Spain

Staying connected in Spain

Spain works for city breaks and beach holidays alike: Madrid's great museums, Gaudí's Barcelona, Seville, Granada and Córdoba in Andalusia, and Balearic islands such as Mallorca and Ibiza. High-speed trains link Madrid with most major cities, so many visitors fit four or five places into a week.

Summer is fiercely hot in the south and busy on the coast; March to May and September to October are better for sightseeing. Life runs late — dinner rarely starts before 9pm — so you will often want data in the evening to find restaurants and book rides, and during the day to pull up timed tickets for the Sagrada Família or the Alhambra, both worth booking early.

Coverage and networks

The plan information names these networks in Spain: Movistar, Orange ES, Vodafone ES and Yoigo.

Adding Portugal (Lisbon, Porto) or France? Consider the Europe 39 countries plan or Europe B (excluding the Netherlands). Gibraltar has its own page on Simtel.

Signal and speed depend on where you are, your device and network conditions, and can differ between plans.

Choosing a data allowance

eSIM plans for Spain currently last 1 to 30 days and come in these types:

• Daily data (500MB, 1GB, 2GB and 3GB per day): suits a steady routine. Check when the daily allowance resets and what happens once it is used.
• Total data (3GB to 50GB): one allowance for the whole trip, handy when some days are heavier than others.
• Unlimited: always read the fair-use policy; after a set amount, speed may be reduced.

Suggestions for this trip

• A week in Madrid and Barcelona spent on maps, ride-hailing and photos: 1GB per day is usually enough; if you film short clips for social media, choose 2GB per day.
• A 10–15 day beach holiday mixing resort days on Wi-Fi with busy sightseeing days: a 10GB or 20GB total data plan stretches further than a fixed daily allowance.
• Remote work or a 30-day stay: look at the 30GB or 50GB plans, or unlimited (fair-use policy).

Count your arrival and departure days. Before paying, check the exact plan for when validity starts, how days are counted, and whether hotspot, calls or SMS are included; these differ between plans.

Before you go

• Trains: The Renfe app sells AVE and regional tickets; luggage is scanned before you reach high-speed platforms, so arrive early.
• Ride-hailing: Uber and Cabify run in Madrid, Barcelona and other large cities, alongside app-booked taxis.
• Payments: Contactless cards are used even for small purchases, though some market stalls and tiny tapas bars are still cash only.
• Pickpockets: Las Ramblas, the Barcelona metro and central Madrid are notorious; hold your phone firmly when checking maps on the street.
• Local SIM: You need your passport to register.
• eSIM setup: Before buying, make sure your phone supports eSIM and is not carrier-locked. Install the eSIM before you fly, on a stable Wi-Fi connection, following the instructions sent with your plan.
• On arrival: Set the travel eSIM as your mobile data line and follow its roaming instructions. Turn off data roaming on your home SIM to avoid unexpected charges.