Lyca Mobile's roaming in India: what you do and don't get

Lyca Mobile plans now all include data roaming in India

Whether you join Lyca Mobile on a pay as you go plan or one of their new pay monthly contracts, you’ll now get data roaming in India included at no extra cost.

This new part of Lyca’s offer adds even more value to a seriously cheap mobile provider on EE’s network. Here’s a view of their best current deals on SIM only:

Lyca's best current deals with India data roaming

According to India’s tourism board, around one million UK travellers typically arrive there annually for tourism or visiting family. So there are plenty of people who could stand to benefit from the new scheme.

In this short guide, we take you through the ins and outs of how roaming works in India on Lyca Mobile, to see if it’s worth joining them to get the extra benefit.

Useful link: Read our full Lyca Mobile network review

It’s very unusual to get India roaming included on UK networks

It’s a welcome move from Lyca Mobile. Many networks have been removing EU roaming, which Lyca also still offer. So it’s even more rare to able to get any India roaming included at no extra cost.

The only other networks offering similar are Lyca’s fierce rivals Lebara. Even more-premium providers such as Three and Vodafone don’t include India as one of their worldwide roaming destinations.

Lyca are clearly in-touch with their customer base here. They have a long history of attracting international people who’ve moved to the UK. Previously this was mainly through inclusive international calls.

But it’s only logical that many of those people, plus others, would like to take their UK SIM only plan with them if they’re ever travelling to India. This lets you do that, without the usual high costs.

Useful link: Our guide to the best networks for international calls

It’s only your data that’s covered while you’re there

There is an important restriction on Lyca Mobile’s Indian roaming though. It’s only data that you use there that is included from your plan. Your minutes and texts are not.

It means you’re fine to use the internet while you’re away or even use calling apps like WhatsApp that use data but if you want to call back to the UK or an Indian number, it does cost.

At the moment, you’ll need to top up with credit if you’re on pay as you go or increase your spending cap if you’re on pay monthly. You’ll then be charged per minute or text at these rates.

It does take the shine off Lyca’s Indian roaming a little for us. It’s handy to have data because that would normally cost a lot. But most people are likely to need calls and texts while they're away.

Useful link: The best networks for worldwide roaming