Is there a solution to having internet for a week abroad either on laptop or phone?

[IlanaK]

We are going to South of France for a week in September. The house we are booking has no internet access. I hate the idea of not having any access for a week and am trying to find out if there is a hopefully not too expensive thing I can buy or subscribe to for a week.

My phone is a Nokia E72 (which is a Blackberry equivilant) so it could be something for that. I checked Tmobile and dataconnection abroad is very very expensive. I also have a netbook I could take and was wondering if there is a payasyougo thing I could plug into that?

Any idea anyone?

You can buy a dongle. Either from your home broadband provider or lots of the mobile shops. BT do one that I think links to your home BBand account. Not 100% sure but have seen a few people using them abroad. Sometimes hotels have free wifi though...

If you use your phone or a dongle, it is going to cost you a fortune in roaming charges.

Best thing is to take your laptop when you go out and find free or paid wifi. You need to register to use even free wifi in France so it's a bit of a faff.

It is possible to manage without the internet for a week. I managed two weeks (and I am a total internet junkie).

This might be some use?

Oh God, I took my phone to Portugal for two weeks in May and (sadly) logged onto facebook about three times a day, thinking nothing of it, until dh phoned me at work a month later saying 'can you explain this £140 phone bill, darling...' We're going back next week and I'm not allowed to take it (sob)

My DH works for a company who provide a mobile billing system..he is forever telling me about people who come home with £12k bills for watching TV programmes on their phone abroad...be very careful!

Can't you get PAYG dongles in France? I'm sure I saw them in Carrefour.

I bought a few boosters for my T-Mobile phone when I went last - it didn't cost that much really, but I had to be very strict otherwise they ran out in a matter of hours.

We need a French speaker to Google for us!

We haw just come back from greece and our solution was to take ipads and use free wifi where available, but also dh bought a greek sim card for 3 euros and switched it into his iphone so he had 3G at greekk rates. He had to top it up a couple of times but it worked brilliantly and as we were travelling hand luggage only meant we could travel without guide books, maps etc.

Sorry hope this makes sense as he is very much the technical side of the partnership

I regularly travel to France and need internet access too. I stay at a place which has wifi, but the resort where we stay also has a few restaurants which offer free wifi if you buy something. And the local library lets you use their PCs for a couple of Euros an hour. Worth contacting the local tourist office in advance to see what's available where you're going.