Several companies and travel eSIM products are available for Sri Lanka. Nomad is one of them. The next eSIM I tried was Nomad Sri Lanka Travel eSIM. It is an eSIM that can only be used in Sri Lanka. In this article, I will describe my experience with Nomad Sri Lanka eSIM.
Disclaimer: Some links in this article contain affiliate links. If you click on the link and purchase any service, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
If you want to compare Nomad Sri Lanka eSIM with other eSIM, you can find my reviews here:
Reviews: eSIM in Sri Lanka
More about eSIM technology and other companies is in this article. In this blogpost, you will find advice on choosing a suitable product for a trip abroad.
Read on to learn more about my experience with the Nomad Sri Lanka eSIM.
Nomad discount code
This link will bring you to the Nomad page. If you use my Nomad code LEOS92MM, you will get $3 off your first eSIM purchase.
Nomad products for Srí Lanka
Nomad offers three products for Sri Lanka. The first product is the Nomad Sri Lanka Travel eSIM, a data plan specially for use in Sri Lanka. There are several variants of 1GB to 20GB to choose from.
The second type of product is the Nomad APAC Travel eSIM, which can be used in 20 countries or 21 countries in Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
The third is the Global Travel eSIM. There are packages for 106 countries and 109 countries.
Nomad eSIM Products Price
Nomad offers several Sri Lanka Travel eSIM data plans. They differ in the size of the data provided and the validity time. The price ranges from £3.5 for 1GB to £24.5 for 20GB.
You can find more information about this product by clicking “Plan Details”. “Network” contains a list of operators whose mobile network you can use in Sri Lanka.
What phones support eSIM?
With this technology’s growing popularity, more and more phones and tablets are on the market that support it. When buying a phone, you should ask the seller if the phone supports eSIM. Alternatively, check the list in this article.
Mobile operators in the Srí Lanka and type of connection
Sri Lanka has four mobile operators: Airtel, Dialog, Hutchison, and Mobitel. Nomad Sri Lanka Travel eSIM products can be used on the Dialog and Hutchison networks. Each mobile carrier has different coverage, so I recommend checking out nperf.com. Especially outside the capital, there are many areas without coverage.
Connection type
In the technical information for this data package, Nomad mentions 4G network support. However, it depends on the location (see the maps in the pictures above). The mobile signal does not cover many areas outside of the cities.
Activation
Unlike competitors, Nomad products must be activated within 60 days of purchase. (After purchase, you have 60 days to activate your plan. Otherwise, your plan expiry will start on the 30th day.)
The data plan’s activation and validity period start as soon as the eSIM is connected to a supported mobile network for the first time or on the 30th day after the purchase of the product.
It is always a good idea to check the product information by clicking “Plan Details”.
My experience with Nomad Srí Lanka eSIM
My data plan
For a trip to Colombo, I bought a data plan with 1GB of data and a validity period of 7 days. This eSIM used the Hutchison mobile network. The plan cost £3.5.
The installation was straightforward. I scanned the QR code I received by email. The second option is to use the Nomad application, which requires following the instructions.
Network registration
My phone supports the use of two SIMs at once. Before my first flight to Sri Lanka, I checked the phone settings to see if the Nomad Sri Lanka eSIM was enabled. I then turned off mobile data and put the phone in flight mode.
After landing at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) in Colombo, I turned off flight mode and watched what would happen. After about a minute, Nomad Sri Lanka eSIM registered into the Hutch (short for Hutchison) network, and I received a welcome SMS from Hutch.
When I enabled mobile data and saw the 4G icon. Subsequently, I saw arrows flashing in both directions, meaning the phone was sending and receiving data. It is always important to note the direction of the arrows. They must go both ways.
Behaviour
While travelling, I often use maps to navigate from one point to another. Google Maps worked flawlessly. Sitting at the airport, I watched the planes arrive and depart on the FlightRadar24 app. In addition to the aircraft at the airport in Colombo, I also watched planes flying over other countries.
Streaming apps like YouTube and Twitch also worked smoothly.
Speed
I had enough data to test the Hutch network speed. Although the test server was somewhere in Texas, 15.1 Mbps downlink speed was surprising.
Top-ups
Buying additional data is simple. Just click on “Add more data”.
Conclusion
Nomad Sri Lanka Travel eSIM met my expectations. A data plan with 1GB valid for 7 days for £3.5 is an excellent product for a short stay in the country. Especially when compared to the expensive data roaming offered by many mobile operators.
I rate the experience with Nomad Sri Lanka Travel eSIM positively. There were no issues during use, and the apps worked for me as they were supposed to.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Three options – local eSIM, regional APAC eSIM and Global eSIM | No unlimited data |
| Different data offered in the data plans – from 1 to 20 GB | Limited time for activation – 60 days from buying |
| Different validity periods of data plans – from 7 to 45 days | |
| Two supported operators- Dialog and Hutchison | |
| Simple process for top-ups | |
Latest Travel SIM articles
Like this article? Share it!