Country Calling Codes

When making an international phone call, it is necessary to use an exit code and country code before the number you are calling.  

The country code TO the US is 1, but if you have family calling you FROM the U.S. to any of our destination countries, they must insert a different country code in front of the phone number or the hotel phone number: Germany – 49, Czech Republic – 420, Poland – 48, Hungary – 36. 

Below is an easy table to use including the exit code and country code for calls in both directions.  Be sure to share it with family.

From US to Germany – 011 + 49 + (number)

From US to Czech Republic – 011 + 420 + (number)

From US to Poland – 011 + 48 +  (number)

From US to Hungary – 011 + 36 + (number)

From any country to US – 00 + 1 + (number)

Our tour director says that if a family member wishes to reach you on your cell phone, they do not need to dial the country code though, just your cell mobile number. They then get automatically forwarded to the roaming service and the receiver pays the charge.

Dialing the country code is necessary when someone from the U.S. calls a local number in that country, e.g. the hotel room.

However, please remember that extensive use of your cell phone overseas could result in excessively large phone bills when you return from roaming data charges.  See the blog post on Tips for Saving $ on International Phone Usage.

An easy way to save money on phone calls is to use the ekit phonecard for travelers provided by EF.  You get up to 5 minutes free talk time with the card you received.  If you like, you can recharge the card before you go for more minutes and receive a $5 bonus.  Please see the details on the card.  I have used one before and it is easy to use with the directions right on the card.

Another way to keep in touch would be email and Skype, especially with the use of free wifi.

Tips for Saving $ on International Phone Usage

If you are like me, you don’t go many places without your phone, and I expect most of you are planning to take yours on our trip.  However, there are some precautionary measures you should also take to avoid a surprisingly high phone bill when you return home.  I’ve heard horror stories of travelers who rack up bills over $1,000!

Each phone company has its own guidelines, and you should always contact yours to get accurate information for your phone and your company’s billing procedures.  You will want to follow those procedures to keep data charges in check.  Most companies offer international data plans.

The same tips could apply to laptops and tablets if using apps that use a lot of data.  Turning data roaming off while traveling internationally blocks email, browsing, visual voicemail, and downloads, but it will not block text messages.  Roaming is when you are accessing a wireless carrier other than your own.

By default, the international data roaming function is turned off, but be sure to check your settings before traveling abroad.  International roaming rates apply when you send text, photo, or video messages.  In no time, you can rack up an expensive phone bill.

Some tips:

1.       Contact your phone company before departure.  Don’t assume you will have service.

2.      Turn on airplane mode to disable the wireless features.

3.      Take advantage of free wifi anywhere we have it.  Search the internet and send email and texts when it is free.

4.      Avoid uploading photos unless you have free wifi.

5.      Make sure your charger will work in all 4 countries and have a voltage converter and correct plug.

6.      There are some great travel apps but using them could incur expensive roaming fees.

7.      If there is information from the internet that you think you might want to access (currency rates, sightseeing info, maps) simply copy and paste them to the notes feature of your phone which does not use data when accessed.

I will take my phone but I don’t plan to use it except for emergencies and will buy a minimum data international plan for those emergency calls.

I recommend the following sites to learn more about using iPhones and other technical devices economically on international trips.

AT&T International Travel Tips

Avoiding International Charges While Traveling Internationally with an iPhone

International iPhone Travel Tips

Using Your ATT 3GS, 4, and 4S During International Travel Without Breaking the Bank

10 Tips for Saving on Roaming Charges While Overseas

International Cell Phone Update

I have an iPhone and went to the Apple store to ask about international service. Don’t waste your time going there. They know a lot, but this falls under your local service provider.

So, next I went to the AT&T store and they were very helpful. Most important…they said they do not cover service on a cruise ship or close to the ship! Cruise ships have their own satellites (or whatever they use!) and it costs a lot more.

AT&T charges $5.99 for the World Traveler Plan plus phoning in Greece is an extra $1.29 per minute. The big expense of using smart phones overseas is the data roaming charges. Be sure to turn off data roaming to avoid these unexpected charges.

AT&T users can pay $25 per phone for up to 20MB of data. Data roaming is anything that can be updated on your phone, such as texting, email, internet service, apps that update i.e. weather, time, money exchange rates, GPS, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Any app that you already have downloaded that has static/stored information to access (camera, language translator, etc.) will not use data roaming. Neither will your iPod or downloaded podcasts on your iPhone.

To see just how much 20MB is for your phone, (if you have AT&T service) go to www.wireless.att.com/global and click the Data Calculator.

The rule: Check with YOUR phone service provider to find exactly what they offer for your phone.

Tip for using iPod on your iPhone: Turn on the airplane mode in Settings. You will not need to purchase any special international plan to use your iPod only.

Tips for making an iPhone battery last longer:
1. Lower screen brightness (Settings>Brightness).
2. Push email: Turn off the Push feature and set it to Manually instead (Settings>Mail, Contacts, Calendars>Fetch New Data). The iPhone checks for email only when you actually open the email app.
3. GPS checks: In Settings>General>Location Services, you’ll see a list of all the apps on your phone that are using your phone’s location feature to know where you are. You can probably turn most of them off and save battery. And that is all data roaming too.
4. Notifications: Similarly in Settings>Notifications, you see a list of apps that are allowed to display pop-up notifications (those blue text bubbles that look like text messages). Turn off the ones you don’t need.
5. Background apps: Quit all apps that are still open and not being used. Double-press the Home button to open the multitasking app switcher. Hold your finger down on any icon until they all start wiggling. Tap the little X close boxes to manually quit open apps.

Calling internationally on your cell phone

First contact the provider and get international service connected. With AT&T World Traveler, it is $5.99 per phone per month PLUS .99/minute calling, .50/text, and $1.30 to send a picture. They advise keeping up with calls so that you know when all the calls you made come through on your bill. Sometimes call billing is delayed.

If you cancel your international plan before all calls come through then you are charged more. They also recommend turning your cell on and off several times before leaving the states to save settings, and then turning it on and off several times when we arrive in Paris to connect to their towers.

When calling from country to country, you need to put a plus sign (+) in front of the country code and then the number. To get a plus sign, hold down the zero til the plus sign appears.

How to:
1. Calling home from your cell—dial +1 and (10 digit number). 1 is the country code for the U.S.
2. Home calling your cell—+(country code) and the number (France is 33 and England is 44)
3. Calling locally (say a hotel in Paris)—just dial the number
4. Calling each other mobile to mobile—just dial the number

If you have any other service, you might call to clarify.
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