Vodafone UK is offering all of its customers a three month amnesty on roaming charges this summer from 1st June.

All pay monthly and PAYG users on their network can sign up for the Vodafone Passport scheme from 15th May and two weeks later they’ll be able to make calls, send texts and picture messages from any one of 35 countries across Europe back to the UK at their normal domestic rates.

This is basically the best thing ever although one does wonder that if they can afford to do it for three months, why not do it a little bit more or even all the time?

The deal with Vodafone Passport normally is that you have to get yourself on the right affiliate network in whatever country you’re in, then you pay 70-odd pence for the first minute and every other one after that comes out of your normal monthly allowance.

So, the step Vodafone is taking here is that from 1st June till 31st August, they’re removing that initial 70p. Presumably, you’ll still have to manually select the right foreign network before you dial.

If you want to get involved – and I imagine that’s anyone planning a summer holiday – text the word ‘Passport’ to 97888 if you pay monthly or to 2345 if you’re PAYG. You can also visit Vodafone.

The second deal Vodafone has on offer is a permanent change but it’s for PAYG Simply tariff customers only. They’re allowing calls abroad from the UK to international destinations from as little as 5p per minute to both landlines and mobile phones with the Vodafone International scheme. Sign up by calling 36888 or texting the word ‘international’ to 2345.

Got to hand it to Vodafone. They’ve pulled a very good, very clever bit of business here. Might just put a few people off that new iPhone 3G – for now anyway.