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AT&T International Day Pass - as good as it seems?

Paco II

Paco II

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Sep 13, 2009
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Now to stop a few people in their tracks, if traveling for any extended period, this plan is not a good deal. And let's not jump right into comparing it with T-Mobile, which is free slower data and text, no phone usage, and so different. :)

But for shorter travels, I am intrigued by this plan. $10/day to be able to not only call back to the USA, not only be able to call within the country you are in, but also be able to call any country that the plan 'supports'? And of course all the texting and data usage your plan provides? For a long weekend this could be excellent. Far simpler than getting a local SIM. Just turn on your phone and for $10/day, not even have to think about it.

It's only two days old, but has anyone used this plan yet? :)
 
That's too bad, but not unexpected. I gave that plan up years ago. Wasn't using enough data and it was getting expensive.

This plan could be amazing for business travel, especially the part about "Unlimited talk applies to calls to the U.S., or within and between International Day Pass countries"



monkey28rb said:
Not available for legacy grandfathered unlimited customers.
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I had LTE speeds with t-mobile in Germany. Yes, calls were .20 a minute but no issues, adding anything to a plan. And texts were free.
 
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No offense, but since I am happy with AT&T, I am more curious as to how it is working out for people using it. What kind of data speeds are they getting out of the country with this plan? Is it getting billed correctly? :)


Thor_1 said:
I had LTE speeds with t-mobile in Germany. Yes, calls were .20 a minute but no issues, adding anything to a plan. And texts were free.
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And what happens if someone calls you from within the Country you are visiting? Do they get charged for an international call?
 
Paco II said:
It's only two days old, but has anyone used this plan yet? :)
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Do you really expect a report after a few hours?

How about after a bill cycle from someone who's used it?

I like the idea of T-mobile better than this though, I just signed up today and will give my report to compare to the $10 per day plan in a few months after I use it :))
 
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monkey28rb said:
Not available for legacy grandfathered unlimited customers.
Click to expand...

Yup. I went to Canada for a long weekend with some friends last spring, and I was stuck on the ridiculous AT&T 200MB of service for $40 plan.

It was like being in the stone age, constantly having to ask for the WiFi password at every bar / restaurant / hotel just to make sure I wouldn't burn through all my data in one day.

I want to love AT&T, but they make it damn hard with all the ridiculous restrictions to place on you as an unlimited data customer.
 
Well, at least on modern plans, Mexico is totally free and Canada is free 1GB/mo when traveling. Baby steps

Number 41 said:
Yup. I went to Canada for a long weekend with some friends last spring, and I was stuck on the ridiculous AT&T 200MB of service for $40 plan.

It was like being in the stone age, constantly having to ask for the WiFi password at every bar / restaurant / hotel just to make sure I wouldn't burn through all my data in one day.

I want to love AT&T, but they make it damn hard with all the ridiculous restrictions to place on you as an unlimited data customer.
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Paco II said:
Well, at least on modern plans, Mexico is totally free and Canada is free 1GB/mo when traveling. Baby steps
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I got lucky back in December when I called AT&T to have Canada Roaming Bonus added for our trip to Vancouver...I told the rep specifcally the Canada Roaming Bonus, but he added the Roam North America (the biggest difference is I can use all my plan data just like I am at home, not just 1GB). It was my understanding the Roam North America is only for those on the new Unlimited plan, but I'm on the 10GB plan and got it. It worked perfectly when I was in Canada...calls, texts and high speed data plus using it as a hot spot in hotels with lousy wifi speed. :)
 
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It's always about getting the right rep on the phone.


dmylrea said:
I got lucky back in December when I called AT&T to have Canada Roaming Bonus added for our trip to Vancouver...I told the rep specifcally the Canada Roaming Bonus, but he added the Roam North America (the biggest difference is I can use all my plan data just like I am at home, not just 1GB). It was my understanding the Roam North America is only for those on the new Unlimited plan, but I'm on the 10GB plan and got it. It worked perfectly when I was in Canada...calls, texts and high speed data plus using it as a hot spot in hotels with lousy wifi speed. :)
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in Taiwan its like 14 dollars for a week of lightning fast unlimited data and like 300 minutes talk. this might be good for countries with crappy prepaid sims, though.

AND you get your own number so locals can call you too, if needed.
 
I assume this is virtually the same thing as the verizon travel pass. I've used it (on verizon). As you mentioned, it's definitely not much of a value, especially when you need it for several days. No issues here other than the ridiculous cost.
 
If only all countries had such cheap offerings with such high quality service.

ilifecomputer said:
in Taiwan its like 14 dollars for a week of lightning fast unlimited data and like 300 minutes talk. this might be good for countries with crappy prepaid sims, though.

AND you get your own number so locals can call you too, if needed.
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I think it is very similar.

Something I am excited about as well is having such a cheap offering to cover the time between landing in a new country and getting a local SIM. $10 to just be able to turn on my phone and use it for a even just a day. Love it.


Böhme417 said:
I assume this is virtually the same thing as the verizon travel pass. I've used it (on verizon). As you mentioned, it's definitely not much of a value, especially when you need it for several days. No issues here other than the ridiculous cost.
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No doubt this is a better deal for those willing to pay extra for a solo/duo weekend getaway without switching SIMs abroad while maintaining better service back in the States than TMO. Otherwise it'll easily add up on a 1-2 week vacation for a family of 4.

I would expect quality of service to be at least average in developing countries. I still prefer the simplicity of T-Mobile, now tax inclusive plans. And although calls aren't covered abroad, it's a minor scratch in a bill with minimal use, and there are many ways to be in contact stateside.
 
Paco II said:
Now to stop a few people in their tracks, if traveling for any extended period, this plan is not a good deal. And let's not jump right into comparing it with T-Mobile, which is free slower data and text, no phone usage, and so different. :)

But for shorter travels, I am intrigued by this plan. $10/day to be able to not only call back to the USA, not only be able to call within the country you are in, but also be able to call any country that the plan 'supports'? And of course all the texting and data usage your plan provides? For a long weekend this could be excellent. Far simpler than getting a local SIM. Just turn on your phone and for $10/day, not even have to think about it.

It's only two days old, but has anyone used this plan yet? :)
Click to expand...

That's still a terrible deal if you're there for more than 2 days. TMO phone calls are .20/min, which is really not much at all since how much are you actually calling people? If you need faster speeds, you can add a 4G data pass bucket while roaming and will likely still cost you less than $10/day over the length of a normal vacation. In most places outside the US, especially in the EU, free WiFi is all over the place so the slower data really isn't that bad. I've only ever had to get the faster pass once in all my travels with TMO. Last summer, TMO had free 4G roaming for the month of July. Mexico & Canada are always 4G at no extra cost.

$10/day just to turn on your phone overseas is YIKES. I was traveling to multiple countries last summer for a total of 27 days and my additional roaming costs came in around $7 on TMO. The previous year I was in Dublin for 3 weeks for work and was able to get 3G speeds. Work calls cost maybe $15 since everyone just texts there anyway.
 
If you have to make an hour's worth of calls every day, T-Mobile is more expensive. To get 4G data on T-Mobile you need to add their data pass which is like $50/500MB/2weeks.

$10/day to not have to think about using your phone *can* be an excellent option. Or not. It totally depends on how you will need to use your phone while traveling.


E3BK said:
That's still a terrible deal if you're there for more than 2 days. TMO phone calls are .20/min, which is really not much at all since how much are you actually calling people? If you need faster speeds, you can add a 4G data pass bucket while roaming and will likely still cost you less than $10/day over the length of a normal vacation. In most places outside the US, especially in the EU, free WiFi is all over the place so the slower data really isn't that bad. I've only ever had to get the faster pass once in all my travels with TMO. Last summer, TMO had free 4G roaming for the month of July. Mexico & Canada are always 4G at no extra cost.

$10/day just to turn on your phone overseas is YIKES. I was traveling to multiple countries last summer for a total of 27 days and my additional roaming costs came in around $7 on TMO. The previous year I was in Dublin for 3 weeks for work and was able to get 3G speeds. Work calls cost maybe $15 since everyone just texts there anyway.
Click to expand...
 
Paco II said:
If you have to make an hour's worth of calls every day, T-Mobile is more expensive. To get 4G data on T-Mobile you need to add their data pass which is like $50/500MB/2weeks.

$10/day to not have to think about using your phone *can* be an excellent option. Or not. It totally depends on how you will need to use your phone while traveling.
Click to expand...

Who talks on the phone for an hour every day while on vacation? For work, perhaps, but you're also likely in an office so you're using that phone, not your mobile as it was in my case. You use far less data while traveling than most people think for basic things like email, tweets, social media, maps, etc. Are you streaming movies? Again, WiFI everywhere so the slower data wasn't really an issue. But if you must justify AT&T's costs or if you are stuck on a contract with them, then so be it. It's better than previous AT&T roaming schemes but let's not pretend it's a good deal.
 
As I said, it depends on how you need to use your phone. Not all travel is vacation. Much business travel does not include an office. Saying T-Mobile is great because 'who talks on the phone for an hour' is a pretty weak justification for using them. For AT&T customers this new option can be excellent. Or not.


E3BK said:
Who talks on the phone for an hour every day while on vacation? For work, perhaps, but you're also likely in an office so you're using that phone, not your mobile. You use far less data while traveling than you think. Are you streaming movies? But if you must justify AT&T's costs or if you are stuck on a contract with them, then so be it. It's better than previous AT&T roaming schemes but let's not pretend it's a good deal.
Click to expand...
 
Paco II said:
As I said, it depends on how you need to use your phone. Not all travel is vacation. Much business travel does not include an office. Saying T-Mobile is great because 'who talks on the phone for an hour' is a pretty weak justification for using them. For AT&T customers this new option can be excellent. Or not.
Click to expand...

While not cheap, this a good plan. You get 24 hours of use,even if you cross a border as long as you are still in a plan country. When I am abroad for a couple of weeks, I will use it every few days to check for voicemail. Much better than the passport plan I used previously. Keeping your own number while traveling is a great benefit.
 
Ill probably try this out next month when I visit St Marteen for a week. Those passport plans have always been expensive. Usually when I travel would just purchase local sim cards. Since this plan is new why not give it a try?
 
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