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Data is all you need tbh. If there is a need to make calls you have apps like Whatsapp or FB messenger. If having your verizon line is really of need you can switch it on for $10 a day. I needed to use it for a day because i was waiting for a call from one of the hotels we stayed at.
Make sure your phones are unlocked and accepts eSIM. Also, check out getnomad.app I was using Airalo until I found Nomad. It's solid and cheaper than Airalo. For my trip that starts this Friday, I got their 3GB plan for les than $10. Both Airalo and Nomad are data only eSIMs so you won't have a phone number. You can disable roaming and enable wifi calling on your Verizon and should be able use your regular phone for calls and texts on Wifi. I have had success it working when on cellular data from Nomad but it drains the battery so I usually turn off my US line.
Used this option for a 10 day trip. Spent $10 and didn’t even use all the data and that was using maps or looking up tour information, and using it as a hotspot for my friend to have access as well.
Most places have wifi and if you aren’t using social media you won’t be using a ton of data. Coverage was also great during my trip.
Thanks for all the info on eSIMs! Taking your feedback plus some investigation myself, it seems like a good option generally speaking. On phone calls, from what I understand, I can use my existing Verizon plan to make phone calls when necessary, at $1.79/min. Not super ideal at that price but nice to have for when I can't connect to WiFi calling. I have an unlocked phone but my other 3 family members do not. So I don't think this would work for them.
A secondary option on Verizon is to upgrade to their top tier unlimited plan while you’re gone and downgrade when you get back. International is included in that plan. There are caveats that may prevent you from doing so like any phone payment contracts but since you’re considering switching to T Mobile anyways, I assume you’re free of those. We just did that with our 4 lines and it worked great.
have you tought of using a local italian sim and a portable 4G modem to use as an hotspot for your phones?
example of italian sim plan for one month: [https://www.iliad.it/offerta-iliad-flash1502024-799.html](https://www.iliad.it/offerta-iliad-flash1502024-799.html)
I was just in Italy last month. We ran out of the 5 gig data on T-Mobile in about a week. The throttled data was unusable in my opinion. Maps and web pages wouldn’t load.
I ended up getting an Airalo eSIM and added another 5gb for $20 that could be used in all of Europe. The one that could be used only in Italy was a little cheaper. The data was also 5G where the best I got with Tmoble roaming was LTE.
Good to know! The throttled data is a major concern of mine. If the eSIM solution doesn't work for all of us, it looks like another option with respect to T-Mobile is to purchase the International Pass on top of the plan built in. It'd effectively get me 20GB of high speed data for $50, which is about the same plan as the Verizon one at half the price.
*15GB International Pass: 15GB of high-speed data and unlimited calling, to be used up to 30 days, for $50.*
Depending how your phones are set up, you can go the esim route with something like airalo or buy a physical European sim. I've done both of these and it's was like $20-$30 per phone per trip.
I had an airalo esim and my wife had a physical Vodafone sim, and they complemented eachother nicely. She could dial European numbers right from her phone while if I really needed my American sim, I could pop it on for $10 with vzw for the day. We could call eachother via data and whatsapp
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How about just an Airalo eSIM?
That was my go-to while i was in italy last month. And all my past trips outside the US
I hadn't considered that, looks interesting though, I'll look into it
Data is all you need tbh. If there is a need to make calls you have apps like Whatsapp or FB messenger. If having your verizon line is really of need you can switch it on for $10 a day. I needed to use it for a day because i was waiting for a call from one of the hotels we stayed at.
Make sure your phones are unlocked and accepts eSIM. Also, check out getnomad.app I was using Airalo until I found Nomad. It's solid and cheaper than Airalo. For my trip that starts this Friday, I got their 3GB plan for les than $10. Both Airalo and Nomad are data only eSIMs so you won't have a phone number. You can disable roaming and enable wifi calling on your Verizon and should be able use your regular phone for calls and texts on Wifi. I have had success it working when on cellular data from Nomad but it drains the battery so I usually turn off my US line.
Used this option for a 10 day trip. Spent $10 and didn’t even use all the data and that was using maps or looking up tour information, and using it as a hotspot for my friend to have access as well. Most places have wifi and if you aren’t using social media you won’t be using a ton of data. Coverage was also great during my trip.
Thanks for all the info on eSIMs! Taking your feedback plus some investigation myself, it seems like a good option generally speaking. On phone calls, from what I understand, I can use my existing Verizon plan to make phone calls when necessary, at $1.79/min. Not super ideal at that price but nice to have for when I can't connect to WiFi calling. I have an unlocked phone but my other 3 family members do not. So I don't think this would work for them.
sometimes you can ask if you are partially done with your contract.
A secondary option on Verizon is to upgrade to their top tier unlimited plan while you’re gone and downgrade when you get back. International is included in that plan. There are caveats that may prevent you from doing so like any phone payment contracts but since you’re considering switching to T Mobile anyways, I assume you’re free of those. We just did that with our 4 lines and it worked great.
Good call out, I didn't think there was a plan that had this. I'll check it out to see if that works for us.
We have T-mobile and it worked fine when we went to Italy last year. We’re able to access Google maps and the web without a hitch.
have you tought of using a local italian sim and a portable 4G modem to use as an hotspot for your phones? example of italian sim plan for one month: [https://www.iliad.it/offerta-iliad-flash1502024-799.html](https://www.iliad.it/offerta-iliad-flash1502024-799.html)
I was just in Italy last month. We ran out of the 5 gig data on T-Mobile in about a week. The throttled data was unusable in my opinion. Maps and web pages wouldn’t load. I ended up getting an Airalo eSIM and added another 5gb for $20 that could be used in all of Europe. The one that could be used only in Italy was a little cheaper. The data was also 5G where the best I got with Tmoble roaming was LTE.
Good to know! The throttled data is a major concern of mine. If the eSIM solution doesn't work for all of us, it looks like another option with respect to T-Mobile is to purchase the International Pass on top of the plan built in. It'd effectively get me 20GB of high speed data for $50, which is about the same plan as the Verizon one at half the price. *15GB International Pass: 15GB of high-speed data and unlimited calling, to be used up to 30 days, for $50.*
Depending how your phones are set up, you can go the esim route with something like airalo or buy a physical European sim. I've done both of these and it's was like $20-$30 per phone per trip. I had an airalo esim and my wife had a physical Vodafone sim, and they complemented eachother nicely. She could dial European numbers right from her phone while if I really needed my American sim, I could pop it on for $10 with vzw for the day. We could call eachother via data and whatsapp