]

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@slash407 wrote:

i would imagine PM has addons for london, check on the site and see if its there and u like the rates. Otherwise u can use wifi or calling cards, fongo, textnow, plenty of options

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Public Mobile has no add-ons that allow you to use your service in England.  Roaming is only availiable in the U.S.

[hairbag1]

As others have noted, no Public Mobile once you leave. You can try Textnow...it works as long as you are somewhere with wifi...and is FREE.

[lheintzman]

For some reason Skype doesn't get a lot of mention these days but the last time I went to the UK, I ditched the phone and put Skype on a small tablet. Put $14 into the account, made calls to landlines and mobiles throughout Manchester and London, a couple calls back to Canada, and a few calls from Canada to the UK after returning. All came off without a hitch and two years later I still had 8 bucks left on the account. Seemed like a pretty good deal. 

[sunkmail]

I Traveled to Germany a few years back (before I was with PM) and had no problem finding a local SIM. 

Do some research ahead of time and you will know what you're looking for - May even find a SIM at the airport as soon as you land. 🙂

Even if my normal carrier did have roaming, it worked out far cheaper to buy the SIM than deal with any roaming charges.

         If I were to do it again, I would look a little more closely at the service area and reviews, as the company I went with was the cheapest, but didn't cover a few of the areas we went to.  Wasn't really an issue for us, but something to remember.

As you say it's for work, it may not be the best option since you won't be reachable at your regular number, but that can be dealt with several ways ...

  Pre-warning people that you'll be gone

  A temporary message on your voice-mail giving your temporary number

  Call-forwarding your regular phone to a friend/co-worker/company reception for the duration of your trip.

     &/or

  Not worrying about it (Probably not the best for a work trip.  🙂

[Triguy]

Another option is buying a gigsky sim & plan which has coverage in the UK.

[Jackhyf63]

@vacek Unfortunately no European data ,no roaming outside of US or Canada for public mobile.  Your best option is definitely a local SIM. 

[sunflowershine]

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@vacek wrote:

I’m heading for London on business and wondering what my options are to call back home while there? Also, do I have any sms or data options at all? I’ll be on wifi a fair bit but when I’m not, like to have the option to call or text back to Canada. Thanks 

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@vacek You can think about AOW. https://alwaysonlinewireless.com/?utm_source=roammobility.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=AOW%20... They have international roaming SIM. You can download TextNow or Fongo before you head out for these two apps can even reach landline. 

[popping]

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@vacek wrote:

I’m heading for London on business and wondering what my options are to call back home while there? Also, do I have any sms or data options at all? I’ll be on wifi a fair bit but when I’m not, like to have the option to call or text back to Canada. Thanks 

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PM does not have UK roaming add-on.  You can buy a local SIM card when you arrive at London.

My family members use WhatsApp to send message back home using airport WiFi.  

[Tony8]

Hi, Like you mentioned you can use a Wifi connection and a Text/Talk app like Whatsapp, or Hangouts, email and many others.  Or buy a local network SIM card while you are there.

[Anonymous]

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@vacek wrote:

I’m heading for London on business and wondering what my options are to call back home while there? Also, do I have any sms or data options at all? I’ll be on wifi a fair bit but when I’m not, like to have the option to call or text back to Canada. Thanks 

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Many options... but Public Mobile is not one of them.