I don't know about the rest of Europe but in the UK you can either sign
up for a contract (minimum 1 year) and get a phone that way.  There are
all sorts of deals on how many free minutes you get but I doubt they
would be international.

Here's an example of one major provider's price plans -

http://www.orange.co.uk/service_plans/

Or you can get "Pay as you go"  (PAYG) plans where you don't have a
monthly fee.  You don't need to sign up for a certain period or have a
direct debit setup and an address in the UK  ( I presume you need an
address - they send the statements somewhere but I guess you don't have
to have that ).

Orange PAYG works in a few countries in Europe but not all ( I think
other providers are similar) .  For maximum coverage you need a contract
phone.

In article <[log in to unmask]>,
[log in to unmask] says...
> Question for European collegues:  I have a need to be in Europe for extended
> periods of time.  Rather than "rent" a cell phone here in the U.S. and pay
> up to $1.49 per minute while in Europe, there must be a better alternative.
> What options do I have if I were to enroll in a plan in Europe?  Here in the
> states, the subscriber receives a certain number of free minutes each month
> by paying a fixed monthly fee.  It would also be advantageous to make calls
> to the U.S. using the same phone if possible.  Can someone point me to some
> resources on this subject and/or provide some personal input?
> Thanks!
>
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