Much of the world outside North America, including all of Europe, uses the GSM system for wireless calls. Even if you have a GSM phone — from AT&T, T-Mobile, and a few smaller companies — it may not work in Europe.
For wireless GSM service in Europe, you need either a one- or dual band GSM phone designed for Europe or a three- or four-band phone you can use both at home and in Europe.
If your phone is new, chances are it's already quad band . If not, you can upgrade to a quad band cell phone, at attractive prices if you extend your contract a year or two.
But you also need a SIM card — a small memory card that holds the phone's number and other data — that works in Europe.
As long as you have (or get) a three- or four-band GSM phone, the most convenient approach is to use it with your regular number. Just have your wireless company "enable" it for overseas. Ask your local outlet or call your provider; you shouldn't have to pay anything upfront.
The upside to keeping your own number is that people know it and don't have to cope with new numbers and international dialing codes. But using your own number has two downsides:
# You may get calls at odd hours from people who don't know you're overseas.
# European service with your regular phone is expensive. Currently, in most of Europe, AT&T charges $1.29 per minute for both outgoing and incoming calls; T-Mobile charges 99 cents
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to $1.49. Both charge 35 to 55 cents for each text message; both may offer promotional packages that reduce those rates a bit.
You can cut the cost of calls considerably by buying temporary local SIM cards that allow you to make and receive calls throughout Europe. Many such cards provide for free incoming calls, free outgoing local calls in parts of Europe, and cheap calls to the United States.
If you're visiting only one country, a single-country prepaid SIM card generally provides the lowest rates. Local calls and incoming calls are free, and you pay as little as 8 cents a minute for calls to the United States.
One-country SIM card prices start about $30, depending on how many minutes of initial time are included.
If you're visiting several different countries, you can get a multicountry SIM card that also provides free incoming calls, free local calls in some places and calls to the United States for about 50 cents a minute. Prices start at about $50.
Each European SIM card has its own number, and people calling you from the United States have to dial it as an international number to get you. Most such SIM cards are prepaid, with a stored value. You can replenish the value online, by credit card.
Most AT&T or T-Mobile GSM phones are "locked" to your regular SIM card when you first get them and must be unlocked before you can use a local European SIM card.
You can unlock some phones by inputting a special code you can buy from one of several online outfits, others by having someone unlock it for you: Look in your classified directory for a local wireless specialist or Google "unlocking GSM phones."
None of this works if your regular wireless phone isn't GSM. In that case, your only wireless option is to rent or buy a GSM phone for your trip.
You can buy single-country or multicountry SIM cards from outfits such as Telestial Planet Omni ,SIMphoneE and UStronics . These agencies also provide rental and one-use phones.
And for more information on overseas wireless phones, log onto the Travel Insider and Global Phone Wiz .
