If you’re planning a trip to India and want to have internet access on your mobile 24/7, you’ll be pleased to know that you can choose between a local SIM card or the new Holafly eSIM India. This option allows you to stay always connected without paying exorbitant prices.
You’ll find Wi-Fi in restaurants and hotels, but nowadays, everyone is accustomed to being constantly connected. With India’s affordable data prices, you might opt for a local SIM or the Holafly India eSIM. Here’s everything you need to know. Let’s get started!
We previously recommended using a local SIM in India as it was more economical compared to physical SIM cards available on various websites. However, today we find the eSIM to be very appealing.
The key reason for this shift is that eSIMs now offer unlimited data (though not yet available in all destinations), making this option much more attractive and a more justified price.
With the India eSIM, you don’t need a physical SIM card for internet access. Instead, you install a virtual card on your phone for seamless connectivity. Purchase the eSIM, automatically configure your phone, and as soon as you arrive at your destination, your smartphone will connect to the internet network.
Starting today, you can get a discount on your Holafly international India eSIM. The link above contains general information about Holafly, but the button below will take you directly to the discount for your eSIM purchase.
NOTE: If the discount doesn’t apply automatically (which is very rare), use this discount code: CONMOCHILA.
India has nine telecom companies: Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India, Idea Cellular, Reliance Communications (RCom), Reliance JIO (4G/LTE only), BSNL, Aircel, Tata DoCoMo, and MTNL. We chose Vodafone because it provided coverage in almost all of India and offered quite acceptable service.
The easiest place to purchase a SIM card is at Delhi Airport as soon as you get off the plane, though the price might be higher compared to buying it outside the airport. After collecting your luggage and exiting the international arrivals area, turn right to find a Vodafone office.
Please note that to obtain a SIM card with internet in India, you must register with your passport and provide a photo, so have one ready.
After registering and inserting the SIM card into your phone, you will need to wait about an hour for your number to activate. You’ll need to call Vodafone to confirm your details and finalize the activation.
The staff at the counter will provide detailed instructions to ensure you don’t encounter any issues. After completing these steps and waiting a few hours, your 3G/4G connectivity will be activated.
We were charged 700 INR for the SIM card and 1GB of data, which seemed excessive considering that’s nearly €10, and there are more affordable plans available (we’ve since contracted a 10GB data plan for about €12).
Since we don’t know the exact price for a SIM card with minimal data, we recommend the following steps:
