Use Tracfone on the Dawn!!

We just got back from our 1st cruise on the Dawn, and forgot to mention in our review that we were able to use my husband's Tracfone throughout the entire cruise - even on sea days without being charged extra. I actually thought we'd be charged with tons of extra minutes since it's all prepaid, but we weren't! Great way to stay in touch with family when you're on the cruise. And my cell phone with AT&T - not a signal the entire time! Good thing I remembered the Tracfone ;-)

Are you sure about that, international roaming charges can take months to reach your bill...

We don't get a bill - Tracfone is prepaid only.

Our Tracfone DID NOT work on our Feb Gem cruise.

Tracfone was working very well last year, but we had some problems on the Spirit in November. There have been almost no reports of people using it for awhile. Glad to see it still works.

For those not aware, Tracfone is a prepaid service. You get so many minutes and away you go. It is NOT SUPPOSED TO WORK INTERNATIONAL, but for some reason it has worked on ships. Trust me, if they could find a way to get the same $2.50 a minute for those calls that other carriers do, they would do it. Do not ask anyone at Tracfone or NCL to be sure. It should not work. I was not even going to get more minutes for our upcoming cruise, but maybe I will give it a try again. You can get these at most department stores, Sams, etc. Do NOT have them turned on while in foreign ports. The SIM card may get totally turned off and never work again.

As to the ATT phone, it must have been something else that happened, or you have an older phone. ATT/Cingular works fine on all NCL ships at sea, at $2.50 per minute.

I just read the orginal posting again. Your tracfone worked while in foreign ports? Where were you sailing please?

We were on the Dawn and we sailed from Miami. It worked while we were out to sea, it worked in port in Samana, DR - and while on our excursion on Caya Levantado. It worked in Tortola, BVI and while there at Cane Garden Bay Beach. It worked in St. Thomas, then next day at sea. It was sketchy while we were in Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas - but as soon as we set sail that evening, it worked clear as a bell. It was really such a nice surprise and we'll make sure to remember everytime we travel from now on.

we tried last summer and it did not work on the ship at all during the trip - we tried every day.

this was the nyc-bahamas-private island-bermuda-nyc trip in july:(

waste of 60.00 bucks for me

hmmm... you know, I just thought of something that might be the reason we had such great luck with the signal on the tracfone. Tracfone sent my husband a new phone because the one he had up until a few months ago was an older style that they said would no longer work if we didn't switch to the new phone. Since you had trouble last year, maybe the phone you were using was the older type that we had last year too. But this new phone worked like a charm on the Dawn.

can you post what model phone it was that worked?

it's a kyocera K126C, and it's a 1XRTT dual band (whatever that means)

I used my Tracfone in Oct on the Pearl, my understanding is that if you do not use it in the actual ports you will be fine. I was able to speak to my kids everynight while at sea.

I plan on using it on my Spirit cruise, I;ll let you know how it goes.

Has anyone ever used a Tracfone in Alaska? I had been thinking that it would probably work.

So, let me get this straight, if you are on the ship even going down the coast of the U.S. (such as out of NY) you are in international waters and get charged the international rate(on just a regular cell phone that is)? If you are in port in Florida on the ship, do you get charged just the regular rate? What about texting? Does anyone know.

All the NCL ships, and many other cruiselines, now have towers aboard. These towers are operated by an independent company. They are supposed to be turned off while in port, or close to port. While at sea, your call goes through those towers and you pay $2.50 (for most carriers) per minute. This is not considered international, but Cellular At Sea. It does not matter what sort of plan you have at home. You still pay this rate.

If you are alongside a pier, or close to land, the tower SHOULD be turned off and you pay whatever rate you would pay if you were on land near that tower.

Now, here is where it gets a bit fuzzy. You are sailing off the coast and happen to be within range of a shore tower. You could pick up either tower, possibly. If you are on the Cellular at Sea tower, it should say that on the cell phone.

ALL OF THE ABOVE APPLIES TO REGULAR U.S. BASED CELL PHONE CARRIERS, not to Tracfone.

Also, texting is $.50 and $.10 for incoming/outgoing (or opposite) on most plans while using Cellular at Sea.

Oh Gosh. Thank you so much, I knew none of that and it is very helpful. Texting doesn't seem so expensive and maybe a good way to get a quick message back home..........thanks again

Just as a reminder - St. Thomas, for mobile phone purposes, is considered part of the US. I know AT&T is a provider on the island and so while on the island you use regular minutes as part of your regular package. No roaming. It's a good day to catch up with the office or housesitter, etc.

As far as sailing down the coast - just look at the screen on your phone. It will clearly tell you whether cellular at sea is the carrier.

Our Tracfone DID NOT work on our Feb Gem cruise.

Really? I was surprised to find that both of our Tracfones worked on the 3/1 Gem cruise-we even had a full signal on our sea days.

Really? I was surprised to find that both of our Tracfones worked on the 3/1 Gem cruise-we even had a full signal on our sea days.

Which Tracfone did you have? I had the Motorola V170 and it didn't work on the Gem last October. That was in the Mediterranean, maybe that makes a difference?

Tracfone is owned by a Mexican telephone co. They have extensive cell service all over South America. This may explain the Tracfone service in the Carribean.

Which Tracfone did you have? I had the Motorola V170 and it didn't work on the Gem last October. That was in the Mediterranean, maybe that makes a difference?

We both have the LG 3280, but it was probably the location that made the difference.

The great thing about using our Tracfone on the Dawn is that it worked whether we out at sea or in port - with the exception of Great Stirrup Cay. For some reason the signal there was really weak - but the rest of it was great. We had people asking us throughout the cruise - how we were getting a signal - was it a satellite phone, etc.........

We're on the Dawn next month, I'll give it a try.

OK, I think this is an important topic, but the thread is confusing.

Just wondered if anyone could summarize this, and post what they really think is going on. If the Tracfone increases odds of having a phone at sea, some of us may want to purchase one.

Why do you think it's working sometimes? Is it picking up a signal from onshore sometimes (and not sometimes), or is it using the ship's tower? And why has it been mentioned NOT to use in ports? Seems to me that's when it really might work.

It's all just confusing to me.

Thanks for any insight.

The official stance from Tracfone on their website says:

"You will not be able to make or receive calls on your TRACFONE when you are located outside of the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands."

Because they actually piggyback off of other carriers systems, sometimes it happens. If they are able to spot calls being made internationally, they have been know to deactivate the phone, thinking it might be stolen, or whatever.

Different people have experienced different things depending on where shore towers are located. It happens.

Since they are charging less than $.30 a minute for cell phone service, there is no way for them to deal with calls that go through the shipboard towers operated by Cellular at Sea. But, calls have been known to go through.

I carry both the tracfone and two ATT/Cingular phones when we travel. We really do not make many calls, but are able to stay in touch. If the Tracfone is working, we can call and talk a bunch with the kids. If it is not, then we don't.

As mentioned by others, service has been hit or miss with Tracfones. And there is nobody you can call, since it is not supposed to work.

Verizon, ATT/Cingular have worked very well, at $2.50 a minute. I think (not sure) it is T-Mobile that nails you for $5 a minute.