Has anyone used the "What's App"app?

[madre2]

We will be on the Silhouette soon, and I am wondering about keeping in touch with family members onboard. Has anyone used this app, and how exactly does it work? I would like to be able to text without using data. I would also like to know if you can use this to text family members at home. Sorry...I don't understand much about data, etc. We will have the wifi package on this ship. I just don't want to get home and have big roaming changes. We have Verizon, and also Iphones. Thank you for any help you can give me with this!

[long time lurker]

I have not used What’sApp on board as we do not get the internet package, however I have used it internationally. You can text or talk whenever you have a wifi signal and I found it worked great. I do not see why it would not work on ship wifi.

[Keith1010]

I use What'sApp often.

 

We use it on land to communicate with family out of the country.

 

We can text, do voice and do video.

 

To connect with others they also have to have What'sApp

 

You can do this in airplane mode and with data turned off but you would have to be connected to wifi so on the ship connected to the internet.

 

Keith

[margsipie]

I use whatsapp and iMessage for texting on WiFi and rotate between WhatsApp, viber and FaceTime audio for making calls over the ship WiFi. Oddly enough different apps will hold the call signal better than others at different times.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[mickey89]

We used WhatsApp when onboard with ours 90 free minutes (Elite tier). Excellent service from the cabin, messages sent almost instantly.

[madre2]

So if 2 of us in different cabins have the app, and we both have the internet package, then we can text each other, as long as we are in airplane mode, and the data is turned off?

And when we get on the ship, will they give us a password for the internet? Not sure how we go about hooking up to the internet on the ship. Hopefully there will be instructions.

[Keith1010]

So if 2 of us in different cabins have the app, and we both have the internet package, then we can text each other, as long as we are in airplane mode, and the data is turned off?

And when we get on the ship, will they give us a password for the internet? Not sure how we go about hooking up to the internet on the ship. Hopefully there will be instructions.

 

The key is you can text, call or video as long as you both are on wifi (eg., logged onto the internet)

 

There is a cost for the internet.

 

Keith

[krmnc]

We used Google Voice and Facebook Messenger when we were onboard. Like others said, kept our phones in airplane mode w/ the wifi on. When we boarded, there were cards w/ the wifi password and instructions waiting in our cabin. Went to Guest Services for help setting it up when my husband had difficulty and it worked fine.

[MadManOfBethesda]

We will be on the Silhouette soon, and I am wondering about keeping in touch with family members onboard. Has anyone used this app, and how exactly does it work? I would like to be able to text without using data. I would also like to know if you can use this to text family members at home. Sorry...I don't understand much about data, etc. We will have the wifi package on this ship. I just don't want to get home and have big roaming changes. We have Verizon, and also Iphones. Thank you for any help you can give me with this!

 

Others have explained What's App to you, but I just want to add that fwiw, regular texting does not use "data" and you don't need any Internet service to send or receive texts. Verizon just charges a flat amount of five cents for every text you receive and fifty cents for any texts you send while on the ship. (There are different charges if you text while on land internationally, depending upon which country you are in.)

[vtcruising]

I just wanted to post the link to this thread from a couple of months ago. I read this and did exactly what the OP recommended in his tutorial on our cruise a few weeks ago. It worked beautifully for texts and calls.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2462437&highlight=wifi+texts

[florence11]

I always use Whats-app when abroad and normally ask the crew where the free Wi-Fi is also you can be on deck and pick up the WiFi from the dock. I have never had the internet package and don't feel as if I have missed any thing.

[madre2]

So now one of you said I will still be charged for texts even with the App. Is that correct? I thought the purpose of the app is to not be charged for each text while on the ship???

[sippican]

Others have explained What's App to you, but I just want to add that fwiw, regular texting does not use "data" and you don't need any Internet service to send or receive texts. Verizon just charges a flat amount of five cents for every text you receive and fifty cents for any texts you send while on the ship. (There are different charges if you text while on land internationally, depending upon which country you are in.)

 

I believe that you need to subscribe to Verizon's plan called "Travel Pass" to be able to access those rates for texts. While using that feature you must have cell phone service and, depending upon where you are, you might incur additional charges for the service on the ship. FWIW, Travel Pass charges $10 (a few countries are $5) per day, per device so it can add up. You need to follow Verizon's directions for your settings explicitly to avoid the additional charges. We learned the hard way!

[Jeremiah1212]

If you have the Wifi package onboard, just connect to Wifi using the instructions in your room, turn airplane mode on and Wifi on. There is no need to use additional apps if the people you are communicating with also have iPhones. You won't need any packages from your carrier either as long as you don't want service while you are off the ship.

 

Turn on airplane mode:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204234

 

Tur on Wifi and select your network:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202639

 

You can also turn on Wifi calling:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203032

[Dunmore2]

Whats App works great for us when we need to communicate with our immediate family, 6 of us are in our “ group”, 4 with iPhones and two with androids. ( only 2 on the cruise) It’s really nice to type the message once and it goes to everyone in our group. We use it while traveling the world, and as long as we’re using WiFi, there’s no roaming charges.

[vulcan1971]

So if 2 of us in different cabins have the app, and we both have the internet package, then we can text each other, as long as we are in airplane mode, and the data is turned off?

And when we get on the ship, will they give us a password for the internet? Not sure how we go about hooking up to the internet on the ship. Hopefully there will be instructions.

 

The process to connect to the ship WiFi is fairly straightforward, but if you are not technically savvy, stop by the iLounge once on the ship and the folks there can help you.

[MadManOfBethesda]

So now one of you said I will still be charged for texts even with the App. Is that correct? I thought the purpose of the app is to not be charged for each text while on the ship???

 

No, sorry, I didn't mean to confuse you. If you pay for Internet service while on the ship and use What's App, there won't be any additional charge. I was just trying to clarify for you that regular texts did not use "data" as you thought, and that Verizon just charges a flat fee of a nickel for texts received and fifty cents for texts sent the regular way and not through What's App.

[Paulras]

I believe that you need to subscribe to Verizon's plan called "Travel Pass" to be able to access those rates for texts. While using that feature you must have cell phone service and, depending upon where you are, you might incur additional charges for the service on the ship. FWIW, Travel Pass charges $10 (a few countries are $5) per day, per device so it can add up. You need to follow Verizon's directions for your settings explicitly to avoid the additional charges. We learned the hard way!

Travel Pass isn't valid on the ship, only in a country on their list (almost all countries though)

 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Forums mobile app

[Iamthesea]

I just wanted to post the link to this thread from a couple of months ago. I read this and did exactly what the OP recommended in his tutorial on our cruise a few weeks ago. It worked beautifully for texts and calls.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2462437&highlight=wifi+texts

 

If you have the Wifi package onboard, just connect to Wifi using the instructions in your room, turn airplane mode on and Wifi on. There is no need to use additional apps if the people you are communicating with also have iPhones. You won't need any packages from your carrier either as long as you don't want service while you are off the ship.

 

Turn on airplane mode:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204234

 

Tur on Wifi and select your network:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202639

 

You can also turn on Wifi calling:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203032

 

The above WiFi Calling is what I use with my iPhone and Verizon. Easy to use when you have a WiFi signal on land or Internet plan while on the ship.

 

For emergencies, I also sign up for either the Verizon Travel Pass (only charged per day if you use it), or the Monthly International - $40, for use when off the ship and not able to find a free WiFi signal. Again, it is mostly for a backup if we are out in port and have an emergency, or if there is an emergency back home and I needed a more reliable signal for talking.

 

However, on my last cruise to Australia and New Zealand, I signed up for the Monthly International, and also tried using the WiFi Calling. Neither worked for me over there. :rolleyes: Never had that problem any place else, including all over Europe. And I have not been charged the $40 on my latest Verizon bill. We cruised in early February. I did have the Elite Plus minutes to use on the ship and survived the 2 week cruise using those minutes to email and text back and forth with my children. ;)