Usually if you want to use your phone in Australia through your service provider’s (Rogers, Fido, Telus ,Bell, and etc.) roaming plans – You are looking at paying $12 per day to use your phone in Australia. So if you plan to stay in Australia for 7 days, you will be charged $84 ($12 * 7 days= $84).
For this reason, I personally do not find roaming plans offered by cell phone providers to be the most effective way to use your phone when traveling abroad.
Do Canadian Cell Phones Work In Australia?
In order to be able to use your phone in Australia, you must use an unlocked GSM cell phone. If you already have a phone with you, please ensure you call your cell phone provider and ask them to unlock it for you (for Free), or if you want you could go to a mobile store and have them unlock it for you for a small fee.
Using A Local Prepaid SIM
Just to let you know if this is your first time going to Australia, there are 3 cell phone providers there. There are also small companies but they all run on these 3 large cell phone provider networks.
The 3 cell phone providers in Australia are: Telstra , Optus, and Vodafone. So if you purchase a SIM through one of these carriers, you will then get a local number and you can use it while in Australia. Each company has different plans that come with different bundles including data, voice and text.
Normally, you could buy an Australian Local SIM once you are the airport or even if you go to a 7-eleven or a convenience store you can also buy a local SIM there. It’s not really a big deal to do that. In fact, some travelers prefer that option over getting a roaming SIM ahead of time.
How Much Is A SIM Card In Australia?
If you want to purchase a SIM card, it usually costs $2. But when you add data,text, voice plans to your SIM, the cost will vary depending on the plan you choose to go with. If you are looking for 1GB, it will start at $10 AUD, rising to $50 AUD with 20GB of data.
Please note, you need to have an ID present when purchasing a SIM in Australia. A passport will work just fine. They need an ID so they can register the SIM phone number under your name.
Which Prepaid Plan Is Best In Australia?
This will really depend on what type of SIM plan you are looking to have while you stay in Australia. As mentioned earlier, you can buy a SIM with data only or you can buy a SIM with data and voice and text.
With this said, the Vodafone $50 sim card will give you 90 minutes worth of international calls, plus 1000 minutes which you can use to call their super 1000 countries. Moreover, you will get 7.5GB of data, so if you find yourself running out of call minutes you will be able to use apps like Skype or WhatsApp.
Use A Roaming SIM In Australia
Using international SIMS are a great travel option for many travelers. Frankly speaking, it is much more effective to use an international SIM than to have to use a roaming plan through your cell phone carrier. As mentioned earlier, you are looking at paying $12 per day for using your phone when in Australia.
Keep in mind though, if you want to use an international Roaming SIM, you must use it on an unlocked GSM cell phone to prevent having last minute issues. As a Canadian traveler, you could purchase roaming SIMS from online through Amazon, and that’s what I usually do before I travel abroad. I save so much that way compared to have to use Rogers Roam like home or any other roaming plan.
Australia Prepaid SIM Card For Tourist
The Prepaid Europe (UK Three) SIM Card: The prepaid Europe SIM card is a SIM which has different bundles including data, voice and text. So depending on your needs, you could choose the best UK Three SIM Card to better suit your mobile needs. Not to mention, the bundle you choose to get is valid for a period of 30 days.
How The 3 UK Europe Prepaid SIM Card Works?
- First, you need to ensure that your phone is unlocked.
- Next, you need to take out your local SIM card (Rogers, Telus, Bell or whatever carriers you are with) and place it in a SIM wallet holder or keep it in a safe place so to prevent losing it.
- Wait until you reach Australia, simply insert the SIM into your unlocked device >enable roaming in settings >wait for the signal >accept Three UK setting messages, then you are all set to go.
The minutes can only be used to call UK numbers, and in Europe. So if you want to call back to Canada or the USA, I advise you use the data you have and place the call using a VOIP App using WhatsApp or Viber or even SKYPE.
READ MORE:
3 UK Prepaid Europe SIM Review (comes with 12 GB, 3000 minutes, 3000 texts).
PrePaid Europe UK THREE SIM Card Review (Comes with 12 GB, unlimited voice and unlimited texts).
My Recommendation
If you are like me – Cheap and you love to save money, you could purchase the 3 UK prepaid Europe SIM card from Amazon and save on shipping costs ($0 for shipping) if you are an Amazon Prime Member. If you are not sure what Amazon Prime is, I invite you to click here to read this post to learn more about Amazon Prime Membership.
Please note – only if you are a prime member with Amazon, you will not pay for the shipping. Otherwise, you will be charged for shipping.
Australia Prepaid SIM Card For Tourist
If I use my Rogers Roam Like home plan in Australia for 2 weeks, it will cost me $144 CAD plus what I usually pay for my monthly plan per month $80 CAD. If on the other hand, I use the 3 UK Prepaid SIM Europe Card (12 GB, 3000 voice and 3000 texts), it will cost me way less than that (approximately $50 CAD, because as a Prime member I don’t pay for shipping).
So let’s do the math here: $144 CAD if I use Rogers Roam Like Home, or $50 – Thank you Rogers, but I will Pass. I am looking to save money not spend more money!. Plus, I can stay connected with my friends and family when I call them using Whats App or SKYPE. The 12 GB of data is more than enough for me.
Thanks for visiting my site. I promise to keep this list updated as I come across new cards that I find will work and save me money the next time I travel to Australia. So please keep checking my site. And don’t forget to leave a comment below if you have a question.
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Orange Holiday Zen Europe Review