You just landed in a new country, and the first thing on your mind—after getting through customs—is staying connected. You might think that grabbing a SIM card from the airport is the easiest and best option. But is that really the case?
We’ve all been warned to keep our wits about us when travelling. Even if well equipped with common-sense, it’s just too easy to be taken advantage of when you’re trying to fulfill a need while on foreign soil.
As you make your way through the airport to baggage claim, you’ll likely spot kiosks selling airport SIM cards, promising “fast and easy” data plans for travellers. Sounds tempting, right?
Well, hold the phone. Buying a SIM card at the airport is actually one of the biggest travel traps you can fall into. Don’t succumb to the allure of the promise of convenience.
Too often these vendors take advantage of travellers by overcharging, offering limited plans, and locking users into expensive “deals.”
Don’t risk getting ripped off before your trip even begins. Instead, check out this much smarter solution: downloading an eSIM like aloSIM ahead of time.
Here’s a closer look at why you should skip the airport SIM card and what to do instead.
Are airport SIM cards a bad deal?
The short answer is yes. For starters, they’re massively overpriced. Airport kiosks bank on confused and overwhelmed travellers and charge a premium for convenience.
Travellers who are desperate for connectivity jump without realizing that they’re paying double or even triple the local price for the same SIM—and likely without extra perks.
Many airport SIM cards only offer limited data that might run out faster than expected or have an expiration date (meaning unused data disappears after a set period).
If the user doesn’t look closely at the fine print, they might not catch any hidden activation or service fees and end up paying more than what’s advertised.
If ease and speed were the major draws, think again. Some airport SIM kiosks also require travellers to register their passports to purchase a data plan, which could add additional time to the process.
Afterwards, activation can take a few minutes, or it could take several hours, until which point you’ll be without any service.
This is all assuming that the kiosks are even open and staffed when you arrive at your destination. If your flight doesn’t land until the night, you might be out of luck completely.
The smarter SIM: aloSIM
Instead of falling into the airport SIM card trap, savvy travellers download aloSIM before they even leave home. With aloSIM, you don’t need to waste your travel time in search of a kiosk or dealing with activation delays.
Just download the aloSIM app and select a data plan for your destination (or region of your destination) before your flight. Activate it on arrival and you’re set with an instant connection.
Unlike expensive airport SIMs, aloSIM offers data starting as low as $4.50, which is not only affordable and reliable, but also skips any surprise fees.
Plus, your primary number stays intact, and you can use aloSIM for data while keeping your regular number for calls and texts to your family and friends back at home.
