Cell Phone Use While at Sea..........

Well, I vehemently disagree with the first sentiment. Why exactly do people NEED to be in touch instantaneously these days? Nothing in the world has changed except for our ability to be reachable.

 

The philosophy that you end your post with is where I wish everyone would start from: you really have no control over what's going on and only a really dire emergency is going to get you off the boat. In my experience, being in touch 24/7 causes more stress than it relieves.

 

For the OP, I'd heavily reconsider the suggestion that you use email to stay in touch with routine check-ins because you'll ultimately get much more peace of mind with that since you won't have to worry whether or not you're getting charged international roaming rates for this stuff.

I basically agree with you, but today's families are different than when DH and I had young children. Young families have cameras in nurseries, day-care cameras, constant texting with schools, websites with grades posted every day, etc. They are used to constant contact. I think they need it for peace of mind.

I think young families have a much harder time than DH and I did raising kids. We knew where the kids were by walking outside and seeing which house had a bunch of bicycles on the lawn! Now the kids text mom. It's just a different world!

Go to this link on the Verizon site and you will see that all Celebrity ships are covered.

We used the $40 international Verizon plan on our Baltic cruise this summer and had no trouble receiving or making calls or texts from the ship or in ports. There are some nuances. You need to add different prefixes to the numbers depending on whether you are at sea using the ship satellite service or if you are in port (where you just use +1 for the US). Everything is explained in the International Plan instructions.

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

We also had that plan in the Baltic's and it worked in ports. I never tried on the ship. I thought you had to buy a separate Celluar at Sea Plan for use on the ship. Is this not correct?

We had the free Internet Package's (Elite) and used that for my iPad, but not for the iPhone. I was afraid to use cell on the ship.:o

If you have WiFi on the ship plus an iPhone, you may be able to send iMessages (Apple's version of text messages between Apple devices). Not sure about incoming iMessages since they may default to regular text messages from the sender since the Apple iMessage servers won't have your inactive iPhone registered.

 

 

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OP is looking for a cheap alternative, isn't interested in the expensive on-board data plans. As they want 24/7 reachability, they'd need the $299 unlimited plan. OP is even not interested in a $40 fee from his cell provider.

 

I find iMessaging sketchy at best. Sometimes I get messages, but can not reply, even when connected to WiFi, but if I shut wifi off and reply by phone text my reply goes. Other times, I do not get replies, but people get what I send, even though ion wifi. And when I turn on Cellular service again, all of a sudden I get a flood of incoming messages.

I used iMessage from my iPad and had no trouble and it was almost instant like texting. The only thing to figure out was what time it was back home. If I did not receive a response after about 30 seconds, I would shut the WiFi off and check back later. I also used email.

When we travel we always tell our adult children that unless a true emergency or something that involves a close family member (and we need to come home), we don't want to hear any bad news. Emergencies, they call the ship...period!

When picked up at the airport after the last several cruises, my daughter seems to always greet us with bad news. An uncle passing away, a cousin's son killed, our dog :(... The worse was when my sister passed away (semi unexpected) and we were contacted on the ship. We were at sea and heading for Croatia. There was no way to get home in time for the funeral, so we were sad the remainder of the trip. We were able to talk to my brother-in-law by phone a few times, however there was nothing more we could do until returning home.:( My daughter says that we are not allowed to leave the country anymore. :D

Well, I vehemently disagree with the first sentiment. Why exactly do people NEED to be in touch instantaneously these days? Nothing in the world has changed except for our ability to be reachable.

 

The philosophy that you end your post with is where I wish everyone would start from: you really have no control over what's going on and only a really dire emergency is going to get you off the boat. In my experience, being in touch 24/7 causes more stress than it relieves.

 

For the OP, I'd heavily reconsider the suggestion that you use email to stay in touch with routine check-ins because you'll ultimately get much more peace of mind with that since you won't have to worry whether or not you're getting charged international roaming rates for this stuff.

I don't mean to be rude, but my question was about cellular service while at sea, not how I should be handling my family affairs. We don't know each other and haven't a clue about one anothers personal home/family situations, nor do I have a desire to discuss such things with strangers in a public forum.

Go to this link on the Verizon site and you will see that all Celebrity ships are covered.

 

We used the $40 international Verizon plan on our Baltic cruise this summer and had no trouble receiving or making calls or texts from the ship or in ports. There are some nuances. You need to add different prefixes to the numbers depending on whether you are at sea using the ship satellite service or if you are in port (where you just use +1 for the US). Everything is explained in the International Plan instructions.

 

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

Thanks for the info! I was looking at this last night and plan to go to my local Verizon store this weekend to confirm everything.

We have been cruising for 10 years since our children were 5-10. At that point there was no option for texting...(although I see you have been cruising much longer!)

As they got older, we did email grandparents with messages for them.

Now we just say "Have fun" (though grandparents always have the ships number for an emergency!)

We love being offline for a week. We do get a minimal internet package, mostly so we don't have to come back to a stuffed inbox.

BTW, internet on the ships has vastly improved. We don't find it to be much slower than DSL at home anymore. A tad, to be sure.

ALSO--you can also find internet cafes or free wifi (Starbucks!) while in port, so you might consider that as well.

It does sound as though the plans are confusing and not 100% reliable while on the ship, so an email back up would be a a good plan no matter what.

Have a great cruise & hope your kiddos have fun wherever they are, too!

Emailing is not an option for us. The individual who will be watching over our children does not have internet access.

 

Thanks for the info! I was looking at this last night and plan to go to my local Verizon store this weekend to confirm everything.

The last two times I have gone to Verizon to ask about the International Plan, I have been told that they can no longer discuss this with customers and that we have to call Global Support - 1-800-711-8300. ;)

The last two times I have gone to Verizon to ask about the International Plan, I have been told that they can no longer discuss this with customers and that we have to call Global Support - 1-800-711-8300. ;)

Just like AT&T, only a very few people there actually know the real deal on cruise ship calling.

Thanks for the info! I was looking at this last night and plan to go to my local Verizon store this weekend to confirm everything.

Just another reminder, voice usage on the cruise ships themselves is not covered on any Verizon plan. The website says it is, CS will tell you it is, but you will be billed and you will have to call them and fight to get a credit.

SMS is covered.

The last two times I have gone to Verizon to ask about the International Plan, I have been told that they can no longer discuss this with customers and that we have to call Global Support - 1-800-711-8300. ;)

Well that's interesting. I wonder why?

Just like AT&T, only a very few people there actually know the real deal on cruise ship calling.

After all of these phone calls to them, I'm not sure anyone really knows the real deal! How frustrating!

Just another reminder, voice usage on the cruise ships themselves is not covered on any Verizon plan. The website says it is, CS will tell you it is, but you will be billed and you will have to call them and fight to get a credit.

 

SMS is covered.

The funny thing is, I signed up for their international plan for that time period, and they sent me an email with a full description of the services I purchased. It specifically lists the Celebrity Summit on the days we are at sea (each individual day), as well as the islands we will be visiting. I'm not arguing with you, because it would NOT surprise me if the ship wasn't covered, but why would they specifically list it and claim it was covered? I'm obviously not the first person to purchase this for a cruise, therefore I won't be the first person to argue the charges after the fact. You would think this was a losing battle for them and they would stop making this claim.

Just another reminder, voice usage on the cruise ships themselves is not covered on any Verizon plan. The website says it is, CS will tell you it is, but you will be billed and you will have to call them and fight to get a credit.

 

SMS is covered.

The OP should just go to the Verizon site or call the Global number. We had both voice and texts. From the ship at sea (roaming) you dial 011 then area code plus number. No extra charge from the ship to call or receive calls. From ports the ship switches off their roaming signal and you connect to the local carrier in the area. You dial (+1) area code number for a US call (or + country code) area code number for non US. Our Verizon International plan covered voice (calls) and text. Honestly all pretty easy.

The OP should just go to the Verizon site or call the Global number. We had both voice and texts. From the ship at sea (roaming) you dial 011 then area code plus number. No extra charge from the ship to call or receive calls. From ports the ship switches off their roaming signal and you connect to the local carrier in the area. You dial (+1) area code number for a US call (or + country code) area code number for non US. Our Verizon International plan covered voice (calls) and text. Honestly all pretty easy.

I just got off the phone with Verizon's Global Services dept. and they claim this plan will cover everything. If it doesn't, I will be fighting for my money after the fact.

Thank you everyone for your input and suggestions. I'll be sure to let everyone know how it goes.

Go to this link on the Verizon site and you will see that all Celebrity ships are covered.

 

We used the $40 international Verizon plan on our Baltic cruise this summer and had no trouble receiving or making calls or texts from the ship or in ports. There are some nuances. You need to add different prefixes to the numbers depending on whether you are at sea using the ship satellite service or if you are in port (where you just use +1 for the US). Everything is explained in the International Plan instructions.

 

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

This link shows that service is available on the ship, but no special deal is available on voice calls. If you plug in details (i said Eclipse and iPhone) you get a chart that tells you what the costs are.

1st table says Location: Celebrity eclipse: Voice allowance - N/A but does give special rates on data and messaging.

2nd table says Country:Celebrity Eclipse, Voice: $1.79/minute. This is the standard billing rate for anyone using the service from the ship.

Most any phone will be able make calls on the ship, it's a matter of if you can get a package to lower the cost or not. AT&T has such a package but other providers do not.

There are lots of itineraries where one can pick up land-based cell service that is included in packages. One just needs to check their carrier from time to time to see if Cellular at Sea (getting billed by ship if no special package) or a local carrier - that is covered under international plans.

The OP should just go to the Verizon site or call the Global number. We had both voice and texts. From the ship at sea (roaming) you dial 011 then area code plus number. No extra charge from the ship to call or receive calls. From ports the ship switches off their roaming signal and you connect to the local carrier in the area. You dial (+1) area code number for a US call (or + country code) area code number for non US. Our Verizon International plan covered voice (calls) and text. Honestly all pretty easy.

This link shows that service is available on the ship, but no special deal is available on voice calls. If you plug in details (i said Eclipse and iPhone) you get a chart that tells you what the costs are.

 

1st table says Location: Celebrity eclipse: Voice allowance - N/A but does give special rates on data and messaging.

 

2nd table says Country:Celebrity Eclipse, Voice: $1.79/minute. This is the standard billing rate for anyone using the service from the ship.

 

Most any phone will be able make calls on the ship, it's a matter of if you can get a package to lower the cost or not. AT&T has such a package but other providers do not.

 

There are lots of itineraries where one can pick up land-based cell service that is included in packages. One just needs to check their carrier from time to time to see if Cellular at Sea (getting billed by ship if no special package) or a local carrier - that is covered under international plans.

These two post, as well as what the OP was told, are so contradicting. I am so confused and do not know what to do for my trip next week. Although I can live without using the voice portion on the ship, it would be nice to have it to confirm some excursions for upcoming ports, or call if there is any problem with the ship getting into port. :rolleyes::(:eek:

These two post, as well as what the OP was told, are so contradicting. I am so confused and do not know what to do for my trip next week. Although I can live without using the voice portion on the ship, it would be nice to have it to confirm some excursions for upcoming ports, or call if there is any problem with the ship getting into port. :rolleyes::(:eek:

Verizon told me the same thing that TeeRick said in their post:

"We had both voice and texts. From the ship at sea (roaming) you dial 011 then area code plus number. No extra charge from the ship to call or receive calls. From ports the ship switches off their roaming signal and you connect to the local carrier in the area. You dial (+1) area code number for a US call (or + country code) area code number for non US. Our Verizon International plan covered voice (calls) and text. Honestly all pretty easy"

The plan we purchased cost $40 for one month. It includes 100 minutes of talk time, 100 outgoing text messages, 100mb of data and unlimited incoming text messages. We are having it on our account for only one week. The prorated cost if $10 and the prorated service will be 25 minutes of voice, 25 outgoing text messages, unlimited incoming text messages and 25mb of data.

The plan we purchased cost $40 for one month. It includes 100 minutes of talk time, 100 outgoing text messages, 100mb of data and unlimited incoming text messages. We are having it on our account for only one week. The prorated cost if $10 and the prorated service will be 25 minutes of voice, 25 outgoing text messages, unlimited incoming text messages and 25mb of data.

Thanks Spartan for confirming my post information. We did the $40 Verizon plan. We called them as soon as we got back and removed it. It was really easy.

Thanks Spartan for confirming my post information. We did the $40 Verizon plan. We called them as soon as we got back and removed it. It was really easy.

No problem.

We set it up so it automatically comes off our account on the day we get back from our trip.

I can't help with the question of the older phone being compatible with the ship's equipment, but have a possible alternative solution. Rather than activating an old phone, could you get a new SIM card for one of your two smart phones and use that for the cruise?

VZW doesn't have SIM cards.

VZW doesn't have SIM cards.

Not necessarily true. If you get one of the new multiband phones that does CDMA and GSM plus various LTE bands, it might.

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Verizon told me the same thing that TeeRick said in their post:

"We had both voice and texts. From the ship at sea (roaming) you dial 011 then area code plus number. No extra charge from the ship to call or receive calls. From ports the ship switches off their roaming signal and you connect to the local carrier in the area. You dial (+1) area code number for a US call (or + country code) area code number for non US. Our Verizon International plan covered voice (calls) and text. Honestly all pretty easy"

The plan we purchased cost $40 for one month. It includes 100 minutes of talk time, 100 outgoing text messages, 100mb of data and unlimited incoming text messages. We are having it on our account for only one week. The prorated cost if $10 and the prorated service will be 25 minutes of voice, 25 outgoing text messages, unlimited incoming text messages and 25mb of data.

Yes, I know. What I was saying is that what cle-guy reported from reading online, and what you and TeeRick reported are two different things. ;)

Can you pick the amount of time to get the service? When we did so before, we paid for the whole month. No one told us we could pro-rate. We will be gone for 15 days.

We were gone for 15 days as well. You can cancel and get the price pro-rated when you return. However your allowed minutes/data/texts in the $40 plan will also be pro-rated. In this case make sure that the minutes/data/ texts that you actually used are covered by half a month pro-rating.

VZW doesn't have SIM cards.

Starting in 2011 Verizon phones have had SIM cards. A SIM card is required for the 4G LTE GSM network they have switched their network over to from CDMA.

Starting in 2011 Verizon phones have had SIM cards. A SIM card is required for the 4G LTE GSM network they have switched their network over to from CDMA.

Thanks. I had a Motorola Droid that I got in 2012. No SIM card, CDMA only. I didn't realize that they went to GSM.

Our Samsung Galaxy S4 and S5 both have SIM cards.