Public Phones, Hotel-Room Phones and Phone Cards
Here are the different landline calling options you'll encounter in Europe. Note that while European phones have keypads, you can't count on being able to access your stateside voice mail from Europe (particularly in Italy).
Public Pay Phones: Thanks to mobile phones, public pay phones are becoming more difficult to find. But you'll still see phone booths (in most European languages, these are called cabina, kah-bee-nah) and banks of phones in post offices and train stations.
Most public phones in Europe work with insertable phone cards that you buy locally. (While some card phones also accept coins, most don't; for more on using an insertable phone card, see "Making Calls," later on this page.)
Great Britain, an exception to the norm, doesn't sell insertable phone cards. Their pay phones accept coins or major credit cards. If you encounter a coin-operated phone, have enough small change to complete your call. Only entirely unused coins will be returned — so don't plug in large coins until it's clear that you'll be having a long conversation. The digital countdown meter warns you when you're about to be cut off. Many phones allow follow-on calls, so you won't lose your big-coin credit — look for this button and push it (rather than hanging up), then dial the next number.
Calling Shops: Cheap calling shops that advertise low rates to faraway lands have popped up all over Europe, often in immigrant neighborhoods. While these target immigrants from the developing world who want to call home cheaply, tourists can use them, too. (A few European post offices have old-fashioned metered phones that work similarly.) The clerk assigns you a booth and can help you with your long-distance prefixes. You sit in your private sweatbox, make the call, and pay the bill when you're done. Sometimes (especially at post offices), calls cost the same as from a public phone, but most of the calling shops specialize in long-distance calls and can have cheaper rates. Before using any metered phone service, be completely clear on the rates. For example, the listed price may be per unit, rather than per minute — if there are 10 "units" in a minute, your call costs 10 times what you expected.
Hotel-Room Phones: Using your hotel phone for limited local calls or calls using cheap international phone cards works well, but otherwise it's an almost-criminal rip-off. I do this only when I'm feeling flush and lazy, for a quick "Call me in Stockholm at this number" message. Many hotels charge a fee for local and "toll-free" as well as long-distance or international calls — always ask for the rates before you dial.
You'll never be charged for receiving calls, so having someone from the US call you in your room can be a cheap way to stay in touch. First, get a long-distance plan or a prepaid card that offers good rates on calls from the US to Europe. (If you'll be making lots of calls to Europe, look into a prepaid provider such as OneSuite, which is often cheaper than the big long-distance companies.) Give your family a list of your hotels' phone numbers before you leave. While you're on the road, you can set up calling times by email, quick pay-phone calls, or mobile phone text messages. Then relax in your room and wait for the ring.
Making Calls
There's a number of ways to pay for fixed-line phone calls. The best deals are available only in Europe. If you're not traveling with a mobile phone, this is a good plan: For each country you enter, buy a low-denomination insertable phone card for making domestic calls (from pay phones) and an international calling card for dialing people at home (from pay phones or your hotel room).
Insertable phone cards: Insertable phone cards, which can only be used at pay phones, are common throughout Europe (except Britain). They are easy to use and sold conveniently at post offices, newsstands, street kiosks, tobacco shops, and train stations. Simply take the phone off the hook, insert the card, wait for a dial tone, and dial away. While you can use these cards to call anywhere in the world, they're only a good deal for making quick local calls. Each European country has its own phone card — so your German card won't work in an Austrian phone. The cheapest cards can cost $5 — more phone time than you may need in that country. If you're as frugal as I am, you'll lie awake at night wondering how to productively use it up before you cross the next border. You can always blow through the remaining telephone time by calling home, or pass your card along to another traveler.
International phone cards: Calling from Europe to the United States can cost as little as a nickel a minute with handy international phone cards available in most of Europe. You can use international phone cards to make inexpensive calls from nearly any phone, including the one in your hotel room (ask at the desk if there are any fees for using the phone to make toll-free calls).
International cards all work the same way and are simple to use. These prepaid cards come with a toll-free number and a PIN code (similar to cheap calling cards widely available in the US). The back of the card often contains basic instructions in English on how to make calls.
Scratch off the back to reveal your PIN, then dial the toll-free number to reach an automated operator. When prompted, dial in your PIN code. Then dial the number you want to call. A voice tells you how much is left in your account and connects you. The prompts are nearly always in English, but if they aren't, experiment: Dial your code, followed by the pound sign (#), then the phone number, then pound again, and so on, until it works.
If you're making lots of calls, you can avoid redialing the access number and PIN code by pressing whatever key (usually the pound sign) allows you to launch directly into your next call — just follow the instructions on the card.
Calls to the US generally cost 5–10 cents per minute, and you can also use the card to call within the same country or to another European country. Cards are generally marked as national or international. All cards work for both domestic or international calls, but you get better rates if you use the card for the purpose it was intended — so if you plan to use your card mostly for calls home, get an international card.
You can buy international phone cards at many kiosks, newsstands, long-distance phone shops, youth hostels, and Internet cafés, but the best selection is usually at hole-in-the wall calling shops that cater to immigrants, who are the leading experts on phoning home cheaply. Because there are so many brand names, simply ask for an international phone card and tell the vendor where you'll be making most calls ("to America"), and he'll select the brand with the best deal. Some international phone cards work in multiple countries — if traveling to Norway, Denmark, and Sweden, look for a card that you can use in all three places. Buy a lower-denomination card in case the card is a dud. Some shops also sell cardless codes, printed right on the receipt.
There's one catch: International phone cards are such a good deal that the national telecom companies in certain countries (including Germany and Great Britain) have cracked down. In these places, using one of these cards at a pay phone comes with a hefty surcharge that effectively negates the savings. However, even in these countries, international phone cards are still a good deal if you call from a fixed line (such as in a hotel room). Also be aware that in Eastern Europe, these cards are harder to find — and often not as cheap.
Remember that you don't need the actual card to use a card account, so it's shareable. You can write down the access number and PIN code in your notebook and share it with friends. Give the number of a still lively card to another traveler if you're leaving the country.
Be warned that you can only buy these cards in Europe — the big-name American calling cards that you buy in the US are usually a poor value (explained below).
Collect calls: Calling collect is more complicated and always more expensive. It's cheaper and easier if you have your friend call you back, dialing direct from the States. Call cheap and fast from a phone booth and ask your friend to call you back at your hotel.
Student and hostel phone cards: Many travel cards — such as the ISIC student identity card or the HI hostel membership card — also double as prepaid calling cards. Ask for details when you buy your card.
US calling cards: Calling-card services offered by American companies such as Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon are a rotten value (figure about $2–3/minute from Europe to the US). These companies also offer prepaid calling cards that you can buy in the US before leaving on your trip. But the rates to call home (about 20 cents a minute) are generally about double what you'll pay if you use international phone cards purchased in Europe.
Updated for 2011. For lots more tips, check out our best-selling Europe Through the Back Door travel skills guidebook.