UK phone needed for a week

jtlpbrighton

Sister visiting UK from Australia due to family health emergency. She needs a phone for calls and internet. I don't have an old phone she can use. I'm clueless as to where to go to get her a phone. All I can think of is to get a PAYG from Tescos in the morning (she flies in tomorrow morning). Anyone got any better ideas please?

PHK

If she is bringing her Australian phone she’ll be able to get a SIM at the airport which often has special visitor rates. 

Failing that you can pick up a phone and SIM in many places, Argos,Tesco, Asda,Curry’s. CeX if you want second hand with a guarantee 

jtlpbrighton

Thank you. I'm not sure she'll know about the airport sims (she's in the air right now). I'll go to Tesco tomorrow. Thanks for the rapid response, much appreciated. 

la531983

She might be better seeing what rates her Australian operator offer for roaming, may be a bolt-on she can buy when she lands.

Of course we are assuming she has an actual physical phone already?

Cisco001

What phone she is using in Aus?
Can she use eSIM?

mrcamp

If she decides to purchase a local UK sim to use in her current phone, the phone will need to be unlocked. 

ballyblack

Most phones are unlocked. Locked phones have not been sold for years

ballyblack

I had a visitor from NZ las week. Just went into to Tesco mobile and got a bundle 1 month 10GB unlimited calls for £10. Just inserted the SIM in her dual SIM Android and was up & running immediately

jtlpbrighton

Sorry for the delay with thanks for your responses - sister was flying in for a family emergency so I've been a bit distracted to respond in a timely manner. Tesco sim card worked as ballyblack also did for a friend. Thank you for all the replies, much appreciated. 

toeknee2

In the future, have a look at a travel eSIM, they’re not too tricky to install. Roamcompare.com has a good data estimation tool, so you can get an idea of how much data you need and don’t get ripped off! You can also use a filter to get eSIMs with phone numbers, if that’s what you need!

jtlpbrighton

Some great advice, thank you all so much. My sister has returned to Australia and all went well with phone contacts with everyone. Really appreciate the replies and super grateful for this site being in existence!