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If you’re avid travellers, like us, we’re sure you’re on the lookout for the best eSIM for international travel and this Sim Local review is here to help you on your quest.
Whether you’re taking a break for a couple of days, travelling for several weeks or embracing the digital nomad lifestyle, choosing the best eSIM for international travel can be a game changer.
Keep reading for a comprehensive Sim Local review, complete with a discount code just for you.
The Importance of Staying Connected While Travelling
People often travel to disconnect, leave their daily routines behind for a bit and live in the moment, taking in the sights, flavours and wonders of a place far from home.
Yet, no matter how ironic it may sound, it’s vital to stay connected while travelling. Even if you’re going on a vacation to do exactly the opposite: unplug and relax.
Staying connected during your travels is important for many reasons. First of all, it helps you stay safe and have peace of mind, especially when travelling solo.
By having a reliable phone or Internet connection, you can easily get help in an emergency, share your location with your loved ones back home or keep them informed about your well-being.
Moreover, a good Internet connection renders your travels seamless and stress-free, as you can access tools like Google Maps, GPS navigation, translation and language learning apps.
Last but not least, having a strong Internet connection is important for location-independent professionals who make a living online, like ourselves.
eSIMs Vs Physical Local SIMs
But why not use your home SIM card, then? Well, the reason is simple. Using your home SIM card abroad will set you back a lot of money. That’s because of the exorbitant fees your home mobile network will charge you for roaming.
The only exception is EU citizens who benefit from free roaming throughout the entire European Union while using their home SIM cards. But free roaming doesn’t last forever. More on this further down in this article.
So, with home SIM cards not always being a great option while travelling, you can either opt for an eSIM, which is a digital alternative to the traditional plastic SIM card, or a physical SIM card.
Physical local SIM cards are generally best for remote workers who plan to be in the same country for several months – or even years.
That’s because local SIM card plans usually cost less than eSIM plans. Moreover, they can guarantee a stable connection, which is critical for digital nomads.
However, as you’re about to read in this Sim Local review, a travel eSIM can also be affordable and offer reliable coverage.
On the other hand, eSIM cards are ideal for shorter trips. With an eSIM, you don’t have to visit a physical store to buy and activate your travel SIM card, which saves you valuable time.
An eSIM is also the least stressful option, as you can activate it even before you arrive at your new destination and be ready to use your phone once you arrive.
Besides, if you’re planning to travel to more than one country on the same trip, an eSIM is undoubtedly the best option.
One single eSIM allows you to switch between local networks without having to repeat the setup and activation process for each different country you enter, as you would with physical local SIMs.
Last but not least, if you’re mindful about sustainable travel, eSIMs are 100% eco-friendly compared to traditional plastic SIM cards. The latter can add to global waste problems.
Sim Local Discount Code
As we mentioned very early in this Sim Local review, we’ve secured a discount code just for you. So, if you want to skip straight to this part, here it goes.
Follow this link to purchase your Sim Local plan. Make sure you apply the promo code ITSALLTRIPTOME at checkout to get a 5% discount.
Sim Local Review: Is This The Best eSIM For International Travel?
How We Tested Sim Local
The perfect opportunity to test Sim Local presented itself when it was time for our trip to the Baltic states of Lithuania and Latvia a couple of months ago.
Now you may be thinking that, as Greeks, we must have EU SIM cards that allow us free roaming within Europe. You’re right, we do. But remember when we said that free roaming doesn’t last forever?
Due to the fact that we travel a lot, our connections are often found in what is known as permanent roaming. This means that our devices usually spend more time abroad than in their home country.
When that happens, free roaming kisses us goodbye and painful charges apply even if we travel solely to European countries.
So, after a couple of days in Vilnius, Lithuania’s beautiful capital and our first stop on this month-long trip, our home network provider texted us a warning. We would soon be charged for permanent roaming again. We had to act on it.
Instead of buying local SIM cards, we opted for eSIMs mainly because we would then continue to a different country, Latvia.
On top of that, at some point, we would also go back to Lithuania from Riga, Latvia’s magnificent capital, and then return to Latvia on the same day.
Taking into consideration all these back and forths, we thought the hassle of purchasing and constantly changing physical SIM cards was just not worth it. So, Sim Local came to the rescue.
For the needs of this month-long trip across two countries, we chose the 100 GB Europe eSIM.
This plan includes free roaming in 43 different countries for 31 days. In addition, it offers a local number for free SMS texts, local calls, but also international calls.
However, as we already knew that we’d publish this Sim Local review and wanted to make it as thorough as possible, we also tested a 30-day single-country (Latvia) eSIM.
So, this is how we tested Sim Local. The results? Keep reading to find out if this is the best eSIM for international travel.
What Sets Sim Local Apart
There are some things that set Sim Local apart from other eSIM providers.
First of all, Sim Local offers coverage in more than 200 destinations. There’s a wide selection of plans that range from single-country ones to regional plans (e.g. Europe) to global.
Moreover, Sim Local is currently the only eSIM company that partners with the best local providers, thus ensuring strong, reliable and stable 4G or 5G connections.
Not only that, but you also get to know which network provider offers the plan you purchase. This information isn’t readily available with other eSIM companies.
For instance, the 100 GB Europe eSIM we tested during our trip to Lithuania and Latvia was offered by Orange, the famous French telecommunications company.
Another unique feature is that Sim Local eSIMs don’t include just data. There are options that offer bundles of data, calls and texts.
Speaking of data, all Sim Local Unlimited Data plans are literally unlimited. There’s a whooping daily high-speed data cap of 10 GB. This is next to impossible to reach and is way above the daily cap of other eSIM providers.
What’s more, a feature that digital nomads will appreciate immensely is that all Sim Local plans include hotspot and tethering, enabling you to share your daily data allowance across several devices.
This is life-saving if, for instance, you’re running on a deadline and the Wi-Fi at your apartment or the café you’re working from fails you. That’s something that happens quite often.
Last but not least, one thing that really stands out is the ease of use and straightforward setup of a Sim Local eSIM as you’re about to see in the next sections.
Purchasing Your Sim Local Plan
So, before you set off on any journey abroad, visit the official Sim Local website to buy your eSIM in advance. Before you do, though, check if your phone is compatible with eSIMs here.
Once you know for sure that your device supports eSIM technology, it’s time to pick your destination – or destinations.
You can choose among single-country eSIMs if you’re only visiting one country, regional eSIMs, for example for Europe, or even a global plan – lucky you! Then, a wide selection of options is at your disposal.
All you have to do is pick the one that suits you best, depending on the duration of your trip and your communication needs. For instance, will you need just data or calls and texts as well?
Hit the Buy Now button and confirm that your device is unlocked and eSIM enabled. Don’t forget to use our promo code ITSALLTRIPTOME at checkout.
Within seconds from your purchase, you’ll receive a confirmation email, but you don’t have to install your eSIM immediately. It’s best to wait until your trip is just around the corner.
Setting Up Your Sim Local eSIM
So, you’re flying tomorrow? Great, now’s the time to install and activate your eSIM.
We’ve all heard horror stories about how difficult eSIMs are to set up. Even worse, that they fail to work even if you follow all the required steps.
We hear you. We were equally nervous when it was time for us to set up our eSIMs. Yet, as it turned out, we didn’t have to be. Sim Local made it all easy.
The first thing you want to do is download the plan you’ve already purchased. You can do so via the Sim Local app on your phone. That said, if you don’t want to install another app on your phone, there’s no need.
In the confirmation email you received when purchasing your eSIM plan, you’ll find a QR code that you can scan to download your new plan instead.
We tested both ways, via the mobile app and scanning the QR code, and they were equally straightforward and easy.
In the same email, you’ll find two quick video guides, one for iPhones and one for Android devices. These video guides are extremely helpful as they explain the setup process step by step without unnecessary fluff.
A series of easy-to-follow steps makes setting up your Sim Local eSIM plans a breeze. Even if you’re not tech-savvy at all. Seriously, these video guides are pure gold.
Using Your Sim Local eSIM
Once you set up your Sim Local eSIM and deactivate roaming and mobile data on your home SIM card (don’t worry, it’s all in the video guide, you’ll know how to do it), you’re ready to use your phone abroad.
If you’re flying, we recommend finishing the setup process just before you board your plane and set your phone to flight mode.
This way, once you turn your phone on again, you’ll be ready to use your Sim Local eSIM in your destination.
So, Do We Actually Recommend Sim Local?
And, now, the verdict. Is Sim Local the best eSIM for international travel? To answer this, we would have to try and test all eSIM providers out there, but we haven’t. At least not yet.
What we can safely say, though, is that we’d hands-down recommend Sim Local. In fact, we’ll definitely use Sim Local again the next time our free roaming service expires or when we travel outside the EU.
First of all, we recommend Sim Local for its ease of use. Purchase and setup processes are smooth and hassle-free and, oh, those video guides.
They are so tremendously helpful for iPhone and Android users alike (we tested both) that even technophobes will be pleasantly surprised.
Furthermore, and perhaps most importantly, coverage and signal are stellar. Both the Orange multi-country plan and the local Latvian eSIM we tried worked perfectly. Even better than our home SIM cards.
So, yes, Sim Local could easily be the best eSIM for international travel right now. You won’t regret trying a Sim Local eSIM on your next trip abroad. Oh, and don’t forget our discount code: ITSALLTRIPTOME at checkout!
WORDS & EDITING: Maria
IMAGES: Katerina
Disclosure: This Sim Local review was published in partnership with the Sim Local team, who invited us to test some of their eSIM plans during our recent trip to Lithuania and Latvia.