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Preparing for a Trip Down South: Getting Your Cell Phone Ready to Use in Mexico

By Jim Labelle

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 13Oct2010
Word count: 547
Viewed: 233 time(s)

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Preparing for a road trip to Mexico entails some planning. You have to get your car or RV in good mechanical condition, get a Mexican auto insurance policy (or Mexican RV insurance policy) and you need to find yourself a good Mexico road atlas. There is one item that many people fail to take into account during the planning process, and that is getting their cell phone read to use in Mexico. It's pretty simple to set up and use your cell phone in Mexico, and it can make your trip a whole lot easier.

1. Unlock your cell phone. Many cell phones are 'locked' so that they can only be used by your current carrier. To see if your cell phone is locked, simply replace your SIM card with one from a friend who has a different service. If your phone recognizes the new SIM card and starts working, then your cell phone is unlocked. If not, your cell phone is locked. To unlock it, check online and find the unlock code for your cell phone or contact your carrier and ask them to unlock it for you.

2. Once you are in Mexico, go into a cell phone store and get a new SIM card for a carrier of your choice. There are two in Mexico: Movistar and TelCel. The rates between the two are pretty similar. However, Movistar tends to offer wider coverage, which may or may not be important to you depending on where your travels are taking you.

3. You will have two options for cell phone service in Mexico. You can either sign a monthly contract or you can pay as you go. If you choose to pay as you go, you will simply have to buy a phone card to re-charge your phone once you have used up all the minutes. These can be bought at most stores in Mexico. Cards are sold in increments of 10, 20, 50, 100, and 500 pesos. Smaller amounts are valid for only a couple of days and larger amounts are valid for up to a month. If your minutes expire you can retrieve them as long as you buy more minutes to recharge it within 7 days. Instead of buying a card, you can also go into a store that is an authorized dealer and pay them to recharge the card by phone. This can be easier if you are not good with punching a long sequence of numbers using tiny cell phone buttons.

4. You will need a passport number and valid ID in order to sign up for service. It normally takes 30 minutes to 1 hour to get the service set up and working. Once your service has been set up, simply put your new SIM card into your phone and turn it on. You should now have cellular service in Mexico.

Next to getting Mexican auto insurance, getting your cell phone set up to use in Mexico should be your top priority when planning your road trip to Mexico. You will be able to call ahead to hotels, touch base with family and friends, and in case of an emergency, you will be able to call for help immediately. Just because you are in Mexico doesn't mean you have to forsake your cell phone and all the conveniences it brings!

Written by: http://www.Mexpro.com For a free, no obligation coverage analysis and quotation, with the option to purchase and print your policy online, please visit http://www.mexpro.com .

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