Using our cell phones while traveling internationally has always been costly, at least for those without a T-Mobile account. But now there’s relief for Verizon users that can give you service for just less than a dollar a day. It’s something Verizon doesn’t advertise, but it’s perfectly legal and in full compliance with Verizon’s rules.
Long-time customer of Verizon remember the crazy surcharges when traveling to Asia and Europe. After much outcry Verizon instituted daily travel passes in 2015 for $10 per day (now $12) that gave us 2 GB of high-speed data, dropping down to a trickle of 256 Kbps for the rest of the day. A couple of years later they introduced a monthly travel pass for $100 per line, providing 20 GB of high-speed data, slowed to 1 Mbps after that.
For a family of four using travel passes, it costs $48 per day or $672 for a two-week trip. A one-month pass is a better deal at $400, but still very expensive. That’s why many third party companies such as Airalo have prospered by selling a downloadable eSim card and offering much lower rates. Unfortunately, it assigns a new phone number that can mess with your services that rely on your Verizon number such as text and WhatsApp.
Now there’s a new solution that offers the best option yet. It’s Verizon’s new Unlimited Ultimate Plan that provides unlimited calls and texts, 15 GB of high-speed data per month, (then reduced to ~1.5 Mbps), usable in over 200 countries.
The key to this solution is to upgrade to this plan just for the duration of the trip.
The plan costs $25/month more than their lowest basic plan, although the plan’s monthly cost varies from $55 to $85, based on the number of lines on your account. So instead of paying $100 for a monthly pass or $12 per day, you simply upgrade your phones to this plan for the duration of your trip, paying about $1 per day more for international data and calling. It’s worth doing for trips of any length and ignoring their travel passes.
A family of four on a 2-week international trip would now pay a total of $50 for use of their four phones. A single line user would pay $12.50 extra for 2 weeks, less than a dollar a day.
The key is to switch to the plan before leaving home and switch back upon returning. Verizon also advises you to turn your phones off and on after making the switch. You can do all of this from their phone app or website.
But be very diligent here. Verizon doesn’t make it easy and forces you to reject all of their special streaming service offers first. They then ask if your change should start at the next billing cycle or immediately. Choose immediately, but go back and check that your choice actually registered. When I did this for my son and his family on my family plan, I needed to go back and redo some of the lines, because they didn’t always change. For one line, I had to use their Chat help to get it done. For some reason (?!) this part of their app and website appears to be a bit glitchy.
Here’s a summary below of the international options for Verizon:
| Plan Type | Total Cost (4 lines) | Data Allowed (per line) | Talk / Text | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily TravelPass | $672($12 × 14 days × 4 lines) | 2 GB/day high-speed, resets daily then slowed | Unlimited calls & texts as in US | Most flexible, pay only for days you roam |
| Monthly International Plan | $400($100 × 4 lines) | 20 GB/month high-speed, then slowed | Unlimited texts, calls ~$0.25/min | Better for heavy data, calls add up |
| Switch to Unlimited Ultimate | $50 ($25 x 4 lines x 1/2 mo) | 15 GB/month high-speed, then ~1.5 Mbps | Unlimited calls & texts to US & locally | Best if making lots of calls, seamless use |
The Unlimited Ultimate plan for the duration of your trip is a real benefit for those that travel internationally. Let’s hope it’s something that will not be revisited by Verizon.
