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Post by sunnyboy on Sept 17, 2019 20:02:50 GMT
Hi,
I appreciate there are other questions about Saudi SIM cards, but I haven't been able to find an answer anywhere online about whether you can get a SIM card at the airport late at night. My flight arrives at 00.40 so I expect I will get through arrivals at around 2am.
Whilst I can use a UK phone until I get my Iqama, I would prefer not to rack up a huge bill for international roaming. If the shop is closed at the airport at that time of night is it possible to pick up a SIM card in Dharhan or at the office in the following days?
Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks
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Post by BlueStaff on Sept 18, 2019 3:16:17 GMT
For sure you can get a sim at the airport. STC, Zain or Mobily IIRC are right besides arrivals. STC is the state provider a little more expensive than the others but with the best overall covee. Check their website to see the prepay deals available for calls & data. Once you are on camp the neighbors will be able to tell you the best signal in your neighborhood. Once you have your Iqama you can register the sim and get a second data sim / router for the house.
Calling apps like facetime, messenger, whatsapp, skype etc all work for free calls over data. Sometimes they can be a bit fickle over the Saudi network but seem to work better with a mobile purchased abroad. You can get a VPN for a few $ per month to help with that
The 4g covee is pretty good with speeds of up to 30Mb depending on location.
There is also an STC shop in the Mujamma building in Dhahran where you can buy a sim but I'm not sure of their weekend hours (probably just normal daytime hours, Sunday-Thursday).
Aramco internet in camp can be pretty dire and expensive, so a lot of people end up using 4g for their home internet. We have one in the house on my wifes Iqama for my Netflix and one on mine for my general use.
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Post by sunnyboy on Sept 18, 2019 7:25:49 GMT
Thanks for the information. Glad to know I can pick up a sim in the small hours at the airport!
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Post by StarboyX on Sept 18, 2019 18:57:34 GMT
Hi, I appreciate there are other questions about Saudi SIM cards, but I haven't been able to find an answer anywhere online about whether you can get a SIM card at the airport late at night. My flight arrives at 00.40 so I expect I will get through arrivals at around 2am. Whilst I can use a UK phone until I get my Iqama, I would prefer not to rack up a huge bill for international roaming. If the shop is closed at the airport at that time of night is it possible to pick up a SIM card in Dharhan or at the office in the following days? Any help would be appreciated! Thanks You can get a sim card upon arrival at the airport even at that hour. However, until you get your iqama : You can only get one sim card for mobile. If you want a data sim card for a dongle, you can't until you get your iqama. Without your iqama, the mobile sim card will work but you can't choose any pre paid plans. Basically you blow thru data, hence any plan is better than that. You can use your mobile sim as a hot spot for your devices. Once you get our iqama provide details to your mobile provider. |
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Post by sunnyboy on Sept 18, 2019 22:21:57 GMT
Many thanks, that’s really helpful.
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