8 steps to prepare your iPhone for traveling

Using iPhones internationally

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I’m a master of remembering I have a flight in 3 hours, packing in under 30 minutes, and arriving to the airport barely on time. And this is not some quality packing, I must say. I once forgot to pack any kind of pants. It wasn’t fun trying to find a store in a tiny German town on a Sunday (fast forward – pants not found. Yay to hiking wearing a skirt!)

using iphones internationally

I do take preparing iPhone for international travel or a vacation seriously, but I occasionally miss steps here and there as well. So, I realized that there has to be a checklist of things that need to be done to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod (or all the above) before a vacation. Ideally you will need to set some time aside. 30-minute packing rule doesn’t work here. Let’s get going!

What should I do to my iPhone when traveling internationally?

Security prep

  1. Make sure your iOS, apps, and browsers are up to date

  2. You don’t want your device to get hacked and your personal info stolen due to malicious attacks. To check/update your iOS version, go to Settings – General – Software Update

    what should i do to my iphone when traveling internationally?

    To update your apps, go to App Store – Updates – Update all

    Update iPhone apps

  3. Download a VPN app if you plan on using public Wi-Fi

  4. If you plan on using public Wi-Fi during your trip, consider using a VPN to make sure all your activity is routed through a secure, private network, so none of your information gets stolen through an insecure connection. Definitely don’t visit your mobile bank or enter your credit card details. Turn off your Wi-Fi, AirDrop, and Bluetooth unless you are actively using it.

  5. Don’t post on Facebook before leaving on vacation

  6. unlock iphone for international use

    It’s basically saying: “Come on in, break into my house and steal stuff!” Sure, you can only share that post with friends. But then you need to make sure you don’t have any random friends in your friends list. It’s easier to just leave social media posting for when you come back. Enjoy the moment 😊

  7. Unlock iPhone for international use
  8. Follow this Apple guide to unlock your iPhone for use with a different carrier.

    Entertainment prep

  9. Put your favorite TV shows/movies/music on your device

  10. iPhone entertainment

    Especially if you have a long flight or a long layover. Here’s how to:

    Put music on your iPhone;

    Put movies/TV shows on your iPhone.

    Other prep aka things I always forget to do

  11. Take a portable battery charger

  12. It will come in handy, especially if you decide to leave your hotel for a whole day or two and plan on using online maps, shooting lots of videos, and doing other battery-draining stuff.

    Portable iPhone charger

  13. Empty storage

  14. There’s nothing more upsetting than taking a selfie by the Eiffel Tower and seeing a sad pop-up: “Cannot take photo. There’s not enough available storage.” Free up some space on your device before you leave. Go to Settings – General – iPhone storage to see what’s taking up the most space.

    check your iPhone storage

    What you can do to free up some space:

    Delete some unnecessary apps;

    Transfer photos to your computer and delete them from your iPhone;

    • You can also free up some storage in iCloud by mass deleting photos. You can enable iCloud Photo Library after you’ve deleted all the photos from your iPhone and iCloud, so all the new photos from your trip are pushed to iCloud. That way even if you lose your iPhone, all the photos will still be waiting for you in iCloud.

  15. Download apps you might need during your vacation beforehand

  16. The ones I usually download are offline maps and public transportation apps for the area I’m going to (this saved me I don’t know how many times). Same goes for a translation app, if you don’t know the language.

    And last, but not least:

  17. Turn off your Mobile Data usage if you don’t plan on paying extra for it

  18. I forgot to turn it off once and paid for the mail app pushing all those junk emails I got and some of the other apps doing things I didn’t need them to do in the background. To turn it off, go to Settings – Mobile Data – turn the toggle off.

    will my phone work overseas

Time to get packing!

P.S. And don’t forget your pants.

Avatar for Iris
By Iris

Iris is a marketing and tech-support specialist in charge of the English-speaking market, who dyes her hair in the color of her cats' fur (future cat lady detected) and enjoys sitting on her balcony on a rainy day reading books, watching TV shows, playing video games and drinking hot chocolate. With marshmallows.