HolaFly They are a new startup in the eSIM data plans space based in Spain. I found their service to be interesting, especially since many of their data plans are unlimited, include some calling minutes, and the prices are reasonable.
But I’ve found that there are often technical issues when using any international eSIM data plan, so I wanted to do a hands-on review of the Holafly eSIM to see how it compares to other eSIM data plans I’ve used in Europe.
Are you just interested in seeing how Holafly performed when you used it in Italy? Click here to go directly to the real performance section of Holafly.
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How I tested my Holafly eSIM and why trust me
That’s why HolaFly In testing, I used Holafly’s 15-day unlimited data eSIM plan on my iPhone 14 Pro for a two-week trip to Italy. This trip was split between Rome and Naples, but I did make frequent day trips outside the cities (Capri, Pompeii, on the train between Rome and Naples, etc.).
During my previous trips to Europe, I tested Orange Holiday Europe Data Plan And the Bouygues Telecom Holiday Prepaid Data PlanI also tried using my T-Mobile international data plan (the carrier I use at home).
I’ve also written extensively about using data plans in Europe, so check out The Savvy Backpacker’s Guide to using data plans in Europe and How to Buy a SIM Card and Data Plan in Europe.
Holafly plan options, pricing and country coverage
Okay, let’s dive into how. HolaFly Businesses and things you might want to know before purchasing their service.
Country/Region Options
HolaFly Offers eSIM data plans to over 110 countries. Visit HolaFly website To see the full list of countries they cover.
As I mentioned before, I tested the Italy eSIM, but Holafly also offers a “Europe” eSIM that covers over 32 European countries — including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland, and Ukraine.
Unlimited data and limited data plans
Holafly offers a range of data packages that vary by country.
All Holafly eSIM plans for Europe and North America include unlimited data for a specified number of days – i.e. 5 days, 10 days, 20 days, 30 days, etc.
However, other countries offer packages with a set amount of data (i.e. 6GB) for a set period of time (usually 15 days). You may want to check out the Holafly website for the exact details of the data package options in your destination.
Note: I’m always a little skeptical about “unlimited” data plans because local providers may throttle data if a user starts consuming too much data – for example, your data may slow down if you stream a lot of Netflix etc.
What mobile networks does Holafly use?
Holafly is not a mobile service provider, meaning it does not own the cell towers. It simply partners with local companies and rents bandwidth from those major companies. For example, in Italy, you are physically connected to Wind Tre’s network (in France, you connect to SFR, in the US to AT&T, in Germany to T-Mobile, etc.).
In most cases, you’ll get the same service and speeds as everyone else on the network, but during heavy network usage, some users report slightly slower speeds (again, this varies by network).
(Service discontinued) European phone number with up to 60 minutes of calling credit
Update: In June 2023, Holafly updated its European eSIM data plans to include a European phone number that includes 60 minutes of calls to other European phones. However, this service appears to have been discontinued as of the summer of 2024.
Setting up, installing and activating Holafly
Update (March 2024): Apple’s iOS 17.4 update includes a great new feature to automatically install and activate your eSIM — making setting up and managing your eSIM a whole lot easier. Just follow the instructions on your phone and it will guide you through the process.
It is important not to activate your Holafly eSIM until you reach your destination.
However, this process is a bit confusing since you can install the eSIM while you’re at home, but it’s then easy to accidentally activate the service while setting everything up.
When in doubt, wait until the morning of your trip to install a Holifly eSIM – this way you won’t eat up too much of your plan’s validity if you accidentally activate your plan too early.
So in this section, I will try to explain to you the process of installing the eSIM and then activating the service.
Install and activate your Holafly eSIM
Once you purchase a Holafly data package, you will receive an email with a QR code (you can also type in a code if you can’t scan the QR code). Simply scan the QR code with your phone and it will guide you through the activation process.
Your phone will prompt you to make some settings changes, then the service will be activated. The service will automatically connect to your local service provider.
It was surprisingly simple.
Holafly eSIM real-world performance
I was skeptical about Holafly before using their service (especially since they offer “unlimited data”) but I’ve been very happy with Holafly’s performance. I mostly got 5G speeds but occasionally got LTE/4G speeds – I never noticed any data throttling.
Google Maps/Google searches worked smoothly, iMessage had no issues sending photos and videos, all of my social media posts went through quickly, and mobile data had no issues at all. I should note that I’ve never used Holafly to stream large amounts of data, so I can’t comment on how that would impact performance.
In short, my Holafly data worked very well throughout my two weeks of trip to Italy.
Of course, I can’t comment on how Holafly will work in other parts of the world but I’m confident it will work similarly across Europe and other developed countries.
Update: Holafly now offers all European eSIM plans (except Iceland, Norway, UK, Switzerland, Ukraine, Turkey) a phone number that includes 60 minutes of calls to/from any European phone number. This is great if you need to call your Airbnb host or make restaurant reservations.
Is Holafly a good deal and my final thoughts?
I think HolaFly This is a great deal for travelers who want an affordable, hassle-free international data plan that offers great speeds at a very fair price. I seriously expected the speeds to be slow (or at least have some issues) but everything worked fine.
Now Holafly is even more impressive as its European plans come with a European phone number.
My 15-day service cost $47, which is $3 per day (they have plans ranging from 5 days to 90 days). Most people’s local carriers charge $10+ per day for international service, and data speeds are often slow, so $3 per day is a great deal.
Save 5% on your order at HolaFly With code: THESAVVYBACKPACKER
James Vess is the founder of The Savvy Backpacker and author of The Savvy Backpacker’s Guide to Europe on a Budget. He has been blogging about budget travel in Europe since 2010.
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