Getting 3G Internet in Mexico

Mexico has a number of telecom networks but by far the most common of them all is Telcel. You’ll find a Telcel outlet on almost every corner. This is why I decided to get a Telcel card once I arrived here. I usually like to upload pictures and tweet about stuff as we travel around places (follow us on Twitter for access to all that neat stuff!) and this is why I need a pre-paid sim card with 3G. The 3G access also helps when we stay at some hotels/hostels without good internet access.

Telcel logo

The fact that my phone only takes microsims posed a bit of a challenge in Cancun. After a little hunting we did eventually managed to get a prepaid microsim. The prepaid card cost 120 pesos (USD 8.66) and came with 50 pesos of talk-time.

Activating an internet pack was quite cheap. There are a number of different packs available. All you have to do is top-up with enough credit, this can be done at any supermarket or online via credit card, and then send out a text message. The different Telcel packages are detailed here. I wanted to get the 2GB package which is valid for 30 days (this is actually a 1GB package but they are offering double data on all their packages as some sort of promo). The 1GB package cost me a total of 299 pesos (USD 21.58).

That was it. The activation was instant (I sent ‘bajo30′ to 5050 via SMS) and I was online pretty quick!

So that’s all you need to know to get setup with 3G access in Mexico.

Remember to always activate an internet package as pay-as-you-go internet will be VERY expensive.