how to have a US phone

Bossy22

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jan 7, 2012
With all the tickets being usable for your phone as well as maxpass and such, I'm wondering if anyone has any tips? Do you just pay the $ to use your Canadian number (our carrier didn't have the best coverage last time we were there) or do you get a USA number? If so, how do you do this? lol (old man asking)
 
I'm from Ireland and for the first time in 10 years of going to Disneyland I got an American SIM card for my phone.

The two main carriers are AT&T and TMobile.

You need to go to their websites and check if your Canadian phone is compatible with the networks.
You will need your phones IMEI number to check compatibility.

Once you find which network your phone is compatible with, you need to make sure your phone is unlocked, so that you can use a different network SIM card.

You can buy USA SIM cards on Amazon but I went to a phone shop when I arrived in LA. I got a PAY AS YOU GO T Mobile SIM card with unlimited Data for $70.

It was amazing having Data in Disneyland. I was able to get Ogas Cantina on the day reservations, check ride wait times and use mobile ordering at quick service restaurants. I didn't get Maxpass, I still used the free Fastpass kiosks.
 
We are with Fido and it’s only $8 a day to a max I think for USA roaming . Call your cell provider it’s not as bad as it used to be
 
We have used Roam Mobility from Can. No issues and as one old man to another, I was able to figure it out. But make sure before to have your phone unlocked. All Can providers must do so.
 


I concur with old man mort1331, I am technically challenged and I have been able to get Roam Mobility to work on all our US trips. I did have an issue one year with my Blackberry in Florida but since I changed to an Android phone Roam Mobility has worked really well (California, Florida, and the North Eastern states).
 
I am with Bell Mobility and just add the $40 travel package to my phone and also try to use wifi as much as possible.
 
1 Koodo phone and 1 Fido phone here and we’ve gotten Roam Mobility SIM cards ready to go.
 


If you make a lot of trips to the US, you might want to see if you can / if it's worth adding US as a calling zone (i.e. it makes it so you get no roaming fees anywhere in Canada or the US). I added it for my wife who's with Rogers for $10/month. I'm not sure if you can simply add it and then remove it (we just keep it all year as we typically make about 1/2 dozen trips per year).
 
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Another Roam user here, we have a SIM for each of us and I just top up the plans when we go. $5/day for voice, text and data which is less tha our $8/day roam like home plan!
 
I usually use Rogers roam like home for $7/day, but knowing that I would use data every day for our recent Disneyland trip, I used roam mobility. It worked great and was cheaper.

https://roammobility.com/
The only issues you need to be aware of:
- your phone needs to be unlocked if it didn't come that way
- you will have a US #, so if friends or family need to call or text you, they will be charged long distance fees
 
I also use Rogers Roam Like Home. $7/day up to a max of $105 per monthly billing cycle. It may be a little more expensive than Roam Mobility, but for the convenience of having your own number and your full data/voice package, for me it's worth it.
 
I have used both Telaway and Roam Mobility SIMS in my Canadian cell phones (all iPhones) on multiple trips and love the ability to use my phone whoever I need it. You get a US phone number and can forward your phone before you switch the SIM. With Telaway there's a Canadian number to forward your phone to and then your cell will have a US number. Both are super simple and worked great.
 
I have used both Telaway and Roam Mobility SIMS in my Canadian cell phones (all iPhones) on multiple trips and love the ability to use my phone whoever I need it. You get a US phone number and can forward your phone before you switch the SIM. With Telaway there's a Canadian number to forward your phone to and then your cell will have a US number. Both are super simple and worked great.

Forwarding your phone works well for voice but it will not help for text messaging. You either need to put your CND SIM back in periodically to check for SMS or simply receive them (possibly) when you get back to Canada.

This is the deal breaker for us; we both use our phones for work and regularly receive text messages so having a US number is not a good option.
 
I also use Rogers Roam Like Home. $7/day up to a max of $105 per monthly billing cycle. It may be a little more expensive than Roam Mobility, but for the convenience of having your own number and your full data/voice package, for me it's worth it.

If you've the $105 max in the past, you should consider upgrading your Rogers plan to Canada/US coverage. For an extra $120 + tax / year, you'll get no roaming fees in the US (and I believe free LD calls to US numbers).
 
I'm a little different in that I don't get anything for my phone when I go to WDW. When we're in Buffalo before and after our trip, I only use it when there's free WiFi which is in most stores, hotels and the airport.

Once in Orlando there is free WiFi in the airport and most places at WDW with the exception of buses although that is coming.

I don't find I need to purchase anything for my phone if I'm strategic about when I use it and really there isn't much time that I can't use it.
 
I'm a little different in that I don't get anything for my phone when I go to WDW. When we're in Buffalo before and after our trip, I only use it when there's free WiFi which is in most stores, hotels and the airport.

Once in Orlando there is free WiFi in the airport and most places at WDW with the exception of buses although that is coming.

I don't find I need to purchase anything for my phone if I'm strategic about when I use it and really there isn't much time that I can't use it.

I agree that you can get by with just wi-fi at WDW. This is much more difficult at DLR, especially if you are using MaxPass. Wi-fi at DLR is pretty spotty and you pretty much need a data plan there.
 
Forwarding your phone works well for voice but it will not help for text messaging. You either need to put your CND SIM back in periodically to check for SMS or simply receive them (possibly) when you get back to Canada.

This is the deal breaker for us; we both use our phones for work and regularly receive text messages so having a US number is not a good option.

While it's true you can't receive texts sent to your Canadian number (and I fully admit that I don't text for work purposes or need my phone for work on vacation) I just send a message to my contacts from my phone once I insert the US sim and tell them it's me and they text that number for the duration of the trip. The another solution is to use a free texting app like Whatsapp for all those communications.
 
I used to use Roam, but found it really spotty and kind of useless in many places. Now I just do the roaming with my own phone (Koodo).
 
For me, from Canada, I used Roam and had absolutely no problems with it anywhere in Disney, Universal or Orlando as a whole.
 
We are with Fido and it’s only $8 a day to a max I think for USA roaming . Call your cell provider it’s not as bad as it used to be
It’s $7/day for 15 days. Unless Fido varies Prov. to Prov.

Forwarding your phone works well for voice but it will not help for text messaging. You either need to put your CND SIM back in periodically to check for SMS or simply receive them (possibly) when you get back to Canada.

This is the deal breaker for us; we both use our phones for work and regularly receive text messages so having a US number is not a good option.
Never thought of that with texts. Good point.
I'm a little different in that I don't get anything for my phone when I go to WDW. When we're in Buffalo before and after our trip, I only use it when there's free WiFi which is in most stores, hotels and the airport.

Once in Orlando there is free WiFi in the airport and most places at WDW with the exception of buses although that is coming.

I don't find I need to purchase anything for my phone if I'm strategic about when I use it and really there isn't much time that I can't use it.
I’m going to try this on upcoming trip to Universal. I’ll keep it in Airplane mode and see how it works for me.
I agree that you can get by with just wi-fi at WDW. This is much more difficult at DLR, especially if you are using MaxPass. Wi-fi at DLR is pretty spotty and you pretty much need a data plan there.
Wifi at DL is abysmal! I just used my Fido roam. Fido roams on AT&T in most places in the US. Both Disney parks have very good reception for AT&T. I hope DL boosts wifi. I remember the early days of wifi at wdw, it was pretty rough.

For those looking to get a US sim, get AT&T. ESP for DL. A friend I was with had T-Mobile which was horrible. Many times she couldn’t get a signal while I could.
 

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