Staying connected
Mobile data in Australia, without the roaming bill
Australia is one of the most expensive places in the world to use a UK phone carelessly. An eSIM fixes it for the price of a couple of coffees — and if you use the link on this page, Airalo takes £2.50 off your first one.
Get £2.50 off your first eSIM →
How this link works: it's our personal Airalo referral link. You get £2.50 credit off your first eSIM, and we receive credit too. It costs you nothing extra — in fact it's cheaper than going direct.
Why this matters more on an Australian trip
On a week in Spain, roaming barely registers. On a month in Australia it's a different proposition entirely — you are outside every EU roaming arrangement, you'll be relying on maps in unfamiliar cities, and the trip is long enough that daily roaming charges compound into real money. Three or four weeks of daily roaming fees can quietly add £150–£300 to a holiday.
The other thing nobody mentions: on the longer escorted tours you'll be moving through the Outback and the Top End, where coverage is patchy regardless of who you're with. A local network eSIM generally gives you better coverage in those areas than a UK SIM roaming onto whichever partner network it can find.
The honest caveats
eSIMs are excellent, but they are not for everyone, and it's worth being straight about that:
- Your phone must support eSIM and be network-unlocked. Anything older than roughly 2018 probably won't.
- It's a data-only plan. You keep your UK number for calls and texts on your normal SIM — but calls made over the mobile network still cost roaming rates. Use WhatsApp or FaceTime instead.
- You need to be reasonably comfortable scanning a QR code and toggling a setting or two. It takes five minutes, but it isn't zero effort.
- If your UK provider already includes worldwide roaming on your plan, you may not need one at all. Check before you buy.
What we'd do
Buy the eSIM a week before departure, install it at home on wifi, and leave it switched off. Land in Sydney, turn it on, done — you're connected before you've reached baggage reclaim, which is exactly when you want to be sending the “landed safely” message.
For a multi-country itinerary, look at a regional pack rather than several country ones. If you're on a trip that takes in Singapore or New Zealand as well as Australia, that's usually the cheaper route.
Questions
eSIMs for Australia, explained
What actually is an eSIM?
A SIM card that arrives as a QR code instead of a piece of plastic. You buy a data pack online, scan the code, and your phone carries a second mobile number and data plan alongside your normal one. Your UK SIM stays active for calls and texts; the eSIM handles the data at local rates.
Does my phone support one?
This is the question to settle before you buy. Broadly: iPhone XS/XR (2018) and newer, Google Pixel 3 and newer, and Samsung Galaxy S20 and newer. Your phone must also be network-unlocked — if you bought it on a contract and never asked for it to be unlocked, ring your provider first, as it's free and can take a couple of days. On an iPhone, Settings → General → About → look for “EID”. If there's an EID, you have eSIM.
How much data do I need for three or four weeks?
More than you think, because you'll use maps and translation far more than at home, but less than you fear, because hotel wifi covers the evenings. As a rough guide: 1GB per week for maps, messaging and email; 3GB per week if you're posting photos and videos daily; 10GB+ per week if you plan to stream or video-call the family regularly. For a 20-day multi-centre trip, most people land somewhere around 5–10GB. You can always top up mid-trip from the app.
What about New Zealand, Singapore and the Cook Islands?
This is where eSIMs earn their keep on a multi-country itinerary. A single Australia pack won't work across the Tasman — but there are regional packs covering Oceania, and Asia-wide packs that include Singapore, so a trip like our Singapore–Queensland itinerary or a 53-day Australia–New Zealand–Cook Islands tour can be covered with one or two purchases rather than juggling SIM cards in every airport.
Is it actually cheaper than my normal provider's roaming?
Almost always, and often by an order of magnitude. UK providers typically charge daily roaming fees outside Europe, or per-megabyte rates that make a single map lookup expensive. A few of the bigger networks include some worldwide roaming on premium plans — check yours first, because if you already have it included, you don't need any of this. For everyone else, an eSIM data pack for a fortnight in Australia usually costs less than two days of pay-as-you-go roaming.
When should I set it up?
Buy and install it before you leave the UK, while you have wifi and time to sort out any problems — but don't activate it until you land. Most packs start counting down from first use, not from purchase.
While you're organising
The rest of the pre-flight list
Airport parking
On a four-week trip, airport parking is one of the biggest add-on costs of the whole holiday — and one of the few that gets cheaper the earlier you book.
Airport hotels
Long-haul to Australia usually means an early or awkward departure. A night at the terminal beforehand turns a 3am start into a lie-in.
Airport lounges
Before a 20-hour flight, three hours of quiet, free food and a proper seat is worth considerably more than it costs.
Travel insurance
Non-negotiable on a trip this long and this far away. Check the medical cover limits and that your full trip length and any activities are included.
eSIM data — £2.50 off
Skip the roaming charges. An Airalo eSIM gives you data the moment you land, and our referral link takes £2.50 off your first one.
Parking, hotels, lounges and insurance are booked through Holiday Extras; eSIMs through Airalo, using our referral link (you get £2.50 off, we get credit too). Both are commercial links — see our disclosure.
Still choosing the holiday?
20 Australia and New Zealand itineraries, compared side by side — escorted grand tours, multi-centre packages and private tours with your own driver.
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