Stay In Touch

Nobody will argue that the cheapest and romantic way of saying hi from the other side of the world is by sending a postcard, but here are some other communication options to turn your friends and relatives green with envy at your most recent escapades.

Cheap and easy – phone cards
A quick search on the Internet will show you the best way to call home is with a phone card.
Instead of paying exorbitant international and interstate call rates, a phone card lets you call home in the UK and USA for the price of a packet of potato crisps – and that’s for more than an hour’s worth of gossip from any land line.

You can purchase phone cards on websites like www.phonecardselector.com.au. Just double-check when you purchase online that you choose a card that allows calls to the country of origin and destination. Also be aware that some phone cards may have a flagfall cost but lower rates, and others have a slightly higher calling rate but no flagfall.

To make a call using a phone card, all you need to do is dial the local access number, enter a pin number and dial home as normal.

On the go – a cell phone
If you don’t want to rely on a landline, and like the romance of being able to call home from the top of Ayer’s Rock, then consider a cell phone (or “mobile” as they say Down Under). By renting a mobile you don't have the stress of finding a public phone and you have the advantage of a contact point no matter where you are. Of course you’ll need a bigger budget for the privilege of 24/7 communication, but cell phone rental can also be an option for travellers. Choose from the following set-ups:

1. SIM card rental - Bring your own GSM phone and hire a local SIM card. Rates vary from around $1 per day plus calls to a free simcard if you're staying for over a month.
2. If you don't want to damage your own phone or take the risk of having it lost or stolen, consider renting the phone and SIM card. Hire one at the airport. Rates get cheaper the longer you rent and most plans include some free call credits. Include insurance and you can't go wrong.

Straight to the inbox - email
The best things in life are free, especially email accounts for nix! Get yourself a portable email account like Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo and you can send and receive emails from any Internet-enabled computer worldwide.

Virtual communication also lets you send digital photos and videos of your travels to loved ones – and it can be the quickest, easiest and cheapest way to “visually” stay in touch. Some of these free email accounts even let you create an online photo album of your adventures.