EE Roaming - it's just rubbish

[orionator]

To the good folks who answer user queries, there's no need to rationalise EE's roaming setup. This is just feedback for EE who will not otherwise solicit it.

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I've been roaming for 20+ years and EE roaming in 2025 is about as bad as anything I've experienced during that time.

I travel internationally somewhere between 2 and 10 times per year (6 trips to the USA in the last 12 months due to work and an ailing relative, 2 trips to Europe). 

Before EE's 2024 roaming changes, it was a pretty decent system. You could enable roaming ahead of arrival, it would last for a month and it cost the same for a month as it now costs for a week. I'm never away for more than a month, it just works (tm), perfect.

With the new system, it's hit-and-miss when you arrive at whether you can get it to work. EE sends a text with a URL that does not open from airport Wi-Fi networks. It's an odd looking http:// URL when the world moved to https:// years ago. It often takes over 30 minutes to get a working connection. It's a race between picking up the rental car (or get on public transport) and getting data so you know where you are going.

Today, my roaming pass ran out as I'm heading for an internal flight in the US. It ran out when I turned off for gas for the rental car. I could not get it to connect again at the gas station. I had to drive back to the rental center without maps. Not insurmountable, but for sure I did not take the most direct route. I appreciate I could have downloaded offline maps, but I've had a significant life event to deal with this trip and I've not been planning life around EE.

When I got to the airport, I tried clicking the link in the text message (the phone still shows as connected to the network and has the roaming symbol):

No dice. I join the airport Wi-Fi and still can't open the EE provided URL.

I reach for the EE Android app and find that it has logged me out (?). It has worked fine up until this point in the trip (it seems to do this when roaming passes expire). To access the app that I have already setup,  I have to:

• enter my EE account email address (yep, I have one just for EE).
• enter my cryptographically secure password.
• agree to login with a passkey.
• enter a verification code that is sent over SMS.
• re-create a PIN for the app (?).
• re-agree to use fingerprint login to the app (?).

From there, I can go to add-ons and choose 7 more days at £25 for a week. This is the standard EE roaming experience, you can get through it but it is horrible. What were the wise folks at EE thinking when they re-vamped their roaming? It's hard to fathom, but I'm looking forward to getting out of contract and exploring other options.

[Fr4ncophile]

Glad I saw this.  I had originally contacted EE to find out how to view my UK broadband bill either without the need to send a code to my UK mobile or to send it instead to my French mobile, as my current UK mobile provider told me I was regularly exceeding the number of days of EU roaming and I was considering ditching it.  Staff member said the codes can only be sent to UK mobiles and suggested EE unlimited EU roaming @ £23 per month (a bit more than I currently pay the UK supplier I have been with for about 10 years).  She insisted it was completely unlimited and even suggested I would no longer need my French mobile (not true, as most French companies won't be willing to contact a UK number).  Nothing was said about a daily charge of £2.47.  Something doesn't sound right to me...

[Northerner]

Hi @orionator 

The rental car didn't have GPS maps. 

If you're a frequent traveller to the US or elsewhere i suggest changing your plan to include the additional roaming entitlement which covers the US as it will possibly work out cheaper. 

The EE app must have updated while you were on wifi or roaming as you would only need to enter that data if the app updated and reset your credentials. 

@Fr4ncophile 

If your plan has EU roaming as a benefit then you will not be charged. 

There is a helpful thread here about roaming:

https://community.ee.co.uk/t5/Roaming/EE-Roaming-Help-when-abroad-with-your-EE-phone-or-device/m-p/1...

Thanks 

[orionator]

Hi @Northerner 

Technically the rental car had GPS, but practically it incurs an extra £10-12 charge per day.

Pretty much every rental in the past few years has Android Auto / Apple CarPlay built in, and that is a better experience (familiarity, better map accuracy, live data). I usually have offline maps downloaded, but this trip was made at short notice.

Interesting theory on the app updating. According to the Play store on the device, the app last updated on March 19th, 2025. The app had been used after that on this trip. Perhaps there is something else going on.

Thanks for the roaming thread pointer.