Will my cell phone work in the Bahamas?

[KLMB]

We still haven't decided what to do with the kids, 16 and 18. I read one thread on here that questioned my decision to leave them alone for our 4 nights from home. Will our cell phone work when we dock at Nassau? We have Sprint. Any other ideas on how to contact them while we're gone? I would appreciate any ideas at all. Thanks!

[FunCruiser56]

If your comfortable leaving your two teens home then that's OK. As long as you have a backup plan for family/friends to check on them. We have done it too. We trust our kids plus they knew Aunts/Uncles/Neighbors would be dropping in without notice. Hey I was married at 18 and had been watching my younger siblings for times when my parents went on vacation since I was 16.

As for your phone, we had friends who had sprint and sometimes their cel worked and sometimes not. Call Sprint and ask about coverage areas. We had NO success using phone cards here, but did find a internet cafe not far from the dock. We were able to call home from here for .95 a minute.

 

Have a great trip!!

 

Bev

[FLACRUISER99]

We still haven't decided what to do with the kids, 16 and 18. I read one thread on here that questioned my decision to leave them alone for our 4 nights from home. Will our cell phone work when we dock at Nassau? We have Sprint. Any other ideas on how to contact them while we're gone? I would appreciate any ideas at all. Thanks!

I't should, but the Bahamas uses the Goverment company Batelco as the cell provider. However they not do not have reliable service but RC now has cell service on all of its ships I think. As a last resort you can buy a Batelco phone card (dont buy any other Brand) to call home.

[Cruising89143]

A lot depends on your plan. I have Cingulair and have no problems in St. Thomas or San Juan but it has never worked in Nassau. You may need the international plan. I would check with your cell provider. Unless you want to talk live to your kids, you may look at using email on the ship.

[wolfganghowell]

Was just there last weekend. Cingular with nationwide roaming works. Sprint does not. Hubby has Sprint, I have Cingular. It is hideously expensive - about $3 a minute. You're better off with a calling card and using a pay phone.

[Cruising89143]

Was just there last weekend. Cingular with nationwide roaming works. Sprint does not. Hubby has Sprint, I have Cingular. It is hideously expensive - about $3 a minute. You're better off with a calling card and using a pay phone.

 

I have Cingular nationwide LD and roaming and mine has never worked there so not all Cingular accounts will work.

[PH8]

I was there a couple of week ago..............my cell phone(Alltel) didnt work.........however,as you get off your ship,you will walk thru the tourism building right there at the pier......as you enter the building look to the left...............there are several pay phones.......and you can buy a calling card for various amounts right in that area....either at the cashier or the machine on the wall............I bought one for $5.00....it gave me 10 mins.........this calling card is only good for these phones and NOT the phones right next to the ships(these require a credit card..not sure how much that costs)................Its very easy to use..........

[2boxers]

I was the one that started the thread asking what age parents leave their kids. I was amazed at the responses, and the lack of trust people have in their kids. Almost like you assume the worst in kids because they are kids. Maybe those of us who respect ours kids and trust them are the minority. I'm not stupid and it wasn't that long ago that I was a teen.......they already joke about the plans they have while we are gone:rolleyes: , my biggest concern was a safety issue, I am a worry wort and my DH thinks everything will be fine.

 

As far as cell service, my DD's cingular worked close to Nassau, but not while sailing and not on CocoCay. My son's virgin mobile did not work almost as soon as we left Orlando.

 

When are you leaving? Mine kids are also 16 & 18. I'd like to hear more about what you decide as far as they are concerned.

[cb at sea]

When our daughter had just turned 18, we had to go out of town. I couldn't leave her alone--what if a water main broke, or there was a gas leak,....I could go on and on! I know she was going to be in college, on her own, in a few short months, but I couldn't leave the responsibilty of our house on her shoulders. Luckily, I had an unmarried cousin who was in the area for a short time--She came and stayed at our house with our daughter. I felt so much better--I KNEW there would be no parties (and things like parties aren't always YOUR kid's idea! Peer pressure is VERY hard for a teen to resist!!!--Even GOOD kids!) and someone adult to handle an emergency!

I think leaving a 16 and 18 year old alone is asking for trouble--even if they've never gotten into trouble before! Too much can go wrong! Send them to a friend's or grandparent's home for a couple of days--You'll have a much better trip knowing for sure that they will be ok!

[nellie54914]

Sprint's website shows coverage on Nassau as long as you have a GSM phone (but of course the maps aren't always accurate, it just depends on what area you're in!). It shows the price is $2.29/min, and you have to call in to get international roaming added to your account (888-226-7212).

 

Email is a great alternative and probably costs less than calling. And that way you can still keep in touch if they don't happen to be home when you call. :)

 

If they also have cell phones text messaging would be an option with some carriers (i.e. Cingular), but it looks like Sprint does not have the capability of international text messaging yet.

[irishnyc]

We still haven't decided what to do with the kids, 16 and 18. I read one thread on here that questioned my decision to leave them alone for our 4 nights from home. Will our cell phone work when we dock at Nassau? We have Sprint. Any other ideas on how to contact them while we're gone? I would appreciate any ideas at all. Thanks!

 

I was just in Nassau on Sunday, and my Sprint phone did NOT work there. The phone showed I had (roaming) service, full bars, but calls would not go through. I was about to make a call while at sea, about an hour or so after we set sail again.