Three, EE and Vodafone customers may face unexpected bills on holiday | Travel News | Travel

Three, EE and Vodafone customers face unexpected charges on holiday in the form of roaming fees.

Since January 1 2021, when Brexit officially came into force, UK tourists no longer receive free roaming in the EU by law and many major mobile phone networks have since reintroduced roaming charges for customers. There are some UK networks, including O2, Giffgaff and Lebara, that still include free EU roaming in their pay-monthly and pay-as-you-go deals, but many other firms now charge a daily rate to use mobile data in EU countries. Plus, holidaymakers can also be stung by extra charges if they exceed their allowance for calls, texts and data while abroad.

Three customers face a daily charge of £2 to roam in European countries, £5 per day in its ‘Around the World’ destinations, or £7 in ‘Around the World Extra’ countries. The data usage is capped at 12GB a month, so if you go over this amount you will be charged.

EE roaming charges vary depending on your plan, but costs start from £2.59 per day for contract customers, or £2.50 per day (or £10 for seven days) if you’re on pay-as-you-go. For destinations outside of the EU customers will need a Roam Further or Roam Abroad pass which start from £25 per month. If you don’t have a roaming pass, or your plan doesn’t include the destination you’re visiting then standard roaming charges will apply. And if you go over your data limit and need to buy a data add-on, you can buy 500MB for £3.

For customers on Vodafone, charges cost from £2.42 per day if you’re on a contract or you can buy an eight-day European roaming pass for £15, or £20 for 15 days. Vodafone has a 25GB “fair usage” limit and once this is exceeded you will be charged £3.59 per GB used.

But it’s possible for British holidaymakers to avoid being stung by these fees with a simple 60-second trick. According to travel expert Brenda Beltrán at Holafly, an International eSIM provider for travel, many Brits still pay up to £10 per day just to use their phone abroad, but if you get an SIM before you travel it can save you more than £40 on a single trip.

By using an eSIM, which is a virtual version of a physical SIM card, there is no need to take your old SIM card on holiday or buy a new one at the airport when you land. Instead, you can simply scan a QR code, activate a plan and then you’re online, meaning you can complete the whole process in around 60-seconds and save yourself a lot of money on roaming fees.

Brenda explains: “Most people don’t realise there’s now a way to get mobile data abroad without swapping SIMs, queuing at the airport or risking a big bill when you get home. If you’ve got a compatible phone, you can download a digital eSIM before you fly and get connected the moment you land.”

According to Holafly, more and more travellers are using eSIMs through trusted providers that offer unlimited data plans across popular holiday destinations, including Spain and Turkey, to places further afield like the USA and Thailand.

Many UK networks charge between £6 and £10 per day for international data and these charges often restart automatically if you forget to turn data roaming off.

Brenda adds: “I regularly hear from people who thought they were just using their data for Google Maps or sending home a few holiday snaps through WhatsApp every couple of days and came home to a £100 phone bill.

“That’s avoidable. You don’t need to swap SIM cards anymore or hunt down local shops in a panic, eSIMs are instant, and you can set them up from your sofa.

“For example, a week of unlimited data in Turkey through Holafly costs £24, compared to up to £70 using standard UK roaming. That’s more than £40 saved before you’ve even left the hotel.

“eSIMs aren’t just cheaper, they’re also more secure. You won’t need to connect to risky airport Wi-Fi or rely on dodgy hotel connections. And once installed, they can be activated and topped up easily while you’re away.”

Phones that support eSIMs include iPhone XS and newer, Samsung Galaxy S20 and newer, Google Pixel 3 and newer. To use an eSIM you first need to check that your phone supports it and if it does, simply buy and download your plan from a trusted provider. Then scan the QR code and activate it just before you travel, and turn off roaming on your UK SIM to avoid any background charges.