Cell (mobile) phones onboard

[mtchg]

..I keep going back and forth on whether to use my cellphone or not in London and then for two weeks on the Indy. I am bringing our laptop. I own my own business, and need that; but perhaps emailing will suffice.

 

 

Mitch

[wraithe]

Texting won't work on the ship? I didn't know that. How about in Bermuda?

 

Text does work, but at an additional charge for each incoming and outgoing text. Usually about 5 cents for incoming, and 50 cents for outgoing. Chech with your cell provider, the info is usually listed under roaming or coverage maps.

[mjldvlks]

I always have my cell phone - but it is on for emergency calls only. I just take a look at caller id and if it is one of my kids, then I take it. it is usually in the room on the charger just in case.

 

However, I have my e-mail, etc. on my phone and there is a switch in your phone to turn off receiving data - which is separate from receiving phone calls. That is the critical part - downloading data in e-mails (even if you aren't checking them) can have a HUGE pricetag. It may sound cheap initially, but data downloading adds up very, very fast and is very expensive.

 

So please follow the advice of everyone on here and check with your carrier and get the exact price for 1) calls in the country you are in, 2) calls from the ship, 3) text in and out, and 4) data download. The horror stories I have heard are typically about data download and if I had a teenager - I would especially make sure I checked out the costs for all 4 above and took appropriate action before I would ever let them have a phone on board. Mary

[hototo]

When in Europe I use www.brightroam.com .

I purchase a cell phone for $49 plus shipping (the phone is mine). I can use it on land all over the world for pre set costs (around 50 cents/minute).

 

Won't work on the ship.... but if I needed to be reached in an emergency, my kids know to call the ship.

 

I use a lot of private guides and want to be able to call them if needed. On land, I can call home using it!

 

The service is for 90 days but can be extended. Give them 3 names to e-mail and you get 1 year extension.

[nannybeth]

I have to agree you. I don't like paying for the cell phone bills.I am a father that only gets my 7 yr old daughter on the weekends. I call her each day to say good morning and to say our prayers at night. I don't stop because I'm on a cruise. So sometime you just have to call no matter what the cost is. :o

Oh, that's so sweet! I bet she loves that!

[ehfl]

Why would you presume that they are giving away their expensive bandwidth for free? The company has to pay for all of the satellite bandwidth they use....not just the bandwidth that does not involve your personal phone.

 

You can, of course, bring your own satellite phone, and bypass the ships cell tower.

 

Just don't expect to get something for nothing.

[BlueSkySailing]

Oh, that's so sweet! I bet she loves that!

She does love it. I hope to take her on her first cruise next year:D. The first time I went on a cruise she was 5 and I had call her before I got on the ship and one more time before I left port to say goodnight to save on a phone call at sea. My ex told me the next morning when I called, she cried herself to sleep because she didn't get to say goodnight before bed. So now m thought is I'd rather break my wallet then her heart ever again.

[NCLSEA123]

Incoming texts on the ship are included in your domestic plan if you have AT&T . The outgoing rate is $0.50 cents a text, while phone usage is $2.49 a minute. The cheapest thing that I find to do to communicate is to buy AT&Ts Global messaging 50 plan for $10 a month when I'm cruising and communicate with people via text messaging. This option only works in port however, only on the foreign countries cell network, and it can not be used for sending texts on the ship. You can easily send a text to someone's email or phone while in port and upload pictures to Facebook via Multimedia Message.(Much cheaper than using the internet on your phone) Any replies you get are included anytime anywhere, even on the ship. (provided you have a domestic message plan that you haven't gone over)

[Quigley10]

Incoming texts on the ship are included in your domestic plan if you have AT&T . The outgoing rate is $0.50 cents a text, while phone usage is $2.49 a minute. The cheapest thing that I find to do to communicate is to buy AT&Ts Global messaging 50 plan for $10 a month when I'm cruising and communicate with people via text messaging. This option only works in port however, only on the foreign countries cell network, and it can not be used for sending texts on the ship. You can easily send a text to someone's email or phone while in port and upload pictures to Facebook via Multimedia Message.(Much cheaper than using the internet on your phone) Any replies you get are included anytime anywhere, even on the ship. (provided you have a domestic message plan that you haven't gone over)

 

Having travelled internationally with my new iPhone a few months ago to Australia, here are a few tips for iPhone users:

 

1) Check on the intl plan. It's around $5 per month but lowers the cost of your per minute charges.

 

2). Make sure data roaming is off the entire time you're international. One of my colleagues had a bill of $1000+ for data alone. Know how much it would cost to send even one email.

 

3). Know the cost for text/pic messages -it's not domestic rates.

 

4). Use your phone as strictly an emergency phone without data capabilities.

 

5). Know how to locate the + symbol on the keypad if dialling internationally from countries whose code isn't "1."

 

Admittedly, I don't know what type of service the iPhone has on ships. my old Verizon phone didn't work on the ships nor internationally. I'm headed on the Freedom in two weeks, but I plan on leaving my phone in the safe. In an emergency, our family has RCI's contact info and can contact us accordingly.

[silentbob007]

iPhone/ATT phones tend to work internationally because they use a similar signal. As others have said, when I have taken my iPhone abroad, I have turned off roaming data as it is about $.02/kb which of course adds up very quickly. Texts were $.50 out and out of your plan coming in. After creating an account onboard, I was able to use my iPhone to connect wirelessly with the ship, quickly download my email, then disconnect.

[AMR40509]

You're on a cruise.

Turn the phone off.

Relax.

You can tell everybody you left behind all about it when you get back.

 

Gramps

 

Gramps,

 

I keep my phone 'off' during a cruise, but still flip it on daily to do a quick check-in back at the office (I own a business).

 

I get to take my wife on many trips each year (and we are both still in our 20's) because I can do this - I would hate to find myself known as 'Gramps' and have missed out on so much because I was stubborn about flipping on the cell phone for 10 min a day to keep my business on track.

[uksimonusa]

We've taken our cell phones on several cruises with all of the international plans and can attest that, while calls can be made at a very expensive rate, texting won't work once you're a few miles from sail away.

 

Don't forget that St. Thomas a US territory and calls can be made at normal rates.

 

Must depend on the cell carrier, we have always had texts on the ship

[publicpersona]

The only legitimate advice in this thread is for you to check your carrier, your plan, your contract. What others have experienced, even with the identical carrier, is going to do nothing to help you know what your costs will be.

 

The difference between someone with a simple little variation on their plan and yours could be the difference between a $5 bill and a $1000 one.