Moble phone use in Thailand

MM2002

Hi All
My Daughter is travelling to Thailand in a few days for 20 days. Vodaphone want £6 a day for data usage etc. She is 1 month from the end of her contract. What is the best/cheapest way for her to get data and calls?
I'm guessing buy a sim out there for the duration of the holiday?
Any suggestions where to buy this and comapny to go for, or any other way so its sorted before she leaves the UK?

cymruchris

When she arrives at the airport - there will be multiple counters offering tourist sims with various packages available. She'll just have to wander up and down to see what's the best value for her baht. They'll swap the sim for her, and tape the original to a card that she can reinsert on leaving. 

MM2002

cymruchris said:

When she arrives at the airport - there will be multiple counters offering tourist sims with various packages available. She'll just have to wander up and down to see what's the best value for her baht. They'll swap the sim for her, and tape the original to a card that she can reinsert on leaving. 

So is this better deal than getting a sim from amazon? Ive found i can get one for £25 for 30GB delivered in 1 day, so still have time?

cymruchris

It will be better to get it there than to buy it on Amazon in my own experience. I haven't been there since Covid - but usually you'd spend less and get more data at that level. 

Voyager2002

MM2002 said:

cymruchris said:

When she arrives at the airport - there will be multiple counters offering tourist sims with various packages available. She'll just have to wander up and down to see what's the best value for her baht. They'll swap the sim for her, and tape the original to a card that she can reinsert on leaving. 

So is this better deal than getting a sim from amazon? Ive found i can get one for £25 for 30GB delivered in 1 day, so still have time?

When I was last in Thailand I got a SIM from Tesco Lotus rather than at the airport. I think I paid perhaps ten per cent of the cost you quote.

Doshwaster

MM2002 said:

cymruchris said:

When she arrives at the airport - there will be multiple counters offering tourist sims with various packages available. She'll just have to wander up and down to see what's the best value for her baht. They'll swap the sim for her, and tape the original to a card that she can reinsert on leaving. 

So is this better deal than getting a sim from amazon? Ive found i can get one for £25 for 30GB delivered in 1 day, so still have time?

The easiest option is to use one the the booths on arrival as they will setup for you everything and make sure it works. All of the networks are next to each other and there isn't much to choose from between them. I think I've used them all at one time or another.

Going to a 7/11 or other convenance store might be a bit cheaper but you will have to set it up yourself. Maybe worth it you are on a longer trip but for 2-3 weeks I wouldn't bother.

Personally, for sheer convince I'd pay a bit and get it done at one of the booths. You will be up and running in minutes and get you out of the airport quickest. 

tightauldgit

Yeah just go to one of the booths at the airport and buy a SIM - it'll probably be a couple of quid more expensive than the cheapest way but they'll set it up and probably speak English, the person at a random convenience store probably doesn't.

Bonhomie

MM2002 said:

Hi All
My Daughter is travelling to Thailand in a few days for 20 days. Vodaphone want £6 a day for data usage etc. She is 1 month from the end of her contract. What is the best/cheapest way for her to get data and calls?
I'm guessing buy a sim out there for the duration of the holiday?
Any suggestions where to buy this and comapny to go for, or any other way so its sorted before she leaves the UK?

The advice to obtain a SIM at the airport is poor. The difference  is not "a couple of quid" as suggested.
The SIMs at the airport are in general relatively poor value. They specifically push you towards the relatively expensive ''Tourist/Traveller SIM". Example: https://www.ais.th/travellersim/  Just over £29(1250 baht) for 30 days of usage. Bundled with 300 GB of data and some useless add-ons, but notably no 'any network' free calls. Only free calls within the same network. Doesn't look bad if you are comparing to the SIM available via Amazon.

What they don't tell you, is that you can obtain a normal SIM from any of their other services centres, costing the equivalent of £1.15(50 baht), simply applying an Unlimited data pack(capped at 15 Mbps), costing the equivalent of £4.65(200 baht).  £5.80, in total, as opposed to  £29.10. They will set everything up for you, so that you are connected and registered. If you want a package that allows unlimited free calls to any network, then instead you can apply that pack, costing  £5.82(250 baht), for a total of £6.97. For that, you get 10GB of 5G speeds(if needed) on top of the 4G unlimited data at 15 Mbps, plus unlimited domestic calls(limited to 15 minutes per call. You can just hang up and immediately dial again ).

But of course, some people are too afraid to not be connected for the few hours it takes to get from the airport to a service centre at their destination and so will pay the higher price and obtain much less.
But since this is a forum dedicated to saving money... 300 baht(£7 with any network calls and 5G) or 1250 baht(£29 no any network calls and no 5G)? Up to you 

My suggestion would be to go with AIS. They have the packages as described. You can send me a PM for how to apply for the above packs at the local service centres.

eDicky

The above advice from Bonhomie is correct. A PAYG SIM costs Bt50 and a few hundred baht top-up gives access to a wide range of bundles, I normally used those costing less than Bt100. Any hotel will have free wi-fi. So it really depends on how thrifty and adventurous a visitor likes to be, whether they already begin paying high tourist prices by purchasing a SIM at the airport booths...

MM2002

Thankyou all so much for your replies. Really helpful and kind of you to take the time to respond. Whichever way I go it will be a fraction of the £6 a day Vodaphone want!!

Thanks again all. This is where the internet is at its best

Bonhomie

Just to update this thread. AIS have officially stopped their unlimited data packs by the month. DTAC & Truemove H still have them, but access is not mainstream. You have to know what works. 
Anyone can send a PM for up to date info before they are going to travel.