ohh my my!!! Roaming charges on cruise

[AryMay]

Glad to see this thread. I have a list of questions and will be calling Sprint tomorrow to (hopefully) make sure I know what I should and should not do to avoid hefty charges.

 

I had wondered about using text messages just in case we needed to communicate with kids at home. Here is what I just read on the Sprint website:

 

Texting is not yet available while roaming outside of the US. Although you may receive a free welcome message upon arrival in a country, all other messages will be held for 48 hours to be delivered upon returning to the Sprint network. Messages that can not be delivered will be deleted after 48 hours. Messages that go through will be rated based on your texting plan or $0.20 per message if you do not have texting plan.

 

Not sure if this means both incoming and outgoing or what?

 

My sister just got back from the Carnival Imagination and made a call from "on" the ship while docked at Key West and was charged with roaming charges. She called (I think AT & T is her carrier) and was told that even though she was in port at a US city the roaming charges were applied because she was on the cruise ship at the time she made the call. They did remove the charges as a "courtesy" to her.

 

Again here is what I've copied from the Sprint site:

 

Service is available for use when the cruise ship is in international waters, sailing out of range of land-based networks. Cruise ship service is turned down when the ship is in port.

 

This makes it sound like Sprint would NOT have applied roaming charges from Key West...who knows.

 

I always dread calling Sprint. I have been very happy with the phone service...but have literally spent hours on the phone with customer service over other issues such as my plan and billing problems. :mad: I am convinced that if their representatives don't know something (which has been frequent) that they just make up something to get you off the phone.

[nfox211]

O.K. now you guys have me worried. Does anyone know what the number 999-999-9999 means if it shows up on your cell phone bill? I have a few of those showing on my Verizon Statement when I check it on line?

[GreenZolie]

Glad to see this thread. I have a list of questions and will be calling Sprint tomorrow to (hopefully) make sure I know what I should and should not do to avoid hefty charges.

 

I had wondered about using text messages just in case we needed to communicate with kids at home. Here is what I just read on the Sprint website:

 

Texting is not yet available while roaming outside of the US. Although you may receive a free welcome message upon arrival in a country, all other messages will be held for 48 hours to be delivered upon returning to the Sprint network. Messages that can not be delivered will be deleted after 48 hours. Messages that go through will be rated based on your texting plan or $0.20 per message if you do not have texting plan.

 

Not sure if this means both incoming and outgoing or what?

 

My sister just got back from the Carnival Imagination and made a call from "on" the ship while docked at Key West and was charged with roaming charges. She called (I think AT & T is her carrier) and was told that even though she was in port at a US city the roaming charges were applied because she was on the cruise ship at the time she made the call. They did remove the charges as a "courtesy" to her.

 

Again here is what I've copied from the Sprint site:

 

Service is available for use when the cruise ship is in international waters, sailing out of range of land-based networks. Cruise ship service is turned down when the ship is in port.

 

This makes it sound like Sprint would NOT have applied roaming charges from Key West...who knows.

 

I always dread calling Sprint. I have been very happy with the phone service...but have literally spent hours on the phone with customer service over other issues such as my plan and billing problems. :mad: I am convinced that if their representatives don't know something (which has been frequent) that they just make up something to get you off the phone.

 

That is what my sprint rep told me also about the text messaging. He said they do not support text service, incoming or outgoing, outside of the US Sprint service area, which is at sea and in foreign countries. He did say if a text message happened to slip through, I would not be charged, because they don't actually have a charge plan for it, since they don't support it. I thought it sounded odd that a text could "slip" through, but what you posted about the welcome texts makes sense.

 

This is what I understand about roaming charges: If your cell phone connects to a tower that does not belong to your carrier, or that your carrier does not have a contract with, you will be charged roaming charges. So, while on the ship, you are connecting to the ship's tower, and while in a foreign port, you are connecting to that country's towers. The ship, and the other countries charge our carriers to let our phones connect to their towers. So, our carrier then charges us.

 

Same thing happens when we are in the US and we happen to pick up a tower that our carrier does not own, and does not have a contract with the owner of the tower to use. This won't happen if you keep your phone in "network" mode only, which means it will only pick up your carrier's legit towers. If you put it in roaming mode, then you could conceivably pick up any tower you are near, if you lose connection to your carrier's tower. Which means, if you are a Sprint customer traveling down a road, if your phone drops the Sprint digital tower, it could pick up an AT&T analogue tower that Sprint does not have a contract with.

 

Disclaimer: I worked for a cell phone company 7 years ago and these are all things I was trained on at the time. I realize things have changed in the past 7 years, but I am pretty sure the above information is still the same. One thing I am not sure of is of AT&T still uses analogue towers, so don't string me up if I got that part wrong! ;)

[sharonny]

You can still use the clock and alarm if you put your phone in airplane mode. No calls or texts can come through, but the phone is still on so you can use all of your utilities as normal. :)

 

So exactly what is airplane mode :confused:.

[GreenZolie]

So exactly what is airplane mode :confused:.

 

I'm not sure about other carriers, but Sprint phones have airport mode as an option under settings. This mode prevents any signals from reaching the phone, ensuring nothing electronic interferes with the airplane. The phone is still "on" in airplane mode, though, so the clock, alarm, games, calculator, etc can all still be used. I never use those things, but I still always set my phone to this mode when flying (and now, while cruising) just to be sure!

[GAMOM4]

I used my cell phone while we were in Key West - we were off the ship and actually I was standing directly in front of Margaritaville - I called my parents and I also called my office and talked about 10 minutes to each of them. I use Verizon and we were not charnged any roaming charges or anything extra.

[GreenZolie]

I used my cell phone while we were in Key West - we were off the ship and actually I was standing directly in front of Margaritaville - I called my parents and I also called my office and talked about 10 minutes to each of them. I use Verizon and we were not charnged any roaming charges or anything extra.

 

See, it's all inconsistent! I'm switching to Verizon for my next cruise!

 

Do you have international calling already on your plan? Also, how long ago was this? Long enough for any stray bills to already come in? If so, then I am definitely switching to Verizon. hrumph!

[cwr322]

This is all pretty frightening. I am thinking I will leave my phone locked in the glove box of my car!:eek:

[sharonny]

I'm not sure about other carriers, but Sprint phones have airport mode as an option under settings. This mode prevents any signals from reaching the phone, ensuring nothing electronic interferes with the airplane. The phone is still "on" in airplane mode, though, so the clock, alarm, games, calculator, etc can all still be used. I never use those things, but I still always set my phone to this mode when flying (and now, while cruising) just to be sure!

 

Thanks! I'll check my phone.

[Nezmo]

I cannot remember exactly what happens with voicemail under AT&T but I can tell you that it is FREE to receive texts from US-based senders to your cell phone while you are roaming internationally. At least that is the deal I get. I enable international calling but I do not add an international calling, data or text plan. Texts from me back to the US while roaming are indeed 50 cents a pop. This is whether from the ship, Jamaica or Timbuktu.

 

As for data (for Internet, email, etc), if you can disable international data roaming on your phone (the iPhone has this option for example), you will NOT get any data roaming charges and those are far worse than call and text charges. If you can do this, it is NOT necessary to put your phone in airpane mode which deactivates ALL radios in the phone (voice/data, WiFi, GPS, etc). But, if you have the concern about voicemail charges, go ahead. Personally, on AT&T and with an iPhone, I make sure the international DATA roaming is off (it is by default) and I'm good. My sons can text me FREE and any I send back are just 50 cents. I won't get emails racking up charges and if I hit the browser by mistake, unless there's a WiFi hotspot in sight, it won't connect and it will never connect to cell data services.

[bakechef]

ahh i did have quite a few voicemails...dumb silly ones like "ohh your sooo lucky to be cruising its raining here" "Hey hows the cruise going" " When you getting back " LOL

Guess those helped with the bill :p

 

See I was under the impression as long as I didnt call anyone or answer any calls I would not incur roaming charges..Truth be told I only kept the phone on for the time, forgot my clock :D

 

Something doesn't seem right here. I have Verizon and have cruised with it ON 3 times and never had any roaming fees, but I never made any calls either. I have had it ring and go to voicemail but no charge there either.

 

I usually ignore the time, sometimes it was wayyy off, we just carry a cheap watch to tell the time.

[bakechef]

I used my cell phone while we were in Key West - we were off the ship and actually I was standing directly in front of Margaritaville - I called my parents and I also called my office and talked about 10 minutes to each of them. I use Verizon and we were not charnged any roaming charges or anything extra.

 

Ummm... Key west is in the United States, there shouldn't be any roaming charges as long as the ship turned off its signal which has never been a problem for me.

[lizardhowson]

I used my cell phone while we were in Key West - we were off the ship and actually I was standing directly in front of Margaritaville - I called my parents and I also called my office and talked about 10 minutes to each of them. I use Verizon and we were not charnged any roaming charges or anything extra.

 

Key West is in the US..... so there would be no international roaming charges !! :rolleyes:

[falkcor]

one thing to be mindful of, when considering the disparities of experience posted by several people here, is whether international calling / roaming is enabled on your phone.

 

by default, for most carries and plans, it is not. this explains, why several people have noted that they were not charged for - well, anything, with their phones on. because the phones are not programmed / told to, pick up international, or 'out of network' signals / calls, etc.

 

you have to call your carrier in advance, unless the option is already enabled, to make this possible. if you don't, your phone won't even try to find them. i did this, before my last cruise, in case i needed to use it. when sailing out of port of miami, the phone's status (a blackberry) changed from 'AT&T' to something like '1028x5' or something like that - which was obviously different. that means it was picking up a different 'network'. that's when i turned it off.

 

i also did specifically broach with my carrier, at&t, to turn off international data roaming / access. with the amount of email (even with blackberry push), the data charges could be excessive.

 

now, while my phone was capable of receiving international voice / roaming service, on my blackberry, i went to manage connections -> turn all connections off, when i wanted my phone just to be a clock / alarm. worked like a charm.

 

here's a link to the at&t site for cruise-related phone stuff:

http://www.wireless.att.com/travelguide/coverage/roaming/step1.jsp?specifyRegion=9

 

select the carrier (carnival in this case), add your phone number, enter your device (mine is curve 8310), and then click for details relevant to your plan / phone. here's my results:

 

re: roaming:

AT&T Standard International Roaming

$2.49AT&T World Traveler $2.49AT&T Canada $2.49AT&T Mexico $2.49

re: data usage:

All GPRS pay per use rates are $.0195/KB, except in Canada rate is $.015/KB

re: text, picture & video:

Send Text Message

$0.50 per message sentSend Picture and Video Messages$1.30 per message sentReceive Text, Picture and Video MessagesHome pay-per-use or package rates apply to all text, picture or video messages received when roaming internationally. Please visit www.att.com for details.

 

so, that's concurrent with what nezmo said above, too...

[ksatte03]

Does anyone have info on TMobile charges? I will seriously have a panic attack if I can't use my Sidekick :(

[falkcor]

Does anyone have info on TMobile charges? I will seriously have a panic attack if I can't use my Sidekick :(

 

from what i've read in your posts... you'd best cut back on your text messaging, lady :D

 

seriously - regardless of what carrier - if you plan to 'use' your phone, be prepared to pay for it. it isn't cheap, and there's not much way around it, if you want to be 'connected'. so i'd recommend, just forget about it, you're on vacation.

 

i'd turn on my bb 'radio' once a day - just to check if there was anything urgent (agreed w/ work about this prior)... there never was. so it was never on for more than a minute or two at a time.

[ksatte03]

from what i've read in your posts... you'd best cut back on your text messaging, lady :D

 

seriously - regardless of what carrier - if you plan to 'use' your phone, be prepared to pay for it. it isn't cheap, and there's not much way around it, if you want to be 'connected'. so i'd recommend, just forget about it, you're on vacation.

 

i'd turn on my bb 'radio' once a day - just to check if there was anything urgent (agreed w/ work about this prior)... there never was. so it was never on for more than a minute or two at a time.

 

ugh :mad: fine! i will join "text addicts anonymous"

I'll take an expensive bar tab over an expensive phone bill any day, because at least I know I will have fun racking up the bar tab!;)

[FantasyLineAddict]

Does anyone have info on TMobile charges? I will seriously have a panic attack if I can't use my Sidekick :(

 

I have T-Mobile, don't have a Sidekick, but I have a Blackberry.

 

If you want to use your phone, first, you need to have Worldclass International Roaming added to your plan (free, can be added online without speaking to anyone) and you probably want to do unconditional forwarding to voicemail or call customer service and deactivate voicemail. T-Mobile states they don't charge for unanswered calls while roaming, but they charge for every unanswered call that goes to voicemail while you are roaming. If you do unconditional forward to voicemail, you cannot receive calls.

 

T-Mobile on the ship is $4.99/minute to talk.

 

Incoming text messages come out of your bucket (if you have a plan) or are 20 cents each without a plan.

 

Outgoing text messages are charged at 35 cents each.

 

Data is $15/MB, this would include all instant messaging, attachments to MMS and web viewing. It adds up very quickly.

 

The same costs apply for other countries, except Canada is $10/MB for data.

 

The rate for Canada is $.49/minute.

The rate for Mexico and the Cayman Islands is $1.49/minute.

The rate for the Bahamas and Belize is $2.99/minute.

 

Having your phone off or in airplane mode (or all services off for smart phones) the entire time means you will not get charged anything; however, even if you turn your phone on for a minute once or twice, it can register with with the roaming partner and you will get charged for calls that were not answered and went to voicemail and were not listened to unless you have done unconditional forwarding to voicemail prior to leaving the US or have disabled voicemail.

 

If you are a T-Mobile customer and do not have Worldclass International Roaming activated, you will not be charged even if your phone is on the entire time, it will not work.

 

Extra info. for Blackberry users:

 

Blackberry users who have a wi-fi enabled phone can set their phone to "wi-fi only" and if they are able to find an open wi-fi connection in a port, they can use UMA to talk. This is charged out of your bucket minutes or is completely free on T-Mobile if you have Hotspot@Home. No roaming charges!

 

Additionally, you can use wi-fi on the ship to make and receive wi-fi UMA calls at $.75/minute (or less if you buy a plan). Procedure is set your phone to "wi-fi only," "scan for networks" then go to "manage connections" then "setup wi-fi connection." Enter your user name and password.

[medic123]

Any tips for iphone users? I have an elderly father and need to leave the phone on (I am his POA). I don't need e-mail, but don't know how to turn it off.

[medic123]

My nextel direct connect worked better in Cozumel than my back yard. There was no additional charges, It was in September.

[Nezmo]

Any tips for iphone users? I have an elderly father and need to leave the phone on (I am his POA). I don't need e-mail, but don't know how to turn it off.

See post #60 in this thread.

[cmjb4ever]

Thanks for the tips on the iPhone! I was hoping to use it on ship to connect to the ship's wifi rather than use the internet cafe. So I can just turn off the 3G and turn off the international data roaming and then connect via wifi at the ship's internet rate. I will call AT&T to confirm but that sounds like it will work.

 

FWIW, I had t-mobile on my last cruise and I kept my phone on most of the time. I even used it in Alaska. I saw no roaming charges whatsoever. I received both voicemails and texts that didn't appear until I was back in t-mobile land. I didn't have an international plan.

 

On another note, my friend travels a lot and buys a plan to handle international usage. It's not that expensive, only $20 more per month for unlimited usage. So if anyone really needs the use of their phone, like the person who is a POA for their father, look into buying that for a month.

[unklez]

.......If you use your cell phone, or even leave it on, during the cruise, you are gonna rack up loads of charges. There have been dozens of threads about this each month.

 

Everytime your phone rings, even if you don't answer it, you get charged. Depending on phonee type, you might get charged everytime the phone notifies you of a missed call or voicemail.

 

Every outgoing call, incoming call and text message you will get charged.

 

....

 

Several have reported that Verizon (and maybe AT&T) does not charge for incoming calls that you do not answer. If you have set your phone to notify you of missed call or voicemail with a text message, that is a different matter altogether.

[awhcruiser]

Did you have the World Traveler plan activated also???? This info is so helpful as I also have a Blackberry Curve 8310...

 

one thing to be mindful of, when considering the disparities of experience posted by several people here, is whether international calling / roaming is enabled on your phone.

 

by default, for most carries and plans, it is not. this explains, why several people have noted that they were not charged for - well, anything, with their phones on. because the phones are not programmed / told to, pick up international, or 'out of network' signals / calls, etc.

 

you have to call your carrier in advance, unless the option is already enabled, to make this possible. if you don't, your phone won't even try to find them. i did this, before my last cruise, in case i needed to use it. when sailing out of port of miami, the phone's status (a blackberry) changed from 'AT&T' to something like '1028x5' or something like that - which was obviously different. that means it was picking up a different 'network'. that's when i turned it off.

 

i also did specifically broach with my carrier, at&t, to turn off international data roaming / access. with the amount of email (even with blackberry push), the data charges could be excessive.

 

now, while my phone was capable of receiving international voice / roaming service, on my blackberry, i went to manage connections -> turn all connections off, when i wanted my phone just to be a clock / alarm. worked like a charm.

 

here's a link to the at&t site for cruise-related phone stuff:

http://www.wireless.att.com/travelguide/coverage/roaming/step1.jsp?specifyRegion=9

 

select the carrier (carnival in this case), add your phone number, enter your device (mine is curve 8310), and then click for details relevant to your plan / phone. here's my results:

 

re: roaming:

 

re: data usage:

 

re: text, picture & video:

 

 

so, that's concurrent with what nezmo said above, too...

[bplazo]

I think that life was more simple when there were no cell phones. This all sounds so complicated that I will just leave mine at home.