Canadian looking at cell phone data plan options while at Disney

[cyberjyd]

I am wondering what would be my best option for using data on my telus nexus s while at WDW. I plan to use my phone mostly to check my email and a few disney apps for wait times and gps maps. Getting a US data plan through telus is way too expensive. I'd probably wouldn't need more than a 500mb plan. Since my phone is not locked I understand that you can buy an at&t or t-mobile sim card from ebay and then buy a "pay as you go" type refill card when you get there. Has anyone tried this? How did it work out for you? Which one would you recommend, AT&T or T-mobile? Are there any stores in the Orlando airport that would sell these refill cards. I won't be renting a car and would like to be able to get a refill card without having to go off Disney property if necessary. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

[DbleTheFun]

There's a sticky at the top of this forum with all the details on this that should give you some great ideas. It's cheap to buy a small plan/phone in the US and they can be picked up almost everywhere.

 

[bande]

just for texting. We are looking to do this for a trip in Feb. but have no idea what to buy. If anyone has done this before, could you suggest a basic phone just for texting and where to purchase. We need to buy 2. Thanks.

 

[pad406]

Last year I got a sim card with 100mb data and unlimited talk and text for my iPhone for about $90. Also got some cheap old Nokia for DW (her phone was not unlocked) for about $30. This came with 50mins talk. We got it delivered to the hotel and it was there waiting for us when we checked in. Got them both from mrsimcard.com

 

[canadiankim]

just for texting. We are looking to do this for a trip in Feb. but have no idea what to buy. If anyone has done this before, could you suggest a basic phone just for texting and where to purchase. We need to buy 2. Thanks.

Last time we drove down to Orlando we picked up cheap Virgin Cell phones from the first Wal-Mart we came across, they were about $10 each and then we just bought a $20 pay as you go voucher. It lasted the whole time we were there (around 12 days). Hope this helps

 

[Cdnmommy]

We did this for our last trip and I have just bought 2 more for our upcoming trip. I bought the Tracfone package from Walmart (10.00 each phone), it comes with accessories, "double airtime for life" and10 minutes of activation/airtime and you can purchase additional airtime cards at Walmart or online.

I plan to take advantage of the "double airtime for life" - so I did not buy the 20.00 airtime cards at the store, I will purchase online the 10.00 airtime card (web exclusive), which gives 30 minutes and receive double the minutes.

So, for 20.00 per phone I will end up getting 70 minutes of airtime (talk or text) which is much cheaper than adding roaming features to our Blackberries and having a big bill when we get home.

Good luck!

 

[canadiankim]

We did this for our last trip and I have just bought 2 more for our upcoming trip. I bought the Tracfone package from Walmart (10.00 each phone), it comes with accessories, "double airtime for life" and10 minutes of activation/airtime and you can purchase additional airtime cards at Walmart or online.

I plan to take advantage of the "double airtime for life" - so I did not buy the 20.00 airtime cards at the store, I will purchase online the 10.00 airtime card (web exclusive), which gives 30 minutes and receive double the minutes.

So, for 20.00 per phone I will end up getting 70 minutes of airtime (talk or text) which is much cheaper than adding roaming features to our Blackberries and having a big bill when we get home.

Good luck!

The tracphone that you bought - was that in Orlando? I didn't know about this deal but thinking about it for when we go again in May 2012.

Another query - if I buy the phone in Buffalo on my next shopping day, will I then have to pay for long distance calls when I use it in Orlando or is the cost difference not worth worrying about this? We need to get at least 3 phones as we are travelling from Canada but have my sister and her family travelling from the UK.

Thanks

 

[cyberjyd]

Does anyone know if the Airport Wireless store at the Orlando airport carries the pay as you go refill cards?

 

[corster]

Since you have a Nexus S... go to a T-Mobile store once you get to Orlando... they'll charge you $6 or so for a SIM Card and you can activate it on their $2 Prepaid by the Day Package - it comes with Unlimited US Talk, Unlimited US Text, and Unlimited 2G US Data... I have one of these SIM Cards I use everytime I cross the border and it works great.... it's pay as you go, minimum fill up is $10.

http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/pay-by-the-day-cell-phone-plans

I'm sure you can likely find a T-Mobile SIM Card elsewhere prior to your trip (eBay maybe - if you do this just make sure you buy one for T-Mobile US, not from one of the many other t-Mobile countries)

They also offer a $3 per day package with 4G Data speeds, but unless your Canadian provider is WIND, Mobilicity, or Videotron, your Canadian phone won't be capable of 3G/4G speeds on T-Mobile's Network

 

[corster]

The tracphone that you bought - was that in Orlando? I didn't know about this deal but thinking about it for when we go again in May 2012.

Another query - if I buy the phone in Buffalo on my next shopping day, will I then have to pay for long distance calls when I use it in Orlando or is the cost difference not worth worrying about this? We need to get at least 3 phones as we are travelling from Canada but have my sister and her family travelling from the UK.

Tracfones come in blister packs, they are usually sold unactivated. You have to activate them yourself online (and it's in your best interest to activate them as close to your trip as possible, as the minutes expiry begins to tick from the day the phone is activated), at which point you will enter a US ZIP Code which will determine what phone number you get - but it really doesn't matter, most of the US Cell Phone companies eliminated domestic long distance a while ago, it costs the same whether your calling an Orlando, Buffalo, or Los Angeles number. My old Tracfone had a Beverly Hills number (I used 90210 as the ZIP Code when activating it) and I used it all across the country - Florida, California, New York, Arizona, Nevada, Alaska - no issues whatsoever, no additional costs. My current T-Mobile line has a Buffalo number, but again, no issues and no extra costs using it down in Florida.

 

[corster]

Does anyone know if the Airport Wireless store at the Orlando airport carries the pay as you go refill cards?

Not sure if they do (I'd find it hard to believe a wireless store doesn't)... but one solution i've used in the past to fill up my US prepaid accounts from Canada (since many of the carrier websites won't accept Canadian credit cards - T-Mobile's will though) is to buy my prepaid vouchers through www.pinzoo.com - i've done this with both Tracfone and AT&T lines in the past and never had an issue - the first time you buy from them, it can take up to 24 hours to get your PIN as they actually phone you to confirm the order - after that first time, any purchases made through your pinzoo account are instant.

 

[Stan Solo]

We did this for our last trip and I have just bought 2 more for our upcoming trip. I bought the Tracfone package from Walmart (10.00 each phone), it comes with accessories, "double airtime for life" and10 minutes of activation/airtime and you can purchase additional airtime cards at Walmart or online.

I plan to take advantage of the "double airtime for life" - so I did not buy the 20.00 airtime cards at the store, I will purchase online the 10.00 airtime card (web exclusive), which gives 30 minutes and receive double the minutes.

So, for 20.00 per phone I will end up getting 70 minutes of airtime (talk or text) which is much cheaper than adding roaming features to our Blackberries and having a big bill when we get home.

Good luck!

I bought two trackfones in the US just over the border before our trip. I brought the phones home charged them up and went on line to load the minutes. All I got was some sort of warning about no signal or something. I figured it was becuse I was in Canada and it would work once I went over the border. Nope now I got a message about an invalid sim card I never was able to get the phones to work .

If you buy a trackfone don't even open it unless you are in the US.

Does anyone know if the Airport Wireless store at the Orlando airport carries the pay as you go refill cards?

You can not buy any pay as you go cards at the Orlando airport or at the Chicago airport. You can buy phones and cards at Hess mart walking distance from DTD. I'm not sure but I think the phones are about $30-$35 ea. you can call first just do a search for Hess Mart locations to get the number.

 

[cyberjyd]

Thanks for the advice Corster. Looks like my best option will be to get a T-mobile sim card from ebay and use the pinzoo website to add data on my phone.

 

[Sue M]

Just beware of T-Mobile. I got a T-Mobile internet stick for my laptop, had really bad reception at POR- I had to sit outside my room to get 2 bars, inside room-nothing.
When we moved to BC reception was great. I don't know if this has anything to do with phone reception with T-Mobile? And if phone reception is as spotty as their internet?

 

[corster]

Thanks for the advice Corster. Looks like my best option will be to get a T-mobile sim card from ebay and use the pinzoo website to add data on my phone.

T-Mobile actually lets you use Canadian Credit Cards (at the very least, Canadian AMEX cards since that's what I used last week)i on their website to reload, so you don't need to bother with Pinzoo.

 

[mountain man]

Some of the Disney resorts now have free Wifi

 

[disneyred]

Some of the Disney resorts now have free Wifi

do you know which ones.... my neighbor came back from BC in late august and he could not access anything there.

 

[Tiger926]

do you know which ones.... my neighbor came back from BC in late august and he could not access anything there.

Here is the list:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/news/General_Disney_News/Walt_Disney_World_resorts_testing_free_wi-fi.htm

Deluxe/DVC resorts and Coronado Springs.

Hope this helps, Tiger

 

[wendyt_ca]

just for texting. We are looking to do this for a trip in Feb. but have no idea what to buy. If anyone has done this before, could you suggest a basic phone just for texting and where to purchase. We need to buy 2. Thanks.

I am with Telus and I always add an unlimited texting plan for a flat fee of $20

 

[trainmon]

I am with Telus and I always add an unlimited texting plan for a flat fee of $20

In the past as I have visited the states many times. I have purchased a Verizon Hot Spot on emay (usually about $100) and then just call up verison and activate the device for the month, usually about $20 for a 5 gig plan. This allows me to have iPhone, iPad and Laptop with ability to share internet. The device is small and I bring it right into the park inside a zip lock bag to protect from water. It has worked many times.