Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Didjit
Enthusiast - Level 3

If you're considering using the Travel Pass abroad, be aware that there are caveats that Verizon doesn't mention.

They claim you can use your same exact domestic plan abroad for just $10/day.  What they don't tell you is that Verizon will throttle your data rate down to 2G speeds after 500MB.  That's 100 times slower than the 4G you're used to.  That basically means no streaming or downloading of movies/shows, which run about 1 GB/hr.  And if you're streaming Pandora, you'll get less than five hours before you're shut down.

None of this was mentioned when I signed up despite asking, "so, everything will work just like at home? And there won't be any surprises?"  And even now that I know about it, it took me a half-hour of burrowing through their website to find any mention of it.

So beware.  Sure, you can have your domestic plan while abroad, but you just can't actually use it.

Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Ann154
Community Leader
Community Leader

It's all in the FAQs. International Travel FAQs | Verizon Wireless

I'm most definitely NOT a VZW employee. If a post answered your question, please mark it as the answer.

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Justwantoreadandpost
Enthusiast - Level 2

This appears to be new.

Was in Columbia several weeks ago, and didn't have a cap.


Today in Prague, I get a text message, saying I've hit my cap and am being throttled.  The hotel I'm in has lousy wifi, so this will impact my ability to work for the next two weeks.

You've done a nice job of summing it up, "So beware.  Sure, you can have your domestic plan while abroad, but you just can't actually use it."

Thanks, Verizon.

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
SCODUB34
Enthusiast - Level 2

Wrong. They changed the plan and didn't let anyone know.

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Ann154
Community Leader
Community Leader

I doubt it. Either way, the FAQs as they stand now is how the plan works currently.

I'm most definitely NOT a VZW employee. If a post answered your question, please mark it as the answer.

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
SCODUB34
Enthusiast - Level 2

While in Canada this weekend, I found out one of my phones was throttled to 2G after 512 mb  of usage. Apparently on April 25th VZ decided to change the terms of the Travel Pass program that I signed up for, without any notice. Initially if you had the XXL plan you can use your 4G all the time in Canada, and you get the throttle to 2G in the Unlimited plan. I elected to stay with the XXL plan for that reason.

So basically, at around 10 in the morning we're out of data for the day until midnight. Good job Verizon.

So I call the cust service rep and she lies to me saying that the way it's always been. [Removed]! I go to Canada about 10 time per month and the kids watch videos and stream music, never any problem. Then she went on to say you still have 2G service, like that works.

After 17 years, the rep and the super shmoozer rep could care less. As a 30 year employee, I'm going to ATT, where they don't throttle the Int'l data. And VZ is wondering why their stock is in the tank, and customers are jumping ship.

profanity removed as required by the Verizon Wireless Terms of Service 

Message edited by Verizon Moderator

Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Ann154
Community Leader
Community Leader

Hmmm. It seems it was changed in February 2017 when the new Verizon Unlimited Plan was announced. Get unlimited data on the network you deserve: Verizon | About Verizon. The change might not apply to those customers on an older plan like the XXL Verizon Plan.

I'm most definitely NOT a VZW employee. If a post answered your question, please mark it as the answer.

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Justwantoreadandpost
Enthusiast - Level 2

Don't believe you're correct on the date being Feb - it's a more recent change.

In April, was traveling internationally, and returned on the 22nd. TravelPass was okay at that time, and I was using it extensively for streaming and tethering.  No issues, no warnings, no caps.

Now, throttled to uselessness after .5 GB/day.

http://pizzainmotion.boardingarea.com/2017/05/06/verizon-wireless-changes-international-travelpass/

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Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
Justwantoreadandpost
Enthusiast - Level 2

Spoke with Verizon at length today, as I’d encountered the 2G throttling after exceeding .5 GB the very first day of a 2-week stay in Prague last month. I had not had this problem just the month before in South America.

Apparently this “feature” is called Data Optimization and may *not* actually be a required component of TravelPass, although it is a new one. The Verizon rep was unaware of it; I had to spend several minutes breaking it down to her, and she took another few minutes to research on her end.

Result: The rep offered to remove Data Optimization. Really? Just remove?

After a significant amount of back-n-forth on my part regarding “Why would VZW do this in the first place?” and “Are you sure this will fix the problem?” and “Is there anything else I need to know so I won’t be surprised later?” we’ve now removed Data Optimization.

So, in theory, when we go to Italy end of this month things should be back to what they were previously – unlimited data at 4G speeds, where available, at $10/day internationally, subject only to the throttling caps on our US unlimited plans (which if I recall is ~22 GB per line, ~11GB of tethered 4G, depending on local demand). If you do blow through that much, you should then be throttled to 3G, rather than 2G.

We’ll see if it works in Italy.

Would be great if others might try this, see if it works, & report back.

Re: Travel Pass - not quite what promised. Beware the small print.
MOBILE1888
Newbie

I am going to Italy next month and am considering TravelPass to.

How did it end up working for you? Signal wise? Reasonable coverage?

I follow what they are saying about the "throttling". That sticks. Did it work better for you when they removed the throttling? Is that a thing they have to do or is it somewhere on the account website setting that we can change? and lastly did the bill come out like expected?

I'm aiming to use it for directions and texting mostly. Not streaming.

Thank you for the information. Hope your trip was great!

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