Calling home in Kuala Lumpur
Internet cafes offer cheap Skype calls
Calling home from Kuala Lumpur has become much easier in recent years with technological advances meaning that it is far easier to stay in touch with friends and family on the move. International phone cards are a cheap and convenient way to call home from KL with charges of only a few cents per minute for prepay customers.
These are available through convenience stores such as 7-Eleven, hotel receptions and even through the internet. Normally they involve dialing a special local phone number, entering a code contained underneath a scratch-off strip on the card and then dialing the desired number including full international code (normally omitting the first zero).
Using the phone in your hotel room is generally to be avoided except in a emergency as these are charged at exorbitant rates. If you have a mobile phone at home it is usually possible to use this in Kuala Lumpur although extra charges normally apply.
It is a good idea to contact your phone company before flying to tell them you plan to be away, and they may be able to switch your tariff temporarily for one that does not penalise international calls with massive additional charges.
Even receiving calls from abroad on your home cellular phone while in Kuala Lumpur can be expensive so remember to keep conversations brief, and perhaps call the person back using a cheaper method. Without doubt, the most cost effective way of calling home from KL is to use an internet phone provider such as Skype.
If you are travelling with a laptop or notebook, using Skype is extremely easy to set up and allows you to call home from Kuala Lumpur at any of the countless WiFi points dotted around the city. These days it is also possible to use this method through mobile internet connections such as iPhones and Blackberry handsets.
Calling another internet connection with Skype is free but if you are trying to get hold of a mobile or landline there is a small charge. Users must first open an account and buy some credit with a credit or debit card.
Internet phones can be crystal clear with a good connection but unbearably infuriating when there’s a dodgy line, so it pays to search out a decent spot first. However, KL is blessed with lots of internet cafes so you shouldn’t have to look very far.
