Internet & cell phone service.

We are only doing a 4 night cruise to Castaway Cay and Nassau. Would like our granddaughter to FaceTime (our Mac to her parents' iPad) for 5-10 minutes each night. Don't know how many MB we need. Will try to sign up for the 50 free MB on first day, but don't know if that's enough. She would probably only want to do it 2 or 3 times.

We are only doing a 4 night cruise to Castaway Cay and Nassau. Would like our granddaughter to FaceTime (our Mac to her parents' iPad) for 5-10 minutes each night. Don't know how many MB we need. Will try to sign up for the 50 free MB on first day, but don't know if that's enough. She would probably only want to do it 2 or 3 times.

This is easy--sign up for the 50mb free. Do the facetime once and see how much you use (there is a notification when you log on showing how much you have left). If you are running low and she wants more time, you can purchase either by the mb or a 100mb package.

We used FaceTime audio and video to chat with the parents who couldn't go on the cruise. This didn't require any phone service, only a wifi package from DCL. We put the phones in airplane mode and turned off all data. I highly recommend it.

how much data did u end up using?

I can't remember, I hate to say. I think I got the 300mb package which might have been $39. I was just burning it by then end of a 5 day cruise. It was plenty. I didn't get on Facebook or anything until we got close to the end.

Each time you log out, you can see how much data you have left and I was pleasantly surprised at how little a 20-30 video call used, much less a voice call.

We video called from our cabin balcony to show the Cozumel, we video called from deck 10 to show them Castaway Cay and we video called from instead our cabin for the 20-30 minute call just because we could.

They were supposed to go with us, but health problems forced them to cancel n

I want to make sure that I'm reading this right about the free 50mb of data. You can go to the internet café and sign up and receive this for free without purchasing any other package at that time. And this is one free package per cabin. Then buy a package later if you need it? We will be on a 15 day cruise (first time with Disney) next year and will want to be able to check emails. Thanks so much for the information, I just love Cruise Critic!!

I want to make sure that I'm reading this right about the free 50mb of data. You can go to the internet café and sign up and receive this for free without purchasing any other package at that time. And this is one free package per cabin. Then buy a package later if you need it? We will be on a 15 day cruise (first time with Disney) next year and will want to be able to check emails. Thanks so much for the information, I just love Cruise Critic!!

You are correct BUT...the freebie is offered on most but not all cruises. The offer can be canceled at any time, so it may or may not be available next year. As I stated previously, we bought the 1 gig package on a 14 night cruise and it was WAY too much than my family used (and that included a college age daughter.)

Yes, the idea of the free 50 mb is sort of a "try it before you buy it" or a chance to work out any problems without affecting your bottom line.

Thanks so much. We will check when we board.

If you have a T-Mobile Simple Choice plan, text messages and data (throttled to 128kbps) is free and unlimited in all Caribbean countries except the Bahamas (not even sure if Castaway Cay even gets cell phone service).

http://www.t-mobile.com/cell-phone-plans/simple-choice-international-plan-countries.html

Even though the data speeds are severely throttled, it's more than enough to check e-mail, use Google Maps, and even post a few pictures to Facebook. I've never tired, but I've been told voice-only Skype works well, too.

If your cruise goes to Mexico, check to see if your plan qualifies for Mobile Without Borders, which will give you unlimited minutes/texts/high-speed data in Mexico.

IYou can go to the internet café and sign up and receive this for free without purchasing any other package at that time.

On the Dream in early May I signed up for the free 50 MB plan right on my smartphone. No need to trek to the Internet Cafe or Guest Services.

And you can purchase more data if/when you use up the free 50 MB right on the smartphone too.

It's easy to track your usage as you go along.

Yes, you can sign up for the free 50 from your phone anywhere on the ship. However, if you visit the internet cafe (classic ships), the CM there will help you to be sure that all your background programs are turned off and your phone is set to maximize your service.

Each time you log on, you see the amount of internet remaining--whether free or purchased.