Activating Airalo eSIM After Landing — Step-by-Step Switchover
Wheels down, you walk into the arrivals hall — now the real Airalo setup starts. The eSIM profile is already installed from home, but you still need to switch the phone from your home SIM to Airalo and confirm that data roaming is enabled on the right line.
What you need
- An installed Airalo profile (if not yet installed, find airport Wi-Fi and install)
- At least 30% battery
- Plan instructions in case you need to pick a carrier manually
Step-by-step activation after landing
1. Turn off Airplane mode
Once off the plane, disable airplane mode. Wait 1-3 minutes — the phone will find a local network on its own.
2. Check which line connected
In the status bar of an iPhone the signal bars should appear next to the Airalo line label. If the signal sits on your home SIM and Airalo says "No Service" — you need to switch.
3. Set the Airalo line as data line
iPhone:
- Settings → Cellular → Cellular Data.
- Pick Airalo.
- Back in Cellular → open Airalo → confirm Turn On This Line = ON.
Android (Samsung):
- Settings → Connections → SIM Manager.
- Mobile data → pick Airalo.
- The Airalo toggle in the SIM list must be on.
4. Turn on data roaming for Airalo
iPhone: Settings → Cellular → Airalo → Data Roaming → ON.
Android: Settings → Connections → Mobile networks → pick the Airalo SIM → Data roaming → ON.
Without this Airalo cannot get data — the carrier treats every connection to their network as roaming for your eSIM.
5. Disable mobile data on the home SIM
iPhone: Cellular Data is already set to Airalo only, which disables data on the home SIM. But also check Cellular Data Switching = OFF (Settings → Cellular → Cellular Data → Cellular Data Switching).
Android: in SIM Manager → Mobile data Airalo must be the only choice. Separately disable Data roaming on the home SIM.
6. If data does not appear — pick a carrier manually
Wait 5-10 minutes. If you still see "No Service" or 4G with no traffic:
iPhone: Settings → Cellular → Airalo → Network Selection → turn off Automatic → pick a carrier from the plan instructions.
Android: Settings → Connections → Mobile networks → Airalo SIM → Network operators → turn off Automatic → pick manually.
7. Reboot the phone
If nothing helps — power off and on. Carrier choice and roaming settings persist across reboot.
After activation
- Check your data balance in the Airalo app (needs Wi-Fi or working Airalo data).
- Enable Low Data Mode on iPhone if your plan is small: Settings → Cellular → Airalo → Data Mode → Low Data Mode.
- For voice use WhatsApp, Telegram, FaceTime, Zoom — Airalo is data-only, no native calls.
Where to buy a reliable eSIM
Marix sells Airalo with instant QR delivery and Russian-language instructions. Pay with a Russian card or SBP, no VPN. If something does not click after landing, our chat support can talk you through it in a minute.