The high price of using a mobile phone abroad forces many of us to suppress our normal personality and curb our natural instinct to communicate while we’re on holiday, making us anxious and irritable.

UK mobile phone users typically fall into one of four categories: the Text Addict, the Text’N’Talker, the 24/7 Chatterbox and the Emergency Caller. But, as soon as we’re on holiday, many of us are forced out of our natural category in order to cut the cost of our mobile phone habit. Especially for younger people, but by no means exclusively, this means an enforced change from the way that we normally communicate. This can be very stressful and could lead to nervous behaviour not unlike withdrawal symptoms.

Donna Dawson, a psychologist specialising in personality, behaviour and relationships, agrees that the enforced change of something that most people take for granted is stressful: “In particular, people under 30 are the most likely to react very badly to the stress of having to change their communication habits; this is because mobile phones are something with which they have grown up and become used to as an essential part of their lives.”

“The fact that it is merely the ‘extra cost’ that is behind the need to change the habits of a lifetime, does rub salt into the wound. This could quite easily cause mood-swings, sulks, snappiness and tension while abroad – especially on family holidays, where one generation doesn’t necessarily understand the other,” she added.

According to a survey commissioned by SIM4travel, Text’N’Talkers comprise the largest group (36%), followed by the Text Addicts (25%), the 24/7 Chatterboxes (20%) and the Emergency Callers (19%). Once people go abroad, however, the proportion Text’N’Talkers falls by three-quarters to just 9%. The proportion of 24/7 Chatterboxes also more than halves, also to 9%, but interestingly, the proportion of Text Addicts remains stable at 25%. Conversely, the number of Emergency Callers almost triples, to 54%.

And when it comes to the calls or texts that we do answer/make or send from holiday, the type of phone user that we are plays a significant part: 69% of people who are natural 24/7 Chatterboxes are doomed to fight their natural impulses by trying to limit the number of calls they make or answer when on holiday. Only 13% of natural Text’N’Talkers feel able to carry on as normal.

There are also gender differences men are more likely than women to try to limit the amount of calls they answer or make – 61% versus 42%. Women are almost twice as likely to only use text messaging to stay in touch: 47% versus 25%.

Suk Grewal, marketing director of SIM4travel, said: “What I think has happened is that mobile phones are now such a part of our everyday lives, including our holidays, that we’ve all had at least one rotten experience with a terrible bill. The prospect of feeling like that again makes us change our calling habits when we’re abroad – and, like all change, that makes us feel anxious and act out of character as a result.”

Whatever category mobile users fall into, one thing that they are not is aware of easy ways to keep the costs down. Almost half of people who take their mobile abroad – 48% – are unaware that they can buy either an international SIM card or a local SIM card to use while abroad, which would reduce their mobile bill.

SIM4travel, which commissioned the survey, operates its own Pay As You Go global network. With a SIM4travel international SIM card there are no charges for inbound calls in the EU, and calls home are just 25p per minute. Worldwide, savings of up to 80% are possible in more than 50 countries worldwide.

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Research was carried out on behalf of SIM4travel by the independent market research company BMRB. BMRB interviewed 1000 people aged between 16-64 between August 9th and August 11th.

About SIM4travel
SIM4travel, which commissioned the survey, operates its own Pay As You Go global network. With a SIM4travel international SIM card there are no charges for inbound calls in the EU, and calls home are just 25p per minute. Worldwide, savings of up to 80% are possible in more than 50 countries worldwide. SIM4travel is a trading name of Software Cellular Network Limited. For more information, visit the press office.

The mobile phone has long since joined the trio of ‘money, ticket, passport’ that people routinely check they have with them before leaving home. Adding the option to purchase a great value SIM4travel card at the same time as booking the travel itself ensures that buying a travel SIM isn’t something that gets forgotten until the traveller reaches their destination.

The opportunity for the travel industry to generate revenue from travel SIM sales is significant: in the 12-month period to April 2008, UK residents made 70.3 million trips abroad*, with the overwhelming majority of these accompanied by at least one mobile phone.

SIM4travel is a low cost mobile roaming network that allows travellers to avoid the high costs of using their mobile phone overseas. One of SIM4travel’s key advantages is its simplicity: the service is provided via a SIM card that the customer simply inserts into their mobile phone in place of their usual SIM card.

SIM4travel customer can then travel to over 110 countries around the globe and save up to 80% on calls. In over 50 countries, the customer will not have to pay for inbound calls – a fear of which stops some people from turning their phone on while abroad. Credit is easy to top up while at home or travelling.

lastminute.com UK Managing Director John Bevan said: “lastminute.com is delighted to be the only online travel retailer to offer its customers SIM4travel’s service.

“lastminute.com aims to give its customers the greatest breath of product in the travel and leisure industries and SIM4travel offering helps us to achieve that.”

“SIM4travel fits perfectly with lastminute.com’s philosophy of ensuring customers get the best possible range of travel options at the most competitive prices.

Suk Grewal, marketing director at SIM4travel, said: “This is an exceptionally good fit between two companies focused on giving their customers the best travel experience possible in our respective fields.

“With rising prices and the credit crunch making customers alert to every opportunity to avoid wasting money, and shrinking margins for travel companies, this is a win-win-win situation – for the customer, for lastminute.com and for SIM4travel.”

SIM4travel’s distribution channel already includes Carphone Warehouse stores in the UK, and BMI Baby and EasyJet – where they may be purchased in-flight.

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The purchase means that Truphone will acquire both SIM4travel’s travel SIM capability and its Mobile Virtual Network Enabler (MVNE) platform. Integration of SIM4travel’s assets into Truphone’s own portfolio will begin immediately and take several months to complete.

Through the purchase, Truphone will take ownership of SIM4travel’s infrastructure, customer base, distribution and staff in Portugal and London.

James Tagg, Truphone’s CEO, said: “This completes Truphone’s GSM core network, allowing us to offer global mobile operator services. We’re already enabling customers to make low-cost Wi-Fi calls and soon we’ll be able to provide the added convenience of low-cost GSM calls too, all on a single, worldwide, Truphone SIM.”

Notes to editors

1. Truphone is the trading name of Software Cellular Network Limited.
2. For SIM4travel’s associated announcement, see here.