Communicating with each other

How do you stay connected with your travel buddies while on ship? Making phone calls is out of question of course, due to the cost. We will be traveling to the Mediterranean. The Cruise line is Costa. I've never been been on a Cruise before.

 

Is there wifi (wireless internet connection) at the public rooms of the ship, lobbies, corridors etc? We could use Whatsapp messages for no-cost communication through our phones, but that requires that a wifi connection is present. Our cabin is Premium, but I think that does not include a free wifi in the cabin.

Room to room calls on the ship's phone were free last time I used them.

 

Wifi is there, but it's expensive. Dry-erase boards or sticky notes on doors work for most folks.

How do you stay connected with your travel buddies while on ship? Making phone calls is out of question of course, due to the cost. We will be traveling to the Mediterranean. The Cruise line is Costa. I've never been been on a Cruise before.

 

Is there wifi (wireless internet connection) at the public rooms of the ship, lobbies, corridors etc? We could use Whatsapp messages for no-cost communication through our phones, but that requires that a wifi connection is present. Our cabin is Premium, but I think that does not include a free wifi in the cabin.

 

Any Internet goes through the ship's satellite and no matter your private plans, you pay the cruise line at sometimes quite high rates. I am not familiar with Costa internet plans but suggest you would get better information on the Costa Cruise Line forum of CC.

 

Make plans advance.

Use post it notes on friends' doors.

Voice mail on cabin phones.

 

 

Wifi on ships is not free, not even when using cell phones. Ships aren't so large that you're going to lose each other, and people were able to keep tabs on each other for many years before cell phones and wifi existed. Just make plans the night before and determine what everyone will do the next day. Leave voice mail messages on your in cabin phone (that's free) and use post it notes.

Some lines now have free messenger apps, on your phone or whatever.

 

We just make plans and leave notes, never had trouble finding each other, if she says "I'm off to the Gym, meet you at Trivia in an hour" and I say OK I'm going to a lecture see you at Trivia". If either of us change plans not hard.

Plan.

Agree when and where to meet

Put a post it note on the door if things change.

 

As others said there really aren't too many places people can be.

Communicating on board is a simple as meeting the night before, in the morning, or periodically during the day to make plans for what you want to do. Room to room or calls to room from the elevator lobbies and other venues by house phone is also effective. It really is not that difficult to keep in touch and meet up together without the need for wifi, texting, or other smart phone communications. The ships are indeed big, but not that big and its never been a problem with us and our friends.

Edited October 5, 2015 by leaveitallbehind

Talking....that's the best! Tell everyone YOUR plans...they'll tell you theirs...very easy!

We talk to each other.

Sometimes we talk to each other in advance and make plans for later.

Sometimes we just talk about stuff while we're doing stuff.

On occasion, we call someone's room and leave them a voicemail on the cabin phone.

But,.... mostly....we talk.

We use bullhorns so we can be heard over the people trying to communicate by shouting into their walkie talkies.

 

 

Seriously, we plan ahead, and leave in-room phone messages if the plan changes.

Edited October 6, 2015 by sloopsailor

Frankly, IMO going on Costa is a mistake. The ships are geared to Europeans, with 5 language announcements. You will be disappointed in the cruise experience.

I presume the bars shops etc will let you use the phone to ring your cabin.

 

I've never done it, we've just planned ahead and used notes.

We talk to each other.

Sometimes we talk to each other in advance and make plans for later.

Sometimes we just talk about stuff while we're doing stuff.

On occasion, we call someone's room and leave them a voicemail on the cabin phone.

But,.... mostly....we talk.

 

All this is, of course, very important in helping you keep in touch. We find that it also helps a whole lot if we occasionally listen to each other while talking to each other.

Frankly, IMO going on Costa is a mistake. The ships are geared to Europeans, with 5 language announcements. You will be disappointed in the cruise experience.

Did you ever consider that just maybe the OP is European? Did you even think about the possibility that the OP is already booked and cannot, or would not, change their booking? How about the chance that the OP speaks more than English?

 

Anyway, the OP asked about how to keep in touch, not what anyone thought of Costa. Sheesh

 

OP, enjoyed your cruise with post it notes, planning ahead and in house phones.:)

We use bullhorns so we can be heard over the people trying to communicate by shouting into their walkie talkies.

 

You're so naughty tonight.:D:D:D

Did you ever consider that just maybe the OP is European? Did you even think about the possibility that the OP is already booked and cannot, or would not, change their booking? How about the chance that the OP speaks more than English?

 

Anyway, the OP asked about how to keep in touch, not what anyone thought of Costa. Sheesh

 

OP, enjoyed your cruise with post it notes, planning ahead and in house phones.:)

Whether the OP is European or not, I am expressing my opinion of Costa, and I would hate to have him/her turned off cruising by the first experience.

Read the other member's reviews

Plan ahead, notes on doors and voice mail also work for us.

I hate ringing cell phones plus loud talking in phones, too! :) And cell phones in general when it comes to not being present with other people. I'm totally anti-mainstream in this sense when compared to my age group and country. For me, cell phones exist only for practical reasons. I don't surf the internet with my phone. The only reason I know what wifi and Whatsapp are are because I have a 12 year old son :)

 

Whatsapp is basically the same as text messages, only that it does not cost to the user. All you need to have is a wireless internet somewhere close enough, usually in some public space. This is why I was asking if there is a wireless internet present on the ships. We'll see what happens.

 

Why am I thinking that post-it messages would not enough? Well, foremost of course because of my son. He is big enough to go a bit around the ship on his own during the week. But he could still get lost, or unexpected things might take place, in which it would make us both feel better that we could send messages. He might get a flu with a bit of fever and have to stay behind at the ship while I'm at a shore excursion. Of course he would normally attend the kids' club but if he is a bit ill, it would not be fair to others who might soon be ill too. So in that case he'd better stay at the cabin reading etcetera.

 

Also, we are Europeans, the multitude of languages does not bother us, and my son speaks a bit of English. But still way not enough to manage on his own or understand written signs be it in whatever language - all the languages they use on the ship are foreign to us as we represent the Scandinavian language group.

 

It was a good piece of information that there might be house phones in the elevator lobbies! In this way I could at least call the cabin while somewhere else on the ship. (I try to minimize extra walking due to my mobility issues; before someone starts raging that walking iaround the ship is good for your health.)

 

Semaphore.

 

It's a tradition at sea

All this is, of course, very important in helping you keep in touch. We find that it also helps a whole lot if we occasionally listen to each other while talking to each other.

 

No no no.

If you listen as well as talk you will be censured for engaging in social intercourse.

Edited October 6, 2015 by luddite

We use the telephone to leave messages and also sticky notes for in the cabin. We have never travelled with more than one family so never needed an erase board for our door.

 

If we are at our cabin anyway it's pretty easy to go in and listen to a message our girls had left from their room next door. If you are on different floors or areas of the ship from your teens then I can see how the ex whiteboards might come in handy.

Whatsapp is basically the same as text messages, only that it does not cost to the user. All you need to have is a wireless internet somewhere close enough

It's that second word that is the killer. While there may be constant wifi on a ship, it's the internet part that costs.

 

Remember....wifi is merely the transmission mechanism between your device and the router. It's what happens to the electrons AFTER the router that's critical. And unless the ship is running its own intranet (ala Princess), you are stuck using an expensive satellite link for BOTH devices on the messaging path.

I hate ringing cell phones plus loud talking in phones, too! :) And cell phones in general when it comes to not being present with other people. I'm totally anti-mainstream in this sense when compared to my age group and country. For me, cell phones exist only for practical reasons. I don't surf the internet with my phone. The only reason I know what wifi and Whatsapp are are because I have a 12 year old son :)

 

Whatsapp is basically the same as text messages, only that it does not cost to the user. All you need to have is a wireless internet somewhere close enough, usually in some public space. This is why I was asking if there is a wireless internet present on the ships. We'll see what happens.

 

Why am I thinking that post-it messages would not enough? Well, foremost of course because of my son. He is big enough to go a bit around the ship on his own during the week. But he could still get lost, or unexpected things might take place, in which it would make us both feel better that we could send messages. He might get a flu with a bit of fever and have to stay behind at the ship while I'm at a shore excursion. Of course he would normally attend the kids' club but if he is a bit ill, it would not be fair to others who might soon be ill too. So in that case he'd better stay at the cabin reading etcetera.

 

Also, we are Europeans, the multitude of languages does not bother us, and my son speaks a bit of English. But still way not enough to manage on his own or understand written signs be it in whatever language - all the languages they use on the ship are foreign to us as we represent the Scandinavian language group.

 

It was a good piece of information that there might be house phones in the elevator lobbies! In this way I could at least call the cabin while somewhere else on the ship. (I try to minimize extra walking due to my mobility issues; before someone starts raging that walking iaround the ship is good for your health.)

 

The wifi will be blocked unless you are logged on to your ship account which will charge you or use your minutes. If you have an unlimited package this will not be a problem; but almost all cruise lines will also charge per device, therefore unless you have a package that allows multiple devices, both you, and your son, may not be able to log on to the wifi at the same time - even on two phones. So you will need to research the internet for the specific line and ship you're going on.

 

Some cruise lines have apps now which I believe use bluetooth messaging to get messages to other people using the app. Those are usually free - but not all lines have them yet and it has to be through their specific app. This would be perfect for you but it just depends whether your ship has it.

 

I have never seen a public phone on a ship but I have had friends who asked a bartender if they could use the phone to make a call to the cabin to tell their son to get a move on so I am sure if needed you could get a call to the room without any difficulty.

Some cruise lines have apps now which I believe use bluetooth messaging to get messages to other people using the app.

There is no such thing as "Bluetooth messaging". Bluetooth is nothing more than a communication channel, such as wifi - only with far less range than wifi and on a peer-to-peer structure.

 

Bluetooth, wifi, WiMax, copper wire, fiber optics....all are just "pipes" to move electrons from point A to point B. And all types of messaging require some functionality between the two users.

Those are usually free - but not all lines have them yet and it has to be through their specific app.

FWIW, Princess has installed intranets (note, not internet) on their ships, with a message functionality. It does NOT require the use of their app. It uses wifi (not internet) to/from the onboard intranet server.

I have never seen a public phone on a ship but I have had friends who asked a bartender if they could use the phone to make a call to the cabin to tell their son to get a move on so I am sure if needed you could get a call to the room without any difficulty.

There are phones on the wall in many locations on many ships. If not, any "manned" location (bar, restaurant, shop) would have a phone that you could use.

Calls between the rooms and set times to meet.

 

Keith