Hi Team,

Long time lurker(under various irations) and first time poster.

Basically, I'm going to be out of the country for the next 12-13 months. Where I am traveling I wont have much use for my mobile.

In the interests of saving a bit of money and not really wanting to pay for something I wont be able to use – Is there a way to retain (park-up) my mobile number somewhere (so I don’t lose it and have it waiting for when I get back)? I suppose you could call me a bit precious worrying about keeping the number – considering I’ve had it since I was 12 lol. 

Currently on a 2degrees pay monthly plan – Had a quick look at the big 3 (Spark, Vodafone, 2Degrees) and a few of the virtual carries (Skinnys, Kogans etc) for their most affordable pre-paid plans – At first glance they all seem to be “roll over bundles” or similar – still a bit pricy for something I wont be using.

Does anyone know if any of the providers out there provide a casual pre-paid plan or something, someone has had success using for a monitored alarm or Machine2Machine link? Something like I can chuck a fiver at a time to keep the number live?

Apologies if this question (or something similar) has been asked and answered before. 

Id rather open my mouth now, ask the question and be a fool for a minute, instead of not asking and remaining a fool forever. 

Any (constructive :-) ) suggestions/recommendations most welcome

Cheers,

Dan