Which cellular provider would you recomend in Canada?

[TheOnlyLostOne]

Hello fellow techies,

I will be traviling through Canada in September (starting in Vancouver and driving a car to Calgary, later traveling around Toronto). Now I am thinking to use my mobile phone for GPS and would like to know, which provider would you recomend? Since I am from Germany, I'd like to use some kind of travelers option (prepaid or similar; no contract) and where I can get such a SIM card?

Also, would you rather recomend to get a pocket wifi instead of a SIM card? I just think, having the option to call someone in an emergancy might come handy.

 

Greetings

TheOnlyLostOne

[Commodus]

49 minutes ago, TheOnlyLostOne said:

Hello fellow techies,

I will be traviling through Canada in September (starting in Vancouver and driving a car to Calgary, later traveling around Toronto). Now I am thinking to use my mobile phone for GPS and would like to know, which provider would you recomend? Since I am from Germany, I'd like to use some kind of travelers option (prepaid or similar; no contract) and where I can get such a SIM card?

Also, would you rather recomend to get a pocket wifi instead of a SIM card? I just think, having the option to call someone in an emergancy might come handy.

 

Greetings

TheOnlyLostOne

Carriers here in Canada do offer prepaid SIMs, and from what I understand many lean toward Telus. I'm with Rogers and happy with its service, though, and the prices are about the same. Just be clear that you're visiting, and have your passport ready in case they check.

 

If you have a phone with eSIM features (recent Apple, Google and Samsung phones often do) and only need data, you could also look at Tuque Mobile — it's pretty cheap for what you're getting.

 

Some airports here will sell prepaid SIM cards, but don't be surprised if you pay more than you might if you just went to a carrier store. Also, I'm not a huge fan of going to the budget brands (Fido, Koodo, Virgin Mobile), and Freedom Mobile's coverage isn't yet as robust as Bell/Rogers/Telus.

[rikitikitavi]

2 hours ago, Commodus said:

Fido

It should provide the same coverage as Rogers, and give you a smaller feature/data plan for a lesser price.

[TheOnlyLostOne]

Thank you for your answers. Do you think the coverage will be good enough to use google maps or apples TomTom with Fido & Rogers going over the rocky mountains? Or should I use a separate GPS device for this region?

 

Bests

TheOnlyLostOne

[Commodus]

20 hours ago, TheOnlyLostOne said:

Thank you for your answers. Do you think the coverage will be good enough to use google maps or apples TomTom with Fido & Rogers going over the rocky mountains? Or should I use a separate GPS device for this region?

 

Bests

TheOnlyLostOne

I actually visited the Rockies last month, driving the route from Banff to Jasper. Most carriers have good coverage around the cities and key rest stops, but there's little coverage along most of that route for any carrier — they're trying to protect nature (that and it would sometimes be difficult to install networks, as you'll see for yourself). You'll probably want to save offline maps of the more rural areas you're visiting just to make sure you have navigation.

 

You may want to look at the Rogers coverage map to see if you'll have data where you're going. Mind you, if you take the route I took, navigation will sometimes be very easy (I can't tell you how many "Jasper this way, Lake Louise that way" signs I saw).