The connectivity mistakes I see Singaporean travellers make
By Marcus Tan·
After enough time comparing travel tools, you start to notice the same mistakes again and again. None of them are about being careless — they are just things nobody tells you. Here are the five I think cost Singaporean travellers the most, and what to do instead.
1. Leaving roaming on by default
The most expensive mistake is the quietest one: stepping off the plane with telco roaming still active and no plan attached. A few hours of that can cost more than a whole eSIM. Before you fly, either buy a roaming pass deliberately or turn roaming off and switch to an eSIM. Drifting into roaming by accident is the worst of both worlds.
2. Buying far more data than the trip needs
It is easy to panic-buy a 20GB plan for a five-day trip. In practice, if your hotel and most cafes have Wi-Fi, a small plan plus Wi-Fi covers a lot. Maps, messaging and the occasional Grab ride use less than people expect. Start smaller than feels comfortable — most eSIMs let you top up in seconds if you run low.
3. Installing the eSIM after landing
An eSIM needs an internet connection to install — and the moment you most want it is the moment you have none, standing in an arrivals hall. Install it before you leave Singapore, while you are on Wi-Fi. You just do not switch it on until you land. This one is free to fix and saves real stress.
4. Forgetting the eSIM has no phone number
Most travel eSIMs are data-only. If you are expecting an SMS one-time password on your Singapore number, that still arrives on your physical SIM — which means roaming charges unless you plan for it. For everything else, WhatsApp and Telegram work fine over data. Just know which is which before you need it.
5. Paying the bank's 3% FX fee on every purchase
Connectivity is only half of it. Tapping a normal Singapore credit card overseas adds a foreign-transaction fee of around 3–3.5%. Over a holiday that is real money, and a multi-currency card removes most of it. If you are sorting an eSIM anyway, sort the card in the same sitting.