Dean is an engineer from San Francisco with a classic travel problem: high standards for efficiency and very little patience for unnecessary friction.
Earlier this year, he flew to Italy for the Italian Open with plans to spend most of the trip in Rome before continuing north to Copenhagen. Before even leaving his apartment in San Francisco, Dean installed two Landly eSIMs - one for Italy and one for Denmark.
“I turned on each SIM before I left for that country and when I landed, it automatically activated and started working.”
That simplicity quietly became one of the best parts of the trip.
No airport SIM kiosks.
No roaming confusion.
No performing the familiar ritual of standing near baggage claim trying to convince airport Wi-Fi to cooperate.
The connection simply worked from the moment he landed.
If you're new to travel eSIMs, learn what an eSIM is and how it works before your next trip.
Rome, Tennis, and a Lot of Gelato
Most of the trip was spent moving through Rome between tennis matches.
Dean and his friend visited the Colosseum, wandered through the Vatican, even saw the Pope, and somehow managed to walk through more churches than they could count. Rome has a way of making entire afternoons disappear without much warning.
Italy is, inevitably, a lot about eating. So naturally there was too much pasta, a questionable amount of carpaccio, and enough gelato to stop pretending moderation was part of the plan.
One restaurant became their immediate favorite: Nannarella in Trastevere, the famously crowded Roman spot with more than 45,000 reviews online.
Italy... we are missing your food already.
Some of the best moments happened between destinations rather than at them - long walks through piazzas at night, fountains appearing around random corners, and small discoveries that weren’t part of the itinerary at all.
That’s how Dean ended up inside Radiation Records, a used record store in Rome where he bought a vintage T-shirt he absolutely didn’t need.
That’s usually how good vacations work.
High-Speed Data for High-Speed Travel
The trip also included a day visit to Pompeii, which meant taking Italy’s high-speed rail south from Rome.
“When we went to Pompeii, we took the high-speed rail which, for an American, is amazing.”
The train reached nearly 300 km/h - fast enough to make most Americans briefly reconsider what train travel could look like at home.
Throughout the ride, Landly stayed connected quietly in the background, making it easy to load train tickets, check schedules, navigate stations, stay connected with family, and search for lunch spots before the train even arrived.
Which is usually how good travel technology works.
You barely notice it until you suddenly don’t have it.
Looking for the right provider? See our guide to the Best eSIM for Travel in 2026.
The Seamless Northward Shift
After Italy, Dean and his wife continued north to Copenhagen for a few days.
For most travelers, this is usually where the SIM card situation becomes annoying again.
For Dean, it was simply a matter of enabling the Denmark eSIM before takeoff.
When the plane landed in Copenhagen, the connection was already live.
No physical SIM swaps.
No local carrier stores.
No repeating the setup process all over again.
Just instant connectivity from the moment he arrived.
For a trip that moved between airports, train stations, crowded cities, and multiple countries, Landly quietly removed one of the biggest international travel frictions entirely.
Final Thoughts Before You Land
The best travel technology is usually the kind you barely notice.
For Dean, Landly quietly handled the connectivity while he focused on the tennis, the Italian food, and the trip itself.
He didn’t fly halfway around the world to troubleshoot roaming settings.
He flew there to experience Europe - and with Landly, the internet simply came along for the ride.
Planning a trip abroad like Dean?
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Travelers planning a European itinerary can also read our guide to choosing the best eSIM for Europe in 2026.