Cell Phone & Roaming internationally; ©Carlanne McCrystal 2010
FCC has announced, via a phone conference call and their website, “Wireless World Travel Week” with both the FCC and wireless providers offering money-saving calling tips to consumers for foreign travel from the United States.
The Federal Communications Commission’s Consumer Task Force has designated the week of June 21 as "Wireless World Travel Week" to coincide with the beginning of summer and a busy travel season. Americans make over 60 million international trips each year, many of which take their mobile phones with them. An estimated 39 million travel by air to international destinations and 15 million or more travel by car to Canada. Throughout the week, the FCC and wireless companies will offer tips to help these travelers save money on international wireless use.
“International calling can be complicated and confusing, so we’re devoting a whole week to help consumers become well informed,” says Joel Gurin, Chief of the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau of the FCC. “With awareness, information, and help from their wireless provider, consumers can avoid billing surprises when they return from their travels.”
Wireless World Travel Week will include daily tips on international calling from the FCC’s “Savvy Traveler” blog posts and Twitter page, a video, and a Tip Sheet for consumers.
People can become savvy travelers before their trips overseas by checking with their wireless providers to learn about international calling and data fees for their mobile phone plans. A little preparation and education can save consumers a lot of money.
The initiative will focus on many consumer tips during the week.
- Consumers should check with their wireless providers. Find out about the options and costs for using wireless phones outside of the US before traveling. Consumers should remember to turn off features such as automatic e-mail updates when taking wireless phones abroad.
- Look for alternatives to using your regular mobile phone and plan. Travelers should look into alternative calling options before leaving the US. It could be more affordable to rent a mobile phone, buy a SIM card for use in countries visited, or use calling cards when making calls from other countries.
- Internet calling is a cheap (sometimes free) way of making calls. Calling over the Internet with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a good option where there is access to high-speed Internet or a Wi-Fi hotspot. VoIP calls are cheaper than traditional calls but require a computer, a compatible smartphone, or a special VoIP phone when outside of the US (consumers should be aware of 911 capabilities and limitations of any VoIP phone before making a decision to purchase it). Also, while VoIP calls can be made from a wireless Wi-Fi hotspot, it’s important to make sure that the phone does not automatically connect to an international mobile network, which can be more expensive to access than the Wi-Fi hotspot.
- World phones are a good choice for frequent travelers. Frequent international travelers should look into different plans and providers of world phones, which are less expensive to use internationally than standard wireless phones.
The Wireless World Travel Week is meant to offer consumers helpful information for their trips abroad. Each day of the week will address a different topic of concern, as outlined below:
Wireless World Travel Week Schedule
Monday: Wireless World Travel Week Kick-off
Tuesday: Getting Ready for an International Trip
Wednesday: Calling Options from Overseas (Wireless and Landlines)
Thursday: VoIP – Calling Over the Internet
Friday: Returning Home
For Seattle consumers these tips, blog posts and website information can help them make an educated decision about whether to take their cell phones with them overseas or make other arrangements for communications when they travel internationally. As a tech-savvy area of the country, the people of Seattle are assumed to be more aware and conscious of these communications issues. In fact, however, everyone needs to be educated as to their options for communication when traveling outside their home country.
For more information:
The Task Force has published a tip sheet entitled Wireless World Travel Made Simple, available for international travelers. The tip sheet includes information for major wireless providers. Consumers can view the “Savvy Traveler” blog posts at www.fcc.gov/consumers for the “Do’s and Don’ts” of International Calling the FCC’s Twitter page at www.twitter.com/fcc and a video message.
You can contact Carlanne via email: travelindustryexaminer@gmail.com
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Comments
I'm going to Ireland in the fall and I've been researching my options regarding cell phones, phone cards, calling home...
Thanks for the incredibly timely (for me) article about this.
Yes, as travel writers, it can become very expensive if we are not savvy to our communications. VoIP is still a fairly new technology in many ways and not always available. Cell phone bills are usually the worst part of my travels! I was excited by what the FCC is trying to do this week. Anything that can make it easier to communicate when out of the country!
This is great information. We are taking a cruise to Bermuda in a few weeks, and since the boat will be docked a couple of days there, we need to know as much as possible!
One of the main difficulties with US travellers is that a lot of phones your phones run on the CDMA network which does not work in many places, especially europe. Most don't know this and they are left in a mess when they arrive. The best options are to buy a cheap pay as you phone, but they are pretty limited, or rent a smartphone from places like www.fonmigo.com , mobal.com or a similar site.
Great info. Thanks for the research and for sharing.
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With email, I did not have a need to call stateside while in Germany this summer, but it's a great tool for people who need to make calls.
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