Well it's time for our annual European journey, which means it's time for a new SIM card. This year takes us to Barcelona and Valencia (with a few days in Munich to finish our trip). Our needs are pretty simple; just a local number with a few euros of credit to make local calls. I want a Spanish SIM, not a multi-country version. And I want it to stay active as long as possible without using the SIM. Any ideas?

When we went to Spain last year we bought an Amena SIM card off of Ebay. Shipped directly from Spain. It was vastly cheaper than going to Telestial or Cellular Abroad, and worked great. We paid about $26. Had good service from the seller and they sent instructions in English. The seller was madridista7.

For as much as I can't stand them I would suggest going with Telefonica's mobile service provider, Movistar. Better coverage throughout the country, I always have a hard time reaching friends of mine with Amena!

Alamedadan, check my post in "Technology on the go" forum. I have a SIM card for Spain, through Vodafone Spain (excellent coverage), with about 32 Euros of credit. I can sell it or lend it to you, as you wish.

Let me know if interested. It has been charged recently and is valid through next December.

p.s. If you have Verizon Wireless in the USA, you can send/receive text messages only to Vodafone users in Spain. It does not work with other carriers.

In case anyone else is interested, the Spain SIM card is still available.