I am studying in Spain (Bilbao) this summer and need to find a good international phone card. Can anybody recommend a certain type? Where can I get these, should I buy one before I go, or wait until I get there? What about a cell phone?

If you are living with a host familiy then see if they are willing to hire Telefonica\'s Plan USA 15 for you. With this special offer you only pay 15,03 euros per month and you can talk up to 15 minutes everyday to the USA.

If that is not your case, then I would ask at the nearby "locutorios" how much they charge per minute for calls to the US. I used different international calling cards in England and I was thinking all the time I wasn't getting the minutes I should (read the fine print because these cards usually have hidden charges).

Another solution could be to use an internet cafe for PC to PC calling

When I studied in Spain my parents got a calling card through MCI WorldPhone for me to call home with. The rates are good on the weekends and evenings which worked out fine since due to the time change I usually only called them on the weekends anyway. I think it worked out to about 8 or 9 cents a minute; however, these rates are only good when you're calling your home number in the U.S. So basically this card is only good for calling your parents because if you call another phone number with it they'll charge you a lot more per minute--my mom got extremely mad when I called my boyfriend with this card because the rates were so much higher!

Newspaper stands (kioscos) in Spain sell numerous Phone Cards, starting as low as 6 euros a piece.
Last year I used Fortune & Eurocity card to call back to the US & cost of calls averaged less than 10 cents a minute. (Generally the longer the call, the cheaper because of small "call initiation" charges)

I have used Eurocity for the past year or so and it works wonderfully. Can be used anytime and from any phone. Line is crystal clear. Instructions are in various languages. You dial a toll free number, the secret code, and the number. You have 91 minutes of calls to the US for only €6 (less than $6). The only minor drawback is that the card has to be used within 45 days after first use. As indicated in the earlier message, many kioskos sell them.

this isn´t really a phone card, but www.losminutos.com you can call the US for $0.07/minute plus what ever it costs to call madrid, or you can call a toll free number and they charge you an additional $0.03/minute. You have to register online and tell them what phone numbers you are going to call from. I have used it and I think that the quality of the connection is great.