Many travelers find the United Kingdom, and its neighbours, attractive tourist destination. However, when it comes to mobile data use, the costs accumulate quickly making your stay uncomfortable to your budget. Data charges can be quite disconcerting especially when operating on a tight budget. But you have absolutely nothing to worry about if you are planning to visit Buckingham Palace, the home of Beatles and even the BBC. Here is a sneak round-up of the best roaming option you can enjoy while in the UK.
Optus
If money is the least of your travelling concerns, you can opt for the Optus postpaid mobile data plans that will give you 1GB and 1.5GB of roaming data at €109 and €134 monthly respectively. These programs apply to only Zone 1 countries, and you will be glad to know that the UK is one of them. If you need a more budget-friendly alternative, choose the Optus Travel Pack that will cost you only €8.4 per day, and you get to enjoy unlimited talk and text, as well as 100MB of data in all Zone 1 destinations. You can accumulate data by purchasing several packs at once. It may not be cheap, but it is way better than Opts pay-as-you-go roaming rates.
Telstra
At €164, you will get 1.5GB of data and unlimited calls and text each month in selected countries, including the UK. Telstra has other more flexible mobile data plans for travellers wishing to stay for a limited period. The lowest is the €25 pass which offers three days unlimited talk and text, as well 225MB of data, while the highest is the €118 pass that gives you fourteen days of unlimited text and talks while enjoying 1.03GB of data.
Vodafone
If you fancy Vodafone, you should go for its €4.20 Roaming deal that offers a monthly allowance of talk, text and data in Northern Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland. You pay only €4.20 each day to use your mobile phone in any of these countries for up to ninety days per the calendar year. However, the offer comes to an end in February 2018. You have to be a regular mobile phone user to enjoy the maximum benefit of this offer because the charges remain the same even if you send just one text in a day.
Virgin Mobile
You need to be on Virgin Mobile’s prepaid plan of €59 or more to enjoy a 500MB roaming bonus to use in Zone 1 countries. This bonus is a one-off affair, so after exhausting it, you will have an additional roaming data pack. Roaming data packages are available on any prepaid Virgin plan, and have 30 days expiry period. You can beat any shortage by purchasing several packages at once. The data packs range from €21 to €84 for 300MB to 2GB of data respectively. However, you need to note that these data plans don’t cover texts and calls, so you will need extra finances to call and text your friends and family while abroad.
Mobile Virtual Network Operators
Several mobile virtual network operators are available to offer prepaid roaming services in the UK. But you will need to dig deeper into your wallet these mobile virtual network operators charge pay-as-you-go rates for all phone use, and they may add up quickly. Typical network operators include ALDI Mobile, Coles Mobile, Amaysim, TPG, OVO Mobile and Yomojo, among several others. They charge €0.84 per minute for making and receiving calls while half that amount goes into sending each text, and 1 MB of mobile data. They may be a trifle more expensive than their postpaid counterparts but can be quite suitable if you don’t want too many complications when travelling abroad. Whichever the network provider you choose, you should aim at getting value for your money. Otherwise, you will be better off adopting prepaid data mobile data plans to save on expenses while travelling.
Traveling abroad is an expensive venture, and mobile data plans can aggravate the matter. The good news is that you can always find a data plan that fits your budget. Among the many options available, you may consider Optus, Telstra, Vodafone and Virgin Mobile to keep you talking, texting and stay online while travelling. You need to scrutinise every plan to ensure that it suits your needs as well as your financial plan.
