Tech expert Harriet explains how she ditches her day-to-day network for SMARTY each time she goes on holiday, as she can use a chunk of roaming data for free
For many, prepping for a holiday means getting their passports in check, planning tours and topping up on a stealthy supply of suncream, but there’s one essential that can leave travellers caught out. Mobile phones and using data abroad.
Arguably, it is not as important for resort lovers who don’t plan on leaving the comfort of their star-rated wifi-fulled complex. But for others, not having the right plan can add up to a hefty bill – from booking taxis, using Google Maps for sightseeing, scrolling on social media for recommendations or keeping in touch with family and friends.
Vodafone charges me a daily £2.25 charge to use my mobile data in Europe – this may not sound like much, but after two weeks sunning on a lounger it’s an extra £31.50 to add to my holiday budget. Which is what spurred me on to switch to a cheaper budget provider SMARTY Mobile while on holiday – I’ve since travelled to Spain, Portugal and Denmark all while paying £0 to scroll.
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SMARTY provides all its users with a generous amount of free roaming data to use in the EU (up to 12GB) as part of their plans, making it a rare gem among providers since Brexit. This falls under its ‘fair use limit’ and as long as you don’t exceed this amount in a month, you won’t have to shell out to use it.
I have a £20 unlimited data SIM and that includes up to 12GB of EU roaming for free, which I reviewed last summer on a long-weekend trip in Barcelona, which you can read here. Since then, I’ve used it on a trip to Copenhagen, and twice in Portugal – a weekend trip to Porto and a week in Faro.
SMARTY 80GB plan
SMARTY has doubled its data offer, mobile users can now get double the limit on its usual 40GB plan, but the monthly price stays the same.
My likes and dislikes of using SMARTY
A huge pro for me, and something I’m sure is for many is connection speeds, it’s always been reliable and quick. However, the free 12GB usage (while it’s hard to find a free amount elsewhere) does go quickly.
Don’t get me wrong, this is definitely a huge perk as not many providers offer it, but shoppers would probably need to buy an add-on if they’re making multiple trips within the same month, or a longer multiple-week break.
The 12GB of fair use roaming data limit is a selling point for many – but another is the price – as it sits above rivals, including Sky Mobile and EE, when it comes to price. For example you can currently get 80GB of monthly data for £10 per month on a rolling contract, that’s the price EE charges for 8GB a month.
Sky is offering a half-price data offer for the first six months of shoppers’ contracts – where 10GB is now priced at £7 per month and you have to commit to a contract. SMARTY uses Three Mobile’s network and Sky Mobile runs on O2’s so both providers have pros and cons when it comes to connectivity in specific areas.
Three Mobile also charges its pay monthly customers a daily roaming fee of £2, with a cap of 12GB of your plan. This a price that Sky matches with its Roaming Passport Plus fee.
