Apple Watch eSIM in Roaming: A Solar Eclipse and the Beach in Spain – With No Connection
It finally worked in 2024 and 2025. In 2026, two trips to Spain, and the Apple Watch didn't connect once. Telekom's answer: they no longer have service in Spain.
Device: Apple Watch with a Telekom Hungary eSIM (MultiSIM)
Location: Spain, 2026 – two trips, including the solar eclipse
Problem: zero signal in roaming – no calls, no messages, no internet on the watch
Telekom's answer: service quality is declining, and they no longer have service in Spain
Unfortunately, even after years of use, the Apple Watch and Telekom's service are still far from what they should be. For a while it looked as if we had finally got there.
Why an Apple Watch eSIM is worth having in the first place, and how long it took to make Telekom understand that it doesn't work in roaming – all the way to the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (NMHH) in 2023 – I described in detail in an earlier case study. This article is the sequel.
Romania Yes, Hungary Barely
In Romania, several providers offer an Apple Watch eSIM with full roaming compatibility. In Hungary, as far as I know, only Telekom offers it – and even that service struggles: they have hardly any foreign partners on whose networks the watch can connect in roaming.
2025: It Finally Worked
In 2025 the Apple Watch started working in roaming too, and it was more or less stable. I'm sure of this, because by then I was paying close attention. It looked as if the long fight had paid off.
2026: The Eclipse, the Sea – and No Roaming
Then came 2026 and the eclipse. I went to Spain to plan a trip around the total solar eclipse of 12 August 2026 – and naturally, you add a few days at the seaside too.
That's where the problem showed up. A beach holiday goes something like this:
- swimming and bathing – the phone stays on the beach or at the hotel;
- the Apple Watch with the Hungarian Telekom eSIM doesn't connect in roaming;
- zero signal, zero connection – no calls, no messages, no internet on the watch.
In other words, it fails in exactly the situation you buy a cellular Apple Watch for.
Telekom's Answer
That was the answer when we contacted Telekom again. Spain is one of Europe's most popular destinations. If a roaming service doesn't work exactly there, it's hard to take it seriously.
What strikes me most: it worked in 2025. So the service didn't improve, it went backwards – and I received no information about it before travelling.
What to Know Before You Travel
- Ask before you go whether the Apple Watch eSIM works in roaming in that country. Don't assume it works because it did last year.
- Expect the watch to work only near your phone if it has no roaming connection.
- At the beach or when swimming, plan in advance how you'll stay reachable if the phone stays at the hotel.
- Report the problem in writing and keep the replies – in a later complaint, that's your strongest argument.
What Do You Think?
- Is it acceptable for a roaming service that already worked to disappear from one year to the next in a country like Spain?
- Why do several providers in Romania offer full Apple Watch roaming, while in Hungary it struggles even at the one provider that offers it?
- Has your Apple Watch failed to connect abroad too?
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