Los Teléfonos (telephones)

If you are planing on going abroad, make sure to check with your phone company to see what they offer when it comes to international service. Sometimes international texting, data, and calls are include in the plan while sometimes they aren't. When it comes to my plan, I had no international service provided and so I ended up purchasing a $30 plane from AT&T, which gives me unlimited texts abroad. My roommate's plan, however, included texting and data abroad so she didn't need to worry about that. 

Should you want to make calls to your family, you can use wifi using apps like Skype and FaceTime to communicate with family back home (which is what I am planning on doing). You can also get apps like Magicjack and WhatsApp, which can make calls through the Internet. (Be aware that MagicJack costs depending on where you are calling to and from). 

If you don't like either of these options, you also can purchase a SIM card from a local provider in Spain. Telefonica and Orange both sell them in their stores and you can get data, calls, and texts depending on what plan you purchase. You have to have them activated by a store attendant but you get everything you probably have with your plan back home. I believe these cost around $30 as well but I am not sure. To do this method, however, you must have an unlocked phone, with which you can change out the SIM cards.

Experience:

With the AT&T plan, I have been able to text my family back home with no problems. I can't send pictures or set up group messages unless I have wifi but I'm not upset about that at all. I'll actually be using WhatsApp to connect with a few of my friends here.

Update:

Having only texts works fine but sometimes I won't receive messages from those I am talking with until I get internet. They send through iMessage and since I can't get data here, it is a little frustrating.