This post is also available in: 
Italian
Spanish
French
Nowadays, one of the biggest concerns that we have when we travel is what will happen with our mobile phone. Will I have to be constantly worrying about the available Wi-Fi networks if I want to be connected? Will I be shocked with my mobile company’s bill once I get home? Pay as you go cards really are the solution for short-term stays. You will not have to worry about exceeding your rate, as there is no contract and what you pay at the beginning is what you will get.
There are multiple offers in the market and especially in London.
The main phone companies in the UK are Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile, 3, Lebara and GiffGaff. They all provide different plans in which you pay a determined amount for thirty days depending on the minutes, texts and GB you want to get. These prices range from 10 to 40 pounds per month. Each company provides different combinations of number of texts, minutes of calls and MB of data for each price. At end, what you have to take into account when you choose a company or another are your preferences over these three characteristics.
GiffGaff, for example, offers 500 minutes of UK calls, unlimited texts and 5 GB of data for £15. For the same price, Lebara offers 250 minutes of calls, unlimited texts, 1 GB and 150 minutes of international calls, which is important if you want to call abroad. Both companies offer free coverage between phones of the same company (Lebara to Lebara UK or GiffGaff to GiffGaff UK).
If you want unlimited data, the best plan is GiffGaff’s “£20 goodybag”, in which you can get 2000 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited Internet for £20.
Once you buy a prepaid SIM card, you will be able to connect to social media, call and text UK phones wherever you want (if there is signal, of course).
If what you want is to call home, you will not be able to do it like a regular mobile call because these plans usually cover only UK calls, except for some Lebara plans that include international calls. Instead, you can call them using skype, WhatsApp calls or other Apps consuming the data you have purchased.
To sum up, there are multiple options if you want to get a UK number for just a short time and there is a suitable plan for every type of preferences.
