Yes, you read that title correct, I [use and] recommend T-Mobile for travel. Even if you are not traveling the world, I recommend T-Mobile. The day I published this post, a friend just happened to share the photo below on Facebook and it is the perfect picture for this post.
All that blue is the Pacific Ocean. It is also home to Polynesian Triangle which takes up 2 million sq kilometers | 800,000 sq miles. For reference, that is roughly eight times the the size of Colorado, USA!
As you can see, at the widest point it’s 180 degrees = half of Earth
In the middle of all that blue, I have cell phone service with T-Mobile
Where is T-Mobile from?
T-Mobile was previously VoiceStream Wireless PCS under Western Wireless Corporation. In 2002, Deutsche Telekom AG purchased and renamed the company T-Mobile USA Inc. Over time they have acquired smaller wireless carriers, including Sprint. Currently the German owned company operates as the second largest wireless carrier in the United States.
How does it work?
T-Mobile has contacts with one wireless provider in every single country.
When a T-Mobile customer enters a new country their wireless device automatically connects to the local network.
Carriers such as Verizon and AT&T (which are already expensive) require their customers to pay additional money every single day to use their data and messaging abroad.
Not with T-Mobile! When you pay for the international plan there are no extra fees for using your data or sending messages from your cell phone. The only requirement is to turn your data roaming on.
In 2019, I switched to T-Mobile and have been a happy customer ever since. My phone works in every single country with no extra daily data charge, and my bill is under 90 per month. I have friends who pay 125 per month for one person and their phone does not work in their living room, let alone in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
At the end of the day, I much rather tap my screen to turn data roaming on vs pay an extra hundred dollars for a short vacation.