Communication

Communicating with Friends and Family in the US

Using cell phones outside the U.S. can get expensive, so get to know your plan before we leave so you don’t incur any unexpected charges. Many carriers require you to have an international plan before you leave the U.S. for your phone to work when you arrive in England, so if you want to have cell service while we’re abroad, you’ll need to contact your provider.

  • Note: While we’re in England, using your cell phone will cost significantly more.  Most carriers charge by the minute for phone calls, by the message for text messages, and by the MB for data usage.  Data roaming charges are especially expensive!
  • Most providers offer special plans with a certain number of minutes and messages, and/or a given amount of data, if you want to guarantee you can use your phone carefully.

Alternative Forms of Communication

We will have internet access in our hotel.  You can communicate with people at home in the U.S. for free while connected to wifi through the following methods:

  • Facetime (on Apple products)
  • Skype (allows phone calls and video chats to other Skype accounts)
  • Viber (downloading this app before you leave will allow to you make phone calls, send text messages, and share photos with other Viber accounts)