RonDon,

I am an AT&T user, so I cannot speak to Verizon’s plan, but AT&Ts plan sound very similar and the price is the same - $10 day. In the AT&T plan it is only activated if you use your phone to call. It is $0 until you call someone and that starts a 24 hour clock for unlimited calls and text from that minute.

When we travel, we put the phone in airplane mode and turn WiFi on. We rely on WhatsApp to chat with our children and any work matters that may arise. In Europe it is very easy to find free Wifi to check calls or text messages. However, if you NEED a phone you NEED a phone.

For example: on our recent trip to France, I was pick-pocketed while getting on a train. We jumped off at the first stop (Monaco) and I turned off airplane mode. I called the head teller at my local bank who shutdown my accounts immediately. The crooks had already pulled $3000 off my card within 20 minutes. Best $10 I ever spent to turn on my phone.

Off topic: Highly recommend you know your local bank’s number, and the number of someone who can shut off your account. I did call the fraud line as directed by the emails I received 45 minutes after the event. I spent almost an hour on the phone talking to computers, pushing 1 for yes and 2 for no. Finally got a human being who said your bank has already turned off my account.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if you are iPhone users you can use facetime to communicate with family and friends. It works off WiFi. My wife is an apple user so that is how we keep up with the most important thing… our grandchildren.

The Netherlands is one of my favorite places in the world!