Internet is life! Whether you need to get a little work done or just want to sit back and watch Netflix after a long day hiking trails, internet is a great thing to have when you’re on the road. However, it’s not always easy to get in the middle of nowhere.
Unfortunately, we can’t retire quite yet, so we rely on our mobile internet to work our full-time jobs, even when traveling. If you’re wondering how we do it, here’s how we get internet while camping.
Cell phone mobile hotspot
Depending on your device and cell carrier, you can turn your phone into a mobile hotspot that can power your roaming internet needs. This is our primary internet method for our travels.
Rose (my better half) has a hotspot on her StraightTalk plan that was only $10 extra per month to add 10GB of hotspot data. We also bought an extra phone plan on Verizon with a 50GB hotspot for $80 per month. I have an AT&T phone plan with a 40GB hotspot for $85 per month.
Overall, we have around 100GB of hotspot data for $175 per month on two different carriers to cover all our bases. If one carrier doesn’t work in a location, the other might. We’ve run into several campsites that have great AT&T service but no Verizon (and vice versa).
That price tag might sound steep, but it also includes both of our phone plans. And considering we used to pay $130 per month for Skymobile in addition to our phone plans, this option is actually the cheaper one. It might not be unlimited, but 100GB is more than enough for us to work full time without going over the data limit.
Prices vary depending on the carrier. They all seem to have different prices and data limits, so check what plans your carrier offers (and how much they cost) before choosing this option.
Pro Tip: Redundancy is the key to maintaining a solid internet connection on the road. If one thing doesn’t work, try the next device in line.
The best part about using your cell phone as a hotspot is the simplicity. We don’t need to remember another device or pay a separate subscription. When we need internet, she clicks a button on her phone to activate the hotspot, and all our devices connect right up.
Unfortunately, cell phone mobile hotspot plans don’t offer unlimited data—at least from what I’ve found. If you know of one, let us know! And, if you go over your allotted data, it’s going to cost you when your monthly cell phone bill rolls around.
Pros
- No additional equipment needed
- Built into your wireless service contract
- Super easy to use
Cons
- Usually not unlimited
- Your phone needs service
- Can be expensive, depending on your carrier
Solis
Looking for another mobile internet option that doesn’t come with the steep price tag? Solis might be for you!
Solis is a pay-as-you-go mobile hotspot. Instead of the steep $149 per month like Skymobile, you only have to pay for the data you need. They offer several plans that work for just about any need:
- Pay-per-GB – Pay for data as you go for around $8 per gigabyte.
- Daypass – Get unlimited data for a day for about $9
- Unlimited – Get unlimited data for one month for around $99
What sets Solis apart from the rest is that it offers global data. It doesn’t matter if you’re traveling through the U.S. or on a fancy European tour, you’ll have mobile internet keeping you connected to the world.
Solis also pulls data from the nearest tower, whatever carrier it is. It provides internet access in more places because it’s not limited to just one carrier.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: Unlimited internet for $99 per month without carrier restrictions whoops Skymobile, right? That’s what we thought too, but we found out quick that Solis throttles your internet hard.
After you use 0.5GB on an “unlimited” plan, it throttles your speeds to near-unusable levels. I bought a bunch of daypasses for a weeklong trip and couldn’t even pull up a webpage after we used 0.5GB (which didn’t take long).
We find it’s best to do the pay-per-GB plan. There’s no throttling, and depending on your internet needs, one gigabyte should be enough to get through a day of emails and light web browsing. Just stay off social media and video sites.
We use Solis as a backup to our Skymobile. If the Skymobile doesn’t have any service, we’ll fire up the ol’ Solis hotspot and see what service it gets.
We leave our data empty until we need it. That way, we don’t have to pay for internet we don’t use. You can load up your hotspot from your cell phone on the road, so there’s no need to pre-load. But be careful, when you purchase data, it’ll try to make it a monthly subscription. Make sure you undo the subscription if you don’t want to purchase regular data every month.
The Solis is great for campers who either don’t need much internet or aren’t on the road most of the time. It offers good service and fast internet speeds, just be aware you’re not going to be streaming any Netflix in the trailer—unless you really want to pay for it…
You can pick up a Solis hotspot from their website or on Amazon for around $150.
Pros
- Runs on nearest cell tower, regardless of carrier
- Easy to use and load
- Pay as you go
Cons
- Unlimited plans throttle way down after 0.5GB
- Can get expensive if you use a lot of data
Skymobile
Skymobile is our number one go-to option for internet on the road. It’s a completely unlimited mobile hotspot! Yep, you heard me right: unlimited.
The “U” word is as elusive in the mobile internet world as Bigfoot is in the woods, but Skymobile does indeed offer completely unlimited mobile internet with no throttling. And believe me, we’ve tested the limits.
On one of our longer camping trips, we worked full time, watched movies on Netflix, and even Facetimed family to the max. The little counter on the hotspot went well beyond 100GB of data and the internet didn’t show any signs of slowing down!
With Skymobile, you can choose which device and network you want to use. We chose to use the Nighthawk on AT&T, but now they only offer Verizon mobile internet services.
The Nighthawk provides a solid 4G internet connection, even when service is relatively scarce. There have been several times when my phone would struggle to download a webpage (even though it’s also running on AT&T), but the hotspot is still pumping out fast internet.
Of course, we’ve also run into spots with no AT&T service at all. If that’s the case, say goodbye to your internet. Skymobile might be great, but it’s not magic. Even if Verizon and T-Mobile are in the area, you have to have service for the network you’ve chosen.
The only downside to Skymobile is that it’s a bit on the expensive side. The monthly subscription costs $149.99—and that doesn’t include the cost of the equipment, which will run you about $300, depending on which device you choose.
Because it’s a monthly subscription, it means you’re going to be paying for it even when you’re not on the road. This option is best for campers who go on the road a lot and need access to stable internet.
However, if you can convince some of your friends to sign up, Skymobile will give you a 10% discount on your monthly bill for each person to sign up using your link. That’s a great way to reduce the high subscription cost a bit.
Speaking of which, use our link to check out Skymobile for yourself!
Luckily, Skymobile offers a 14-day risk-free trial, so you can test it out before you decide to plonk down that kind of money.
It might be expensive, but getting Skymobile is one of the best decisions we’ve made! It has allowed us to get reliable internet just about anywhere we decide to travel.
2022 Update: We used Skymobile for over a year and loved every minute of its unlimited-ness. However, we left for our three-month cross-country trip, and to our surprise, the very first day we wanted to work, the internet wasn’t working. Apparently, Skymobile lost their deal with AT&T and completely shut off our service. That’d be fine if they told us about it! But they didn’t…
We only discovered this after emailing them (the only way to contact them) and they responded three days later on the following Monday. They told us AT&T was no longer available, but they’d be happy to send us another device with a new sim card on Verizon — along with a boosted $150/month service.
We appreciated the offer, but we were already on the road, didn’t have a shipping address, weren’t a fan of Verizon service, and didn’t want to spend the extra $30/month for service that might suddenly shut off on the road. We opted to cancel our service and find another, more stable option.
Their Verizon service probably works very well, but we weren’t very happy with the way they handled the situation with AT&T.
Pros
- Actually unlimited internet (really, we’ve tested it)
- No throttling
- Runs on major networks (Verizon)
- Fast internet speeds
Cons
- Expensive – $149.99 monthly subscription + equipment
- Needs service from the network you’ve chosen
- Setting up device was slightly challenging
- Poor customer service (email only during work hours, no phone calls)
Honorable mention: Satellite internet
When you Google “mobile internet options for campers,” there’s a good chance satellite internet options are going to pop up.
Now, we haven’t used satellite internet ourselves, but I have done plenty of research to see if it’s a viable option for our needs. So far, I don’t think it is for one major reason: price.
Satellite internet is crazy expensive. Depending on the one you choose, equipment costs alone can sour into the thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars! And that doesn’t include the monthly subscription, which can range anywhere from $40 to over $150 per month. Plus, you’ll usually need to install equipment like a satellite dish on your camper.
Of course, all that money pays for something. Satellite internet is by far the most reliable form of internet for RVers and campers. You’re almost always guaranteed to get a signal, no matter how remote your campsite.
While you might have a signal out in the boonies, keep in mind that satellite internet is usually much slower than broadband mobile hotspots. You might (slight chance) be able to stream video, but it’ll probably be very low quality and take some time to buffer. Think ‘90s dial-up speeds, minus the awful noises.
As of now, we’re not big fans of satellite internet. We just can’t get over paying that much for equipment for slow internet. I am, however, keeping my eye on Starlink. It looks promising, but it’s still in its early stages. Stay tuned.
Pros
- Most reliable – get internet from anywhere
Cons
- Super expensive equipment costs
- Monthly subscriptions
- Large (sometimes) equipment installation
- Slow internet speeds compared to 4G mobile hotspots
Stay connected no matter where you roam
Whether you’re looking to work, be entertained, post your awesome camping trips to social media, or maybe a little of each, having internet when you’re out on the road is definitely a positive.
In our humble opinion, if you’re on the road a lot and need access to unlimited internet, it’s hard to beat Skymobile. The monthly subscription might be on the pricey side, but no other mobile internet option offers truly unlimited internet without caps or throttling.
For campers who need a little bit of data every now and then, adding a mobile hotspot option to your cell phone plan or purchasing a Solis hotspot is probably a more reasonable option.
Now that you’re an expert on how to get internet while traveling, get out there and explore! And don’t forget to share your experiences using your new hotspot. Is there anything we forgot? Tell us about your experience or suggestions in the comments below. Happy travels!