Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
»Prepaid SIM plans start at about 20 lei per card and usually include some bonus minutes.
They are offered by all three of Romania's main carriers:
Vodafone
(
www.vodafone.ro
)
,
Cosmote
(
www.cosmote.ro
)
and
Orange
(
www.orange.ro
)
.
»Buy prepaid SIM cards at any provider shop or independent phone seller. You can top up
the card at phone shops, newspaper kiosks and even some ATMs. Shops around the coun-
try also sell new or used phones that can be used in conjunction with local prepaid SIM
cards.
»The situation is more complicated if you have a smartphone like an iPhone, Android or
Blackberry that cannot easily be unlocked. With these phones, it's best to contact your
home provider to consider short-term international calling and data plans appropriate to
your needs.
»Even if you are not using your smartphone as a phone, it still makes a handy wi-fi
device. Be sure to switch off the 'data roaming' setting to avoid unwanted roaming fees.
Payphones & Phonecards
»Public phones usually require a magnetic-stripe phonecard, which you can buy from post
offices, newspaper kiosks, and some tourist offices and hotel reception desks.
»Phonecard rates start at about 10 lei and allow for a certain number of impulses
(minutes).
»It's possible to dial abroad from a pay telephone.
Time
»All of Romania lies within the Eastern European time zone, GMT/UTC+2, one hour
ahead of most of continental Europe. Romanian local time is two hours ahead of London
and seven hours ahead of New York.
»Romania observes daylight saving time, and puts the clock forward one hour at 2am on
the last Sunday in March and back again at 3am on the last Sunday in October.
»The 24-hour clock is used for official purposes, including transport schedules. In every-
day conversation, people commonly use the 12-hour clock.
