- The great Easter escape: O2 mobile data shows Easter being one of the busiest travel times for holiday makers, 50% higher than winter half term*.
- Lost and frown: This comes as over 1 in 3 (42%) Brits abroad worry about getting lost on holiday and more than a quarter (26%) worry about their phone dying whilst on a day trip.
- Roam free: O2 customers can use their mobile data (up to 25GB) to discover iconic locations, find fantastic restaurants and keep connected whilst abroad in the EU this spring and beyond, all at no extra cost.
Going on holiday isn’t all digital detoxing, disconnecting and rebooting**, as research by O2 reveals 94% of holidaymakers use their mobile phone more than once per day whilst abroad, with nearly a third (29%) using their mobile to keep up to date with social media.
With the Easter holidays yet again expected to be one of the most popular times to travel, anonymised and aggregated mobile data from O2 Motion shows around 50% more holidaymakers jet off during April’s school holidays compared to February half term. O2’s research also shows the most common worry holidaymakers face whilst abroad is getting lost – an issue 2 in 5 Brits (42%) can relate to, and one that is noticeably higher for women (47%) than men (37%).
Other stress inducing moments include; not speaking the local language (30%), the prospect of their mobile phone running out of battery whilst on a day out (26%), not having mobile data (19%) and thinking about the expense of roaming charges when they get home (16%).
To help Brits keep calm and connected while abroad, O2 is offering these top tips to avoid any mobile meltdowns.
- Download any maps you need onto your phone: Make sure you download a map of the city to your phone prior to going abroad – even if you have no data, you should still be able to access it on your phone while you’re away.
- Learn some local language before you get there: Try to learn a few phrases before you go abroad to help you get by. If you’re with O2, you can keep on top of the local lingo while in Europe by accessing your favourite language apps or translation tools via inclusive roaming.
- Bring a power bank for your devices: Having nomophobia (anxiety created by being without a working mobile phone) can ruin your day if you’re in an unfamiliar place. Make sure you’ve got a power bank ready should you need it so you can stay connected and keep your battery topped up.
- Check your mobile plan prior to your trip: Being without data while abroad can be a huge hassle, so be sure to check your tariff before going away to see if you have data roaming included, or how much extra it’ll cost you. If you’re on O2, you’ll get inclusive EU roaming (up to 25GB) in 49 destinations for no extra cost, check out if your destination is included here.
- Add a spending cap to avoid unwanted bill shock: A spending cap limits how much you can spend on data and airtime usage outside of your allowance, meaning you can keep in control of your mobile bill while away and avoid unwanted roaming bills.
ENDS
Notes to Editor:
*O2 Motion
O2 Motion is a service that uses anonymised and aggregated data created by the mobile phone network to offer insight into movement trends across the UK. As mobile devices connect to different masts, they create data footprints which O2 can then anonymise, aggregate, and extrapolate in order to gain a picture of how people are travelling, when they make journeys and which areas they visit.
O2 Motion is based on connection data between a device and the phone mast only. It does not collect GPS data and the service isn’t used for ‘contact tracing’.
Survey data:
**2000 National UK respondents (02.04.2024 – 03.04.2024)
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