layteacher Posted February 19, 2018 #1 Share Posted February 19, 2018 I know there are thousands of threads on this, but just need a brief very simple answer for a first time cruiser. I have an iphone with ATT and will be cruising from Mobile to Cozumel for the 4 day cruise. I have 2 children at home so i have gotten a passport in case of an emergency. I have purchased the 5 dollar social media plan on Carnival. What does that mean? I called ATT and they wanted me to buy a international 30 day plan? I am fine with messaging my kids instead of actually talking. I just dont want to get home and have a huge bill. Any SIMPLE explanations are very much appreciated. Thanks so much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6rugrats Posted February 19, 2018 #2 Share Posted February 19, 2018 (edited) If you had T-Mobile, texting and data while in other countries is free. Ask your question on the Carnival forum. Edited February 19, 2018 by 6rugrats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Jane Posted February 19, 2018 #3 Share Posted February 19, 2018 The $5.00 plan on Carnival is to chat between friends who are on ship with you. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6rugrats Posted February 19, 2018 #4 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Also, with AT&T you can have a plan where you pay $10 per day only when you use your phone internationally. If you don’t use it, you don’t pay. That may work better for you. Or, just try and find free Wi-Fi in port. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare dickinson Posted February 19, 2018 #5 Share Posted February 19, 2018 The $5.00 plan on Carnival is to chat between friends who are on ship with you. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Actually, it is a plan for how you use the internet while onboard. You can chat with anyone .. not just those on the ship. If you pay for a higher plan you can surf the web. Go to Carnival's website and search for it for the details. We cruised in 2016 and did the next tier up. When you go to sign up they will offer you one price for the whole cruise if you prefer it that way. It was cheaper than the per day price. The AT&T plan they were trying to sell you was probably for use while in a foreign country. Just go with the ship's plan if you just want to keep in touch with your kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted February 19, 2018 #6 Share Posted February 19, 2018 If you have certain plans with AT&T...10gb data and unlimited data plans, Mexico (and Canada) is free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reina del Mar Posted February 19, 2018 #7 Share Posted February 19, 2018 OP...hope you made sense out of this, because I certainly didn't!!! Slightly different for us as we are from UK and use different providers. Need to put phone in aeroplane mode to avoid roaming charges, but usually easy to find free wifi in port.....Starbucks, Subway, McDonalds etc if all else fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnocket Posted February 19, 2018 #8 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Wi-Fi calling is your friend. If you buy a wi-fi plan on the ship, you can make phone calls over the wi-fi connection for free. You can turn on w-fi calling in the Settings option on your phone. Google At&t iphone wi-fi calling for more info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justcrusn Posted February 20, 2018 #9 Share Posted February 20, 2018 Two different issues here. 1 is while at sea on the ship. 2 is while on land in a foreign country On the ship, you will find the phone usage pricey. It varies by cruise line but most of the time texts are like 5 cents to retrieve and 50 cents to send. Data and voice are the pricey things. AT&T supports WiFi calling, so if you have WiFi you can call and iMessage (not text) on WiFi only. Most cruisers put their phone in airplane mode to avoid the bills. At the minimum turn DATA ROAMING OFF. Check with your carrier about usage in Mexico, you may be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare dickinson Posted February 20, 2018 #10 Share Posted February 20, 2018 Two different issues here.1 is while at sea on the ship. 2 is while on land in a foreign country On the ship, you will find the phone usage pricey. It varies by cruise line but most of the time texts are like 5 cents to retrieve and 50 cents to send. Data and voice are the pricey things. AT&T supports WiFi calling, so if you have WiFi you can call and iMessage (not text) on WiFi only. Most cruisers put their phone in airplane mode to avoid the bills. At the minimum turn DATA ROAMING OFF. Check with your carrier about usage in Mexico, you may be fine. Correct about the two different issues. OP said they already purchased the $5 social media plan from Carnival. That is an onboard plan with limitations on how to use the internet while onboard. It appears they purchased it without knowing what it really was because that was his/her question to us. They confused the issue by mentioning they called AT&T . I think they were trying to cover their bases but they don't need international calling on their cell because they said all they want to do is MESSAGE their kids and they can do this with that $5 social media package. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanger727 Posted February 20, 2018 #11 Share Posted February 20, 2018 Are you looking for an option to check in with your kids/babysitter via text most days or do you NEED to be accessible 24/7? The internet plan will allow you to text while you are on the ship only. If that’s all you need, then stick with what you have, put your phone in airplane mode, and turn the WiFi on. If you want to be accessible in port too, you’ll need cell coverage. A 30 day plan sounds like a bit of overkill for a 4 day cruise but your basic options are to make no international arrangements and just pay roaming charges IF you use it. So can leave roaming on and if you make or accept a call you will pay per minute for it. If you make or receive texts you’ll pay per text. In this option I would highly suggest you turn off you ‘data roaming’ either way because that can result in an enormous bill. The other option is to see if ATT has a per day plan that would allow your current plan to be used at the same rate in port. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schoifmom Posted February 20, 2018 #12 Share Posted February 20, 2018 OK ... here's the scoop. I'm assuming that you purchased the $5 per day Social Media plan on Carnival. Put your phone into airplane mode Go into settings and turn on the wifi capability (this will automatically turn off when you put the phone into airplane mode). Connect to the Carnival wifi (there are directions everywhere when you get on board). You will be able to access a large number of social media sites, including using Whatsapp or FB Messenger. https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1152/~/carnivals-wi-fi-service-and-hub-app If you do not put your phone into airplane mode, you will incur a large amount of charges for using data, voice, and text through Cellular at Sea. There are no cell towers at sea, and this is the company that provides satellite cellular service on the ship. There are places where you can get free wifi in the ports. I don't know about AT&T's international plans for use in ports, so I can't help you there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Jane Posted February 22, 2018 #13 Share Posted February 22, 2018 The $5.00 social network does not get you outside the ship - it works within the ship only - if you pay for wifi the real wi-fi it will connect you to the outside world where you can use WA and FB Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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