Keep me wired in Puerto Vallarta!
December 8, 2010 7:30 AM Subscribe
Does anyone know if I can get a prepaid micro sim (with data!) that works in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico? Data is actually more important than minutes - I'm taking my factory unlocked iPhone, and would really prefer not to have to rely on sketchy wifi while I'm there.
In my perfect world, there'd be a Mexican telco that serves Puerto Vallarta and also sells prepaid data micro sims by mail. I could order one now, load it up before I go, and have stress-free data on my iPhone the week I'm in PV.
Does such a dream exist?
Snowflake details - my entire family is flying down in a package deal for my brothers wedding mid-January. We're basically going from the airport to the resort, then the resort back to the airport with the odd scheduled event/tour in between. There most likely won't be any time where I'd be able to actually purchase a sim in person in PV - hence the desire to have it shipped to me ahead of time. About the only place I might be able to do any shopping of this type would be in the PV airport, if such a thing exists, but I'm guessing it would be ridiculously expensive anyway.
Any ideas from the data-loving Mexican travelers?
In my perfect world, there'd be a Mexican telco that serves Puerto Vallarta and also sells prepaid data micro sims by mail. I could order one now, load it up before I go, and have stress-free data on my iPhone the week I'm in PV.
Does such a dream exist?
Snowflake details - my entire family is flying down in a package deal for my brothers wedding mid-January. We're basically going from the airport to the resort, then the resort back to the airport with the odd scheduled event/tour in between. There most likely won't be any time where I'd be able to actually purchase a sim in person in PV - hence the desire to have it shipped to me ahead of time. About the only place I might be able to do any shopping of this type would be in the PV airport, if such a thing exists, but I'm guessing it would be ridiculously expensive anyway.
Any ideas from the data-loving Mexican travelers?
Does such a dream exist?
I don't think so. I have no idea about the "by mail" part of your question, but I can help you with some info about sim cards and data. Buying a sim card in Mexico is easy, activating the sim card is not so easy.
Mexican cell phones need to be registered with a CURP number (sortof the equivalent of a US social security number). Unless you can find a Mexican to activate your phone for you, I don't think you could activate a local SIM card unless you brought your passport and sim card to a customer service office.
See here for a lucid explanation.
If you did get a local SIM card activated though, you could easily sign up for a prepaid data plan just by sending a text message - the most popular mobile provider in Mexico (Telcel) calls their data plans "Banda Ancha Telcel". See their website (in Spanish, natch) for a description of the different plans.
posted by cnanderson at 3:31 PM on December 8, 2010
I don't think so. I have no idea about the "by mail" part of your question, but I can help you with some info about sim cards and data. Buying a sim card in Mexico is easy, activating the sim card is not so easy.
Mexican cell phones need to be registered with a CURP number (sortof the equivalent of a US social security number). Unless you can find a Mexican to activate your phone for you, I don't think you could activate a local SIM card unless you brought your passport and sim card to a customer service office.
See here for a lucid explanation.
If you did get a local SIM card activated though, you could easily sign up for a prepaid data plan just by sending a text message - the most popular mobile provider in Mexico (Telcel) calls their data plans "Banda Ancha Telcel". See their website (in Spanish, natch) for a description of the different plans.
posted by cnanderson at 3:31 PM on December 8, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
I'd love to hear of any updates you might have later on, too.
posted by malaprohibita at 1:55 PM on December 8, 2010