For Those About Fly, We Inform You!

Packing Notes -

Pack some bling for Bollywood night! A bright, sparkly scarf! Boldly colored and flowy clothing and jewelry! Oh, yes. I've got a couple of flashy, jangly hip scarves to share, but not enough to cover all the hips that will be wiggling. Meena will also have some flash and flair to share. Jeremy will be in a deep red Kurta, gold pants and gold shoes. Can you top that?

Be ready for the weather! Layers and rain gear for the body. Shoes that can get wet and extra pairs of wool socks (trust this former backcountry guide, your feet will thank you). Maybe a foldable umbrella. The Raasay House have full on rubber foulies and safety gear (like PFDs) for the adventures they offer.

Cell Phone Info

Some useful information from the groom:

Things are way more complex than they need to be, especially for folks from the US. This guide is for them.

Summary (for those who aren't going to read the rest of this post): Switch your US plan to an e-SIM and enable WiFI calling, then when you get here pick up a local pre-pay SIM and use WiFi as much as you can. If that sounds like gibberish, read on.

US Cell Phones

Whether your phone works and just how expensive it is depends on which plan you have with your US carrier. It can be very expensive if you don’t plan ahead.

International Roaming without a Plan

This is where they screw you. AT&T, for example, charges $2.00 per minute for calls, $0.50 per text, and $2.05 per MB for data. That can easily run up very high charges. Make sure you don’t use this mode by getting a plan; sometimes they will switch you to a plan retroactively if you mess up, but better to be prepared.

International Plans

“International” coverage in the US typically just means Canada and Mexico. Carriers have add-ons to extend this to Europe (which may not include the UK) or the “Rest of the World” but you may need to have this added on. This will keep your US number working but you may need to pay for calls & texts to non-US numbers.

International Roaming with a Day Plan

Some plans have a “day pass” option where you pay a daily fee, typically $10-15 per day. You only pay on the days you “use” the service (make a call, send or receive a text, use mobile data). Calls & texts to US numbers use what’s included in your US plan, but calls & texts to UK numbers are charged at international rates.

One downside of this is that any incoming text triggers the daily charge, so it’s best to leave the phone in airplane mode when you can because of all the spam.

WiFi Calling

Some plans have an option for “WiFi” calling where calls and texts are sent over WiFi rather than the mobile network. This allows you to leave your phone in airplane mode, connect to local WiFi, and still make calls or send/receive text messages; data access just uses the WiFi. You can use this anywhere there’s WiFi, which is common in pubs and restaurants. If needed, you can turn off airplane mode and activate a Day Pass if you need access when there’s no Wifi around.

Local SIM Card

If your phone is unlocked, you can pick up a UK SIM card which will give you a UK number and allow you to make calls, send texts and access mobile data as if you were a local. You can pick one up at many local stores or supermarkets starting at around £10. It will last a month and give 5GB or more of data.

Some phones allow you to have two SIMs at the same time, either with two slots or by converting one to an “e-Sim.” That allows you to use a US number (e-SIM) and a UK number (SIM card) at the same time. If you plan to go this route, switch your US service to the e-SIM when still in the US just in case things go sideways. Make sure you turn off “data roaming” on the US carrier when you’re in the UK to ensure mobile data access always uses the UK plan.

If your phone does not support two SIMs, you can replace the US one with the UK one. You will get a UK number, which means you can call & text local UK numbers easily; however, your US number will be offline so you won’t be able to receive calls or texts on it. You will have mobile data so messaging services that don’t use mobile texts will still work. This includes Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Google Messages (to other Android phones), Apple iMessage (to other iPhone), and, of course, Signal. Seriously, use Signal, don’t give everything about your personal life to Meta.

Second Phone

If you have a spare phone and it’s unlocked, you can put a local SIM card in it. You use it to call/text folks in the UK or for mobile data, whilst still using your main phone (with one of the international options above) to interact with folks back in the US.

You can typically use this local phone as a WiFi hotspot, so if your US phone supports WiFi calling it can use the hotspot from the second phone to make calls & send texts when you don’t have access to local WiFi.

Recommendations

Flexible & cheap, the Dual SIM option

The most flexible, and surprisingly cheapest, option is the dual-sim one; the downside is that it needs some setup before you leave the US, and may not be supported with some phones and/or carrier plans. The upside is your US number keeps working but you can avoid many of the add-on charges, and you have a local number to make calls (e.g. for a taxi) or receive texts (e.g. when your restaurant table is ready).

1. Contact your carrier to switch your US service to the phone’s e-SIM. They often push back on doing this so you might need to pressure them.

2. Contact your carrier to unlock your phone so you can use the (now free) SIM slot.

3. Enable WiFI calling on the US plan. If you just switched to an e-SIM you might need to wait a day or so before doing this.

4. Enable an international plan for the month (e.g. the day-pass option) and make sure it covers the UK.

5. When you get to the UK, pick up a local SIM. If you can, get one that supports WiFi calling on a pre-pay plan (Smarty does, O2 & Vodaphone do not). Add the UK carrier as a second line and turn off data roaming on the US line.

6. Turn the US line on and off as needed - remember, those spam texts can trigger the daily charge for the day-pass.

Easy, using a Day-Pass

You can stay connected to the US for $10-15 a day, including texts and mobile data. However, making local calls can be expensive, and you often won’t get texts from places here they often can’t send to a US number. You can avoid the daily charge when you’re at a place with WiFi.

1. Contact your carrier to make sure the day-pass option is turned on.

2. Enable WiFi calling so you won’t need to use the pass when you’re in a place with WiFi.

3. Stay in airplane mode when you can so spam texts don’t trigger the daily charge.

Old-Skool, a Local SIM

Get a local SIM and stick it in your phone. You probably already know what you’re doing :)