Does anyone on here use an esim in Thailand?

I want unlimited data as we have no wifi at our place in Korat and the ability to make calls & texts(they don't have to be international).

We're going to be there for 60 days.

Some of the potential pitfalls I've seen:

Fair Usage Policy,that's no use to me.

Free calls to the provider only,so if the missus is on AIS,which she is & I'm on Dtac I can't call her.

Airalo seem to be the most recommended but only offer a max of 30 days & you can't top it up.That's no problem as I'll just get a new one but I guess it'll be a different phone number.

Also they use Dtac,anyone know if free calls are limited to Dtac numbers?

Or is it better to just go to a shop & get a physical sim?

Edited March 7, 20251 yr by coxyhog

1 hour ago, coxyhog said:

Also they use Dtac,anyone know if free calls are limited to Dtac numbers?

Lots of options.

https://www.dtac.co.th/en/new-number/esim

 

25 minutes ago, KWA said:

Lots of options.

https://www.dtac.co.th/en/new-number/esim

 

Cheers mate the 30 day B1199 one looks ideal.

Don't know about these esims things, but if you already have a dtac sim, can't you add a "package" onto that?

I've had the same dtac number for nearly 18 years, or so they keep telling me... when I'm in country I just put credit on my number, and use it to buy a month's package. At the end of the month, if I've sufficient credit (never happened yet!) it'll auto renew, otherwise the next day they (kindly) send me a text,  I look though what's available and buy that. From memory it's never more than a couple of hundred a month, but isn't the all singing all dancing internet you're after...

1 hour ago, Painter said:

Don't know about these esims things, but if you already have a dtac sim, can't you add a "package" onto that?

I've had the same dtac number for nearly 18 years, or so they keep telling me... when I'm in country I just put credit on my number, and use it to buy a month's package. At the end of the month, if I've sufficient credit (never happened yet!) it'll auto renew, otherwise the next day they (kindly) send me a text,  I look though what's available and buy that. From memory it's never more than a couple of hundred a month, but isn't the all singing all dancing internet you're after...

I'm doing the same , I choose a package online the day before I leave the UK , so when I turn on my Thai Phone when I arrive,  it's ready to go ..

I tried an eSIM in Cambodia and it wasn't that great ... couldn't use the local taxi app .. no experience of using it in Thailand 

Me and the missus have had the same DTAC numbers for over 20 years now. They stay valid for 12 months from each topup. I setup a scheduled payment 12 months in advance from Kasikorn to topup each service with 50 baht. Before each trip I add a data plan to each service from the web using our online DTAC accounts.

For the last couple of trips I have gone to the DTAC shops to get an eSim added to my phone but they for some reason cannot do it for our iPhones. We now have eSims from our home provider and then have the DTAC sim installed in the phones. This way we no longer need to swap sim cards anymore and both providers are on the one phone.

Edited March 7, 20251 yr by thegrogmonster

Usually I've swapped out the sim for a Thai one on arrival.

That was with my old iphone 6s but now I've got a 15 & I like the idea of having the 2 sims without the possibility of losing one - the nano sim for the 15 is miniscule.

The missus lost her UK sim on the last trip & while it's no big deal to get a replacement it's damned inconvenient when you arrive back at LHR.

2 hours ago, coxyhog said:

Usually I've swapped out the sim for a Thai one on arrival.

That was with my old iphone 6s but now I've got a 15 & I like the idea of having the 2 sims without the possibility of losing one - the nano sim for the 15 is miniscule.

The missus lost her UK sim on the last trip & while it's no big deal to get a replacement it's damned inconvenient when you arrive back at LHR.

Probably easier to get your UK number put on an eSim and then just buy a standard Thai nano sim card to put in your phone. When in Thailand make your Thai sim the inuse sim to make all your calls and data usage from.

10 hours ago, Stillearly said:

I'm doing the same , I choose a package online the day before I leave the UK , so when I turn on my Thai Phone when I arrive,  it's ready to go ..

I tried an eSIM in Cambodia and it wasn't that great ... couldn't use the local taxi app .. no experience of using it in Thailand 

Hadn't thought of doing it from the UK prior to leaving. I stop off at the dtac stand in the luggage hall at swampy and buy a short (say, 3 day) tourist package, then a better package when that expires.

I have 2 phones, a UK one (newer), and a thai one (older, and really could do with replacing), so none of this changing sim cards over

 

Another advantage of an esim is that if you need to back up your phone for a factory reset, then it remembers the number when you restore the data. Not sure about iOS though.

Personally, I prefer a physical sim as it's a lot simpler if changing phones.

12 hours ago, thegrogmonster said:

Probably easier to get your UK number put on an eSim and then just buy a standard Thai nano sim card to put in your phone. When in Thailand make your Thai sim the inuse sim to make all your calls and data usage from.

Trouble is iPhone 15's in Thailand do not have a physical sim card slot so may have trouble getting a nano sim.

On 3/7/2025 at 11:48 PM, thegrogmonster said:

Probably easier to get your UK number put on an eSim and then just buy a standard Thai nano sim card to put in your phone. When in Thailand make your Thai sim the inuse sim to make all your calls and data usage from.

Just tried that,the girl at Sky Mobile warned me that sometimes they get tech problems with esims & I kept getting technical problem please try again later,so I gave up.

On 3/11/2025 at 9:15 PM, coxyhog said:

Just tried that,the girl at Sky Mobile warned me that sometimes they get tech problems with esims & I kept getting technical problem please try again later,so I gave up.

Sorry to hear that. My transfer to eSim worked first time.

10 hours ago, thegrogmonster said:

Sorry to hear that. My transfer to eSim worked first time.

My old iphone 6s still has some credit with AIS so I'll wait until I get there & get one.

I've been trying to buy an AIS 90 day esim online.

Registering is the hard part,taking a PP photo easy enough but then you have to take a selfie by placing your face in a frame on your computer & blinking to take the pic.

What a croc of shit!

Spent 30 minutes on the phone this afternoon with O2, to change my Sim only contract.
Well I didn’t have anything planned so I thought I’ll give it a go after watching a Martin Lewis TV programme on switching and haggling. 

I had 12Gb with all the usual unlimited shit, but I don’t use hardly any data or minutes or texts, so I haggled and haggled with this lady and eventually I got her down in several increments from £17.50 to £9, on a 1 year contract.
So almost half of what I was paying. 🤗

 

I have a nz e Sim and a Thai ( I guess it's a nano Sim) never had any problems even when I switched phone 

I believe you can have multiple e Sim 

 

I thought this thread was about "isims" - like orgasim and dogisim....

Went to Big C just up the road from us in Korat & got an AIS Esim,unlimited data & Thai calls,30 days for b532.

Happy happy!

Edited April 1, 20251 yr by coxyhog

On 4/1/2025 at 4:30 PM, coxyhog said:

Went to Big C just up the road from us in Korat & got an AIS Esim,unlimited data & Thai calls,30 days for b532.

Happy happy!

Works as a 5G hotspot for my laptop & our smart TV,well pleased!