When in Roam: The most searched questions when abroad

As holidaymakers get ready to hit Europe for a long hot summer, our team at giffgaff has done some research into the top ten internet searches when roaming abroad.

What did we find?

Polling 2,000 people living in UK*, our research revealed over one in 10 **(15%)** looked at moving abroad from checking local house prices to available jobs. While nearly 12% searched if tap water was safe to drink in their holiday destination, and over 10% used their mobile to check out the best bars.

The poll also highlighted translation searches for “hello” and “thank you” in the local language as the top two most searched phrases. These were closely followed by searches of the nearest supermarkets, the weather back home and the best local beaches.

Our research revealed over two-thirds of people would rather turn to the internet for answers than ask a local. The trend was more common among Gen Z with a whopping 4 in 5 (80%) preferring to rely on their phone, compared to just over half (56%) for those aged 55-64 years old.

Roaming while in the EU is seen as essential for many of us, but 2 in 5 (43%) are worried about being charged extra while away. However, nearly 30% (28.3%) think they use over 5GB of data on holiday, although our data revealed our members only use an average of 2.32GB of their roaming allowance.

Here is a little breakdown of the findings:

Top 20 most searched internet queries while in the EU:

• How to say ‘hello’ in [local language]? (46.8%)
• How to say ‘thank you’ in [local language]? (36.4%)
• Where is the nearest supermarket? (24.5%)
• What’s the weather today? (21.8%)
• Where is the beach? (20.6%)
• How to say ‘can I have the bill please’ in [local language]? (19.7%)
• What’s the exchange rate? (16.3%)
• Where is the nearest pharmacy? (15.7%)
• What is the best restaurant in [location]? (14.8%)
• Can you drink the tap water in [location]? (11.7%)
• What is the best bar in [location]? (10.7%)
• Is it raining in Britain? (8.8%)
• Can I bring ‘X’ home in my hand luggage? (7.8%)
• How to treat sunburn? (6.7%)
• Where can I find an adaptor plug? (6.2%)
• What is the average house price in [country]? (5.5%)
• Available jobs in [country] (4.7%)
• Are there poisonous animals in [country]? (4.6%)
• What’s ‘doctor’ in [native language]? (4.3%)
• Can you drink on the street in [country]? (3.9%)

Top 10 countries for roaming based on giffgaff customer data:

• Spain
• Poland
• France
• Greece
• Portugal
• Ireland
• Italy
• Germany
• Bulgaria
• Romania
• Netherlands

How much data will I need on holiday?

If you’re jetting off overseas and are wondering how much data you’ll need, we’ve laid out everything you need to know in our handy blog, How long will 5GB last on holiday?.