Should You Rent or Should You Buy?

You basically have several options. The first is to use your current handset, provided it is compatible, and purchase only a SIM card. We do not rent SIM cards. If you are traveling to one country only, we recommend that you purchase a country specific SIM card when available. If you are traveling to multiple countries, you should purchase the National Geographic Travel SIM. On occasion, travelers, predominantly business travelers, want to travel with their US option and a local option from Cellular Abroad.

Another option is to rent. If you do not travel often (and your phone does not work overseas) you should rent either our National Geographic Travel Phone or a “country specific” rental phone. If you are traveling to two or more countries, the National Geographic Travel Phone is the right choice, otherwise, a country specific solution is the way to go. The main difference is that while the Nat Geo solution works in multiple countries, as the name implies, country specific solutions are designed to work in one specific country.

If you travel at least once a year, we recommend that you purchase a SIM/phone package. As with our rentals, we offer the National Geographic Travel Phone solution as well as country specific solutions available for purchase.