A family vacation in Europe usually means trains, maps, museum tickets on a phone, and kids who want to send photos home. The question is how to get everyone online without a surprise bill when you get back to the US. This guide walks through how much data each person really needs, what to do about a child's phone, and how setup works when your family has US phone numbers.
One option is a travel eSIM: a digital SIM you install on each phone before you leave. Sirocco's eSIM for Europe covers 45 countries with one plan per traveler, so a single setup works whether you are doing Paris and Rome or a road trip through Portugal and Spain. Prices below are Sirocco's current prices in euros, from €3.90 per traveler.
Will my US phone plan work in Europe?
Start with your current carrier. A 2012 FCC tip sheet on international roaming put it plainly: for most US customers, the plan that covers domestic use does not cover use abroad. The same sheet warned that even with unlimited minutes, texts or data at home, you can be billed per minute, per text or per kilobyte or megabyte overseas. That document is old, and plans have changed since, but the advice still holds: read the terms of your plan, or call your carrier, before the trip.
The FCC also suggested two habits that are just as useful today: turn off automatic downloads, and use free Wi-Fi when you can.
Which countries does the Europe eSIM cover?
The Sirocco Europe offer includes 45 countries: Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, the Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
Two points to note before you book. Turkey is not on this list, so a trip that ends in Istanbul needs a separate plan. And there is no unlimited option on the Europe offer: each traveler gets a set amount of data.
How much data does a family need in Europe?
Kids, teens and parents use their phones very differently. These are rough guides per person, not limits:
| Profile | What it covers | Per day | 7 days | 14 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light use | Messages, maps | 0.3 GB | 2.1 GB | 4.2 GB |
| Regular use | Plus social media, photos | 0.7 GB | 4.9 GB | 9.8 GB |
| Heavy use | Plus video, video calls | 1.5 GB | 10.5 GB | 21 GB |
A younger child who mostly messages grandparents fits the light profile. Parents navigating, booking and posting a few photos land in regular use. A teenager who streams on the train is usually in heavy use. If you are unsure, the data calculator helps you estimate per traveler.
How much does a Europe eSIM cost for a family of four?
With Sirocco, each traveler gets their own plan, chosen one by one, in a single order of up to 10 travelers. From 3 eSIMs in the same order, a 10% group discount applies to the total. It is rounded in the customer's favor and shown before payment.
Prices per traveler for Europe (Sirocco's current prices, in EUR):
| Trip | Light use | Regular use | Heavy use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 days | 3 GB: €6.10 | 5 GB: €9.00 | 10 GB: €14.90 |
| 15 days | 5 GB: €10.30 | 10 GB: €15.50 | at least 20 GB: €25.20 |
For a family of four with two parents on regular use, one teen on heavy use and one child on light use, a 7-day trip works out like this: the two parents at €9.00 each, the teen at €14.90 and the child at €6.10. Because the order has at least 3 eSIMs, 10% comes off the total, and the exact amount is shown in the configurator before payment. If all four take 5 GB for 7 days, the total is €32.40. For 15 days with everyone on 10 GB, it is €55.80.
Sirocco charges in euros. The site can display an indicative amount in dollars, but the actual charge is in EUR. You can pay with Apple Pay, Google Pay or a card, and no phone number is required to buy.
Setting up from the US: install links by email
Here is something US families should know before ordering. Normally, the organizer enters each traveler's phone number and Sirocco sends each person a personal install link by text message. Those text messages can only be sent to numbers in France, the EU, the UK, Switzerland and Morocco. They cannot be sent to US numbers.
So for a family with US phone numbers, each install link arrives by email, or the organizer shares it with each person directly. Each link opens a step-by-step guide, with a QR code as a backup. If an eSIM has not been installed two days before departure, a reminder goes out (you can turn this off).
From the trip space, the organizer can see where each eSIM stands: link sent, opened, installed, connected, or out of data. The organizer never sees installation codes, and never sees another adult's contact details or detailed usage. Before installation, an eSIM can be reassigned to someone else; once installed, it cannot be transferred.
Is your phone ready for an eSIM?
Check every phone, including the kids' devices:
- Dial *#06#. If an EID number shows up, the phone supports eSIM.
- Check whether it is locked. A phone bought with a carrier plan may be locked to that carrier. Get it unlocked before you leave.
- Confirm each model at checkout. Sirocco does not check the model for you, so you confirm each phone when you order. The compatibility page has more detail.
Then install at home, on Wi-Fi, a few days before the flight. Leave the Sirocco line turned off until you travel. When you land, turn it on, select it for cellular data, and turn on data roaming for that line only. The plan starts with the first connection to a network at your destination, so the days do not count down while you are still at home. See when does my plan start and how to install.
One important rule: do not delete the eSIM after installing it. It cannot always be reinstalled.
Does my child need their own phone in Europe?
Not necessarily. A young child who stays with you all day may not need their own connection. An older child or teen who might split off at a museum or the hotel pool is a different story, and an eSIM on their own phone keeps them reachable through messaging apps.
When ordering, you can give a traveler a Child profile. The smallest plan for the destination is offered by default, at the same price as an adult plan of the same size. In the free Sirocco app, the child sees their remaining data and the end date, and can tap "Request data" to ask for more. The child picks an amount but never sees a price. You accept, choose a different amount, or decline. With no answer, the request expires after 24 hours and nothing is charged.
To be clear about what Child mode is not: it is not parental control. It does not filter or block websites, does not show what your child looks at, and does not locate your child. There is no account in the child's name, and purchases are for adults only. Without the app, the eSIM can still be installed from the web guide with an adult's help. More details are on the kids eSIM page.
Can we share data with a hotspot?
Hotspot sharing depends on the offer and the country, and each offer page tells you before payment. When it is available, any data you share comes out of the plan of the person sharing. Running a hotspot all day also drains a parent's battery, which matters on a long day of sightseeing. Giving each person their own eSIM avoids both issues.
There is also no shared pool: one traveler's data is never used by another. When someone runs out, their connection stops and nothing extra is charged. The organizer can top up only that person's eSIM from the trip space, with no reinstall and no effect on the others. Top-ups are available when the offer allows. Unused data becomes credit for your next trip. See topping up a traveler and group data.
Hotel Wi-Fi and calls home
Hotel Wi-Fi is handy for big downloads: offline maps for each city, movies and shows for the kids on the train, and app updates. Doing that on Wi-Fi saves mobile data for when you are out.
The Sirocco eSIM is data only. It has no local number and no standard calls or texts. Your regular US line stays active for calls and texts at your carrier's rates, while calling and messaging apps work over the eSIM data.
Emergency number in Europe: 112
In an emergency, dial 112. It is free everywhere in the EU. Because the Sirocco eSIM is data only, make that call from your regular line. It is worth telling the kids about 112 before the trip, along with where the family will meet if anyone gets separated.
If you have questions while planning, a real person answers, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Paris time, usually within 2 business hours, in English and five other languages, by form or email. The family eSIM page sums up how ordering for the whole group works.