Just Arrived in Kuwait and Need to Get Basic Services

Welcome to Kuwait @socal434. As for the mobile service with internet. Here are links to the 3 telecom providers:
- Zain: Many people favor Zain, however, I can't really see why. On the plus side, Service is stable, network is reachable almost anywhere. On the downside, when I had a Zain postpaid line, I felt that they were completely ripping me off.
- Wataniya: Have had Wataniya line ever since I got a mobile (more than 10 years ago). On the plus side, in my opinion they have the best PREPAID plans with very cheap internet (an advantage which you might not find very useful since you want the internet door wide open). On the downside, I find there service staff in many cases cold and sometimes outright rude.
- Viva: Viva might seem to have nice packages, but in my opinion it's overshadowed by their lack of coverage and crappy service.

As for TV, I don't really know (as I don't follow any kind of sport on TV now ) but I know there are many people in a place called Hawally who have much experience with setting up channels which cover the NFL. If I get this info, I'll share it here.

Again, welcome and good luck

Hi socal434,

If you live in an area where they have fiber, I would suggest you forgo the TV and take a fast internet fiber from one of the providers - I have Gulfnet, pretty decent. Anything you need to see, you might find a site to stream it.

HTH

Thanks for the links. I will look into them.

The only TV provider is OSN and the American shows they play are repeats over and over from years ago. I have wifi in the house and watch tv shows from the states free online, just hook up the laptop to the big screen tv and watch it. Some people get the box from the states but you can only get that if you work or know someone on the base. Cali in da house!

kuwait411 wrote:

The only TV provider is OSN and the American shows they play are repeats over and over from years ago. I have wifi in the house and watch tv shows from the states free online, just hook up the laptop to the big screen tv and watch it. Some people get the box from the states but you can only get that if you work or know someone on the base. Cali in da house!

I think I will heed your advice on the TV provider and skip that one.  My contract is supposed to work out BX and Commissary privileges but it hasn't been finalized yet.  So, maybe I will be able to get an AFN box eventually.  On a side note, I wanted to thank you for helping calm the fears of my wife about coming here.  She is a Hungarian woman and was reading your blog and has wrote you a couple of emails asking about the life for a woman here.  Thank you very much for your replies, you were a great help.

Oh wow, that's great. I hope she enjoys her time here and if she needs anything else just let me know!

Hey there!

Pretty new here too but hopes this help! For phone service I have a prepaid plan from Zain, the service is decent but then again I'm not always on my phone. I paid 5KD to for phone service, text messaging is unlimited and I paid another 8KD for internet. It's good for three months and I use wi-fi and talk via viber so it's lasted me for some time now. I went with prepaid just in case I wasn't happy with the service I could change it without penalty and Wataniya refuse to service me. For internet service my apartment has free wi-fi which is average speed during the day but at night it tends to get slow so I also have a mini router from Viva which is a portable little thing that I can bring with me everywhere so that's pretty sweet since you can use it for wi-fi for your phone. The internet is faster but still slows down at night. It's 18KD a month and if you sign a two year contract you get a free iPad Mini 2. As for TV they play the same things over and over and over again so I have a Roku3 and use a VPN to stream US shows, movies and games via netflix, hulu, FOX, HBO, NFL, NBA, etc. (SEAHAWKS ARE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL!!!) keep in mind the "fast" internet here is not FIOS fast I wanted lighting fast internet too and found that there is no such thing. I still have to wait for a three minute youtube vid to buffer instead of being able to watch it all immediately but then again I'm from New York where fast means blink of an eye fast so my standards are a bit ridiculous. Unless you plan on streaming shows all day you should be satisfied with the internet speeds. Good luck!

Hello, dear u can go any mall to ask the Internet,

I can help u about u r topic just call me (Moderated: Please avoid leaving your phone number on the forum) my name is Terry from philippines.

I had Zain, Wataniya, and Viva.  All good in the beginning, then got piss-poor.  I'm using Mada now, have been using It for almost a year and had great service and quick response.  I get the 60kd plan for 3 months.  Worth trying in my opinion. Phone service is a crap shoot. I've had the same number with Zain back when it was MTC. Welcome to the shithole of the world!  ........you'll see.

Mistercuriosity wrote:

I had Zain, Wataniya, and Viva.  All good in the beginning, then got piss-poor.  I'm using Mada now, have been using It for almost a year and had great service and quick response.  I get the 60kd plan for 3 months.  Worth trying in my opinion. Phone service is a crap shoot. I've had the same number with Zain back when it was MTC. Welcome to the shithole of the world!  ........you'll see.

At least you have a positive outlook on things

yes there will be those who do not see the grass as green on the other side, thats coz you're looking for the wrong thing! the sand is yellow-er

you seem to be off to a good start, everyone is uber helpful with their suggestions, i'll just add one thing - when u say NFL, i would take it u enjoy the spectator aspect? coz kuwait has established its own team(s) for "your" football (rugby to me with fancy gear), so u might have the opportunity to catch a few live games should u be interested - they always play out of the football stadium at kuwait university's shuwaikh campus.

for internet, if u dont want the hassle of going thru the government to get a phone line (and paying a refundable deposit) then by all means use one of the 3 telecarriers for internet! or Mada, they are also good i hear. but in terms of prices, landline based internet is the cheapest (I paid 36KD for a 4mbps connection for a year with Fasttelco).

its a game of numbers and patience in the end

Agree with you @Legacy ... Land line DSL is the best in Kuwait hands down. But what surprised me ... AMERICAN FOOTBALL in Kuwait????? I had no clue what so ever. I really wanna check that out.

Thanks @Legacy for the valuable info.

Yeah there was a match that was shown on TV not to long ago.

@JFU I know the coach of the under 20s personally; and he's friends with the coach for the "National" team, who is also on this forum i believe

I'll keep you posted the next time there is a match, i'll tag the details on the FootSoldiers page.

see you tomorrow hopefully? bright and early I might take my bike to Marina as i'm still nursing a bad toe injury, but the 8K distance should be fine!

See me tomorrow inshaAllah ... you can bet on that.

Yes, I lost my car keys ... yes, I feel a bit tired .... yes, it might be cold tomorrow ... but that's no reason to stop running, is it now?

justfedup wrote:

See me tomorrow inshaAllah ... you can bet on that.

Yes, I lost my car keys ... yes, I feel a bit tired .... yes, it might be cold tomorrow ... but that's no reason to stop running, is it now?

The way I see it, losing the car keys should be *the* reason to get you running.

@Ribosom LOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

legacy wrote:

i'll just add one thing - when u say NFL, i would take it u enjoy the spectator aspect? coz kuwait has established its own team(s) for "your" football (rugby to me with fancy gear), so u might have the opportunity to catch a few live games should u be interested - they always play out of the football stadium at kuwait university's shuwaikh campus.

Is there also a Rugby team cos I'd like to watch that?  I'm not sure about the rules of American Football (are you really allowed to throw the ball forward!  )   Anyway it might be good to go out and watch the games.

KEvan!! crap! they just had a game this  weekend!! go to www.q8scorpions.com and find them on facebook as well for the latest updates!

I just love how Rugby wiggled its way in the topic about basic services in Kuwait.

legacy wrote:

KEvan!! crap! they just had a game this  weekend!! go to www.q8scorpions.com and find them on facebook as well for the latest updates!

Thanks I'll have a look.