Staying in Greve + some Cell/WIFI/Sim questions

[Jantell Stewart]

Greetings Dear Lourdes, you are my hero! A different question for you in regards to cellular (cell phone). What what you recommend for buying a prepaid SIM card, preferably with unlimited data? Is public Wi-Fi readily available in the Chianti area? We are staying in Greve. We hope to use our WAZE GPS app while driving. When we visited London a couple of years ago, we stopped in a small cell phone shop and they sold us pre-paid SIM cards that were on a monthly plan with unlimited data. It was on the "Three" network. If there's different cellular carriers in Italy, do you know which one might be the best? We live in NYC, it looks like we may be flying into Pisa, maybe buy a SIM card at the airport?
We just LOVE your posts, thank you!

 

[Lourdes]

Great questions! Am sure others have similar requests now that smartphones and tablets are everywhere!

You can most definitely buy a prepaid SIM card here in Italy for your phone without having to worry about a plan. Since you've already done it in London, I'll assume you have an unlocked phone since that is what you need to change out the SIM card.

The major carriers in Italy are: TIM, 3 (the one you used in London), Vodaphone, Wind.

I think the best one for being out in Greve will be TIM just because it has the best coverage overall. 3 has cheaper options but coverage is iffy and then falls back to TIM.

Data is generally limited though - but at 1GB (you can buy extra) for 5 euro you should be fine. You can buy more if you need it.

There should be a TIM store at the airport but if not (are you renting car there?), you can ask to be sent to the nearest one - there are stores everywhere! ;-)