The idea of paying your cell phone carrier a bundle of cash is rediculous. Have your phone unlocked. If you have met your contract term, go to your carriers site and request an unlock. It will take very little time. You can chuechase GSM phones from Amazon and others for reasonable amounts. I supplement the phone time by using Skype from my 10G data plan.
I walked into the TIM store at the Rome Airport and got a two month plan with 10 gig of tata and 165 min of calls for $42 dolllars US. The clerk put the new SIM card in, and activated the phone in less than 10 minutes.
Up and running with time to spare for my next flight. For more info Google using a SIM card in Europe or where ever you will be traveling to. Do some research on your present phone to find out it’s capabilities in other countries. The iPhone is a good choice and you can purchase a used unlocked iPhone 6 for about $275 from Amazon. AT&T wants you to use their $10 a day plan for roaming. Not worth it!!!!!
Bella Cefalù, Sicily.
gregsitaly 
Great informative post!
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