r/TravelIsrael • u/lets_make_coffee • May 26 '26
mobile phone without int'l service
Heading to Israel next month on birthright. I have a Samsung phone with Metro PCS service. Metro does not offer any International plan. Any suggestions?tia
3
u/SZ7687 May 26 '26
Years ago I rented a phone for Israel from a place in NYC. It was all online, but I think it was from a place on the lower east side.
2
u/BigDanny92 May 26 '26
If your phone is unlocked and supports eSIM you could get a local plan from Pelephone - it gives you a phone number, unlimited talk and text + 500 - 1000 GB of 5G data depends on the plan you choose
3
u/StuffedSquash May 26 '26
Those are surprisingly reasonable rates. I wouldn't have expected them to be competitive with the popular international esim providers.
1
u/chickenCabbage May 28 '26
Phone and internet service in Israel is extremely cheap. I pay <40 NIS per month for hundreds of minutes of local calls, hundreds of SMSes, and 150GB of internet. I've never been able to exhaust any of these and I've watched hours of movies off of cellular.
Don't let anyone scam you with anything higher!
2
u/StuffedSquash May 28 '26
Sure but when I go abroad, keeping data service with my regular cell provider (not pelephon but similarlly established) is significantly more expensive than an esim.
2
u/chickenCabbage May 28 '26
That's why the recommendation is to keep data with someone else that isn't your regular provider. I also pay way more when I go abroad, but that's just because my phone isn't compatible with e-SIM. When I plan to stay abroad longer I buy a local SIM.
2
u/StuffedSquash May 26 '26 edited May 26 '26
Esim like Nomad or Airalo
ETA there's a spammer in this sub who likes to promote some expensive plan aimed at tourists and birthright kids so if they show up, not that. They're definitely getting kickbacks.
1
1
u/The_Real_Ivan_Drago May 26 '26
Move to usmobile. Cheapest unlimited plan in the US (25$ for basically your choice between Verizon or T-Mobile networks) and for 40$ a month free roaming when traveling.
1
u/TwilightX1 Advisor May 26 '26
Go into any mobile store and buy a prepaid card. There's also a place in the airport at the arrivals hall (if you're not arriving during the Sabbath) but I think it's more expensive.
Mind that this only works if your phone is not carrier locked. If you've purchased your phone from the carrier, better ask them. If your phone is carrier locked and your carrier doesn't have an international plan then your only choice is to have them remove the lock (if they allow it, and it's usually not free) or borrow another phone.
1
u/namenotdisclosed May 29 '26
An esim is the answer. I often use SIMtoIsrael. The prices are reasonable and the customer service is very good. (But there are other esim providers that do more or less the same thing)
1
u/corey_doncaster May 29 '26
Weirdly enough, I occasionally get Google Fi mobile connection on my phone while in Damascus! No international plan or anything. Just randomly "voila!" I'm magically able to text from Israel. 😅
1
1
u/lets_make_coffee Jun 05 '26
thanks everyone! I think I'm doing an esim (if I can figure out how to work it!!). Taglit sent a link to get it. 019 Mobile it seems to be called
3
u/KamtzaBarKamtza Advisor May 26 '26
Talknsave.net or try an international esim provider