URL: https://esimgo.ae/sim-card/italy/
Buy: https://esimgo.ae/esim-italy/
Source: eSIM Go (esimgo.ae)
Author: Nadezhda Semenova, entrepreneur, co-founder of the Trippy travel service, https://esimgo.ae/author/
Updated: 17 Oct 2026

# Italy SIM card from the UAE: TIM Tourist, roaming or a data eSIM

An Italy SIM card from the UAE comes in three forms: TIM Tourist at €14.99 for 200GB over 30 days plus €10 for the SIM (TIM, 16 Oct 2026), a roaming pack on your UAE line from AED 35.00 for one day to AED 100.00 for a week, or a data eSIM from AED 10.99 for 1GB and 7 days. We sell travel eSIMs, so we have an interest here, and eSIM Go is not affiliated with e&, du, Virgin Mobile UAE or TIM.

## Data in Italy from the UAE: the options side by side

Four routes give you an Italy SIM card or its equivalent: a TIM Tourist SIM bought in Italy, a day or week pack on your UAE line, Virgin One Country, or a data eSIM installed before you fly. Your e&, du or Virgin Mobile line won't use mobile data abroad unless you add a roaming pack (e& lets you unlock pay-as-you-go data for 24 hours by SMS).

| Option | Data | Entry price |
|---|---|---|
| TIM Tourist, local minutes | 200GB 5G · 30 days | €14.99, SIM €10 |
| e& or du day pack, your UAE number | 500MB · 1 day | AED 35.00 |
| Virgin One Country, your UAE number | your plan's data · one country · 1 month | AED 0.00 on 20GB+ plans |
| Our Italy eSIM, data-only | 1GB · 7 days | AED 10.99 |

We keep TIM's prices in euros and do not convert them to AED. Dubai International counted 1.6 million passengers on its Italy routes in 2025, up 12.5%, counting both directions and transit ([Dubai Media Office](https://mediaoffice.ae/en/news/2026/february/11-02/dxb-sets-new-global)).

<!-- visual-slot -->

## TIM Tourist: 200GB for 30 days, 23GB of it across the EU

TIM Tourist costs €14.99 for 30 days: 200GB on 5G, unlimited calls inside Italy and 100 international minutes, plus €10 for the SIM card (TIM, 16 Oct 2026). Of the 200GB, 23GB also work in other EU countries.

At the point of sale you can add 100GB for €5. Our arithmetic: the first month is €24.99 for 200GB, about €0.12 per GB, or €29.99 for 300GB with the add-on, about €0.10 per GB. The contract summary says the 23 are "validi nei paesi UE" (valid in EU countries) and paid "su credito residuo" (from remaining credit; our translation). In Italy, once the data runs out, "il traffico dati si blocca" (data stops).

Settle two things in the store. ID: it is sold at TIM stores; check which ID TIM asks for, because its pages do not say. Format: TIM names a €10 SIM card, and we could not confirm an eSIM version. If your UAE line is on a physical SIM and your phone has one slot, the TIM card replaces it for the trip.

On a 7-day Rome and Florence trip, the €24.99 is €3.57 a day, against €0.83 over its 30 days. TIM wins on a month-long stay or with many calls to Italian numbers. For a week of maps, 200GB is far more than you will use, and the €10 SIM is still part of the bill.

## e&, du and Virgin Mobile in Italy: a week and One Country

Italy is in e&'s preferred zone, du's zone A and Virgin's pack zone, so a week costs AED 100.00 for 4GB on e& prepaid, 10GB on du postpaid or 2GB on Virgin.

| Pack | Line | Data · days | AED | about AED per GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| e& Roaming Weekly Data | prepaid | 4GB until 10 Jan 2027 · 7 | 100.00 | 25.0 |
| e& Roaming Daily Data, 7 days in a row | prepaid + postpaid | 3.5GB in total · 7 × 1 day | 245.00 | 70.0 |
| du roaming data bundle | postpaid | 10GB · 7 | 100.00 | 10.0 |
| du roaming data bundle | prepaid | 10GB · 7 | 200.00 | 20.0 |
| du roaming data bundle | postpaid | unlimited · 7 | 200.00 | no fair-use figure published |
| Virgin roaming pack | Virgin plan | 2GB · 7 | 100.00 | 50.0 |

Sources: [e&](https://www.eand.ae/eshop/addons/?subCategory=cat550028&lang=en&categoryDimension=cat550054) (15 Oct 2026), du [postpaid](https://www.du.ae/personal/mobile/roaming/postpaid/detail) and [prepaid](https://www.du.ae/personal/mobile/roaming/prepaid/detail) bundles (15 Oct 2026), [virginmobile.ae](https://www.virginmobile.ae/roaming/) (15 Oct 2026). The per-GB column is our arithmetic. Pack rules: [e&](/roaming/etisalat/), [du](/roaming/du/).

Virgin wins when Italy is your only country: Italy is on the [One Country](/roaming/virgin-mobile/) list (34 countries on the page, 15 Oct 2026), free on plans of 20GB and up; it uses your plan's data. The pass does not renew on its own; Virgin's page says "Don't forget to re-activate every month."

du also sells its own Travel eSIM for Italy: about AED 12.85 (US$3.5) for 1GB and 7 days (du, 15 Oct 2026).

Our Italy eSIM joins a local network: WindTre, Vodafone or Iliad. Unlimited data is AED 55.99 for 7 days (about AED 8.00 a day), at full speed up to 5GB a day, then 1 Mbps, and 10GB for 30 days is AED 40.99; the [Italy eSIM plans](/esim-italy/) page shows every price in AED. Charged in AED by JET SHARING (USA). Your bank may add a foreign-transaction fee; see [how to pay](/how-to-pay/).

Install our eSIM before you fly; it connects when you land in Italy, and its days count from then. Top-up is possible.

Keep your UAE SIM switched on for SMS; e& and Virgin don't charge for SMS you receive abroad; calls you receive are charged per minute. du doesn't publish a price for SMS you receive abroad. Our Italy eSIM is data-only ([keep your UAE number](/help/keep-your-uae-number/)) and do not provide service in the UAE. If the eSIM has not connected to any network, you can get a refund within 30 days of purchase.

## Italy plus another country: one plan or two

A second country changes the sum: TIM shares only 23GB, Virgin covers one country a month, an Italy eSIM covers Italy. The EU's "roam like at home" rule covers SIMs from EU and EEA operators (Your Europe, 16 Oct 2026); your e&, du or Virgin line pays UAE roaming rates in Italy. Per TIM's contract summary, 23GB of its 200GB works in the EU, 11.5% by our arithmetic; at 2GB a day it lasts about 11 days outside Italy, and it does not apply in Switzerland, which is not in the EU.

Virgin lists Italy and France, but the pass covers one country a month. For a multi-country route, a regional plan is one purchase; check every stop against the list on the [Europe eSIM plans](/esim-europe/) page. The [Europe SIM card guide](/sim-card/europe/) compares these routes; the [France SIM card guide](/sim-card/france/) covers the next stop.

## FAQ

### Which network does the Italy eSIM use?

It runs on WindTre, Vodafone and Iliad. It is data-only, so your UAE SIM keeps calls.

### Does my UAE roaming cover Italy?

Yes, with a pack. Italy is in e&'s preferred zone, du's zone A and Virgin's pack zone, and a week is AED 100.00 for 4GB on e& prepaid or 10GB on du postpaid (15 Oct 2026).

### Is there an unlimited eSIM for Italy?

Yes: our 7-day Italy plan is AED 55.99, at full speed up to 5GB a day, then 1 Mbps. du postpaid unlimited is AED 200.00 for 7 days with no fair-use figure published (15 Oct 2026).

### Do I need a local SIM in Italy?

Only for Italian minutes; for data alone an eSIM is enough. TIM Tourist includes unlimited calls inside Italy; a data-only eSIM includes none.

## Sources

- TIM, TIM Tourist: tim.it (16 Oct 2026)
- Your Europe, mobile roaming costs: europa.eu (16 Oct 2026)
- Dubai Media Office, DXB 2025: mediaoffice.ae (11 Feb 2026)
- e&, roaming packs: eand.ae (15 Oct 2026)
- du, roaming bundles and Travel eSIM: du.ae (15 Oct 2026)
- Virgin Mobile UAE, roaming packs and One Country: virginmobile.ae (15 Oct 2026)