Cell Phone Charges

We are taking the 11 day Zuiderdam cruise next month. We have been on several cruises and my wife hates to be out of touch with the family. So to keep from the high cell phone charges at sea, she would set a schedule and at ports just talk a minute. She has ATT for her cell phone. Is there some sort of package she can get to keep the charges down and still talk more. I see where some people on cruises send pictures to this posting. Does that cost a lot ?

Best bet is to talk to ATT.

Here's a link https://www.att.com/offers/international-plans/cruise-packages.html to their website to start.

All the best,

Richard

The best bet is to talk with ATT. Your best options will depend upon your carrier and only your carrier will know. People who comment on this thread may/not appreciate the differences between carriers, your phone, and your requirements. Call ATT.

I agree, call your carrier.

As an ATT customer, I can say they have a couple of international plans that are pretty reasonable and simple. Most importantly, you will be able, generally, to talk as much as you want on the days you use the plan, and there will be just one fee. Not per minute, so you don't have to conserve.

These plans WILL NOT work on the ship, but they will work on the islands.

We are taking the 11 day Zuiderdam cruise next month. We have been on several cruises and my wife hates to be out of touch with the family. So to keep from the high cell phone charges at sea, she would set a schedule and at ports just talk a minute. She has ATT for her cell phone. Is there some sort of package she can get to keep the charges down and still talk more. I see where some people on cruises send pictures to this posting. Does that cost a lot ?

Supposedly Holland America has some discount plan now for ATnT but I have Verizon. I paid $10 a Day for use off the ship with a plan with Verizon. Basically I only used my phone for free wireless sites I found off the ship to send and receive emails and photos on FB. I kept my phone on airplane mode to do this so Verizon did not charge me. I did not make any calls. Go to Holland America’s website to find the cell phone use rules. Ask your carrier what to do when traveling abroad.

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We have two ways of doing that we have a travel phone that works anywhere in the world you can latch on to a tower and on that phone we have Magic Jack they make it for mobile phones use cheap only need internet or magic jack go you plug into your computer usb plug

I also have AT&T. I went on a cruise in March to the Caribbean for 11 days, and was told to use the free calls from Facebook. It requires you to turn on the WiFi, but it is much cheaper than the international plans. Call the company and see what they offer you.

On the ship for an Alaskan cruise, I used Facebook messenger calling on wifi....it worked well....much cheaper to pay for Wi-Fi then for my cellphone on the ship

AT&T also has an international plan that charges $10 a day, but only if you use it. Then, you get all the features of your regular cell plan. Unlimited calls and texts, if you have that, and data using your regular allotment. If you have 2gb, for example, your usage overseas will count against that 2gb. While it isn't the cheapest alternative, you can use your phone (if you have an iphone) as a hotspot for your laptop or another cell phone. One word of caution: the $10 fee us PER DEVICE, so if you elect it, only turn off airplane mode on one of them when in a foreign port. Use that as I said as a hotspot for other phones.

AT&T also has an international plan that charges $10 a day, but only if you use it. Then, you get all the features of your regular cell plan. Unlimited calls and texts, if you have that, and data using your regular allotment. If you have 2gb, for example, your usage overseas will count against that 2gb. While it isn't the cheapest alternative, you can use your phone (if you have an iphone) as a hotspot for your laptop or another cell phone. One word of caution: the $10 fee us PER DEVICE, so if you elect it, only turn off airplane mode on one of them when in a foreign port. Use that as I said as a hotspot for other phones.

I agree this is a good plan, and have it on our phones. However, it is not available to all AT&T plans, and there is another variant also available. That is why I was more general in my statements in Post#4.

We have used an app called WhatsApp very successfully both for communication on the ship with our travel companions and with others back home. You have the ability to either text or call as long as you have an internet connection. Facebook Messenger is good for sending messages but not make phone calls.

I have used what's app and Facebook and had the same results with both, they worked well. I think that it all depends on where you are.

We recently traveled with a group to Italy and this is what we found...receiving and sending texts was free for both AT&T and T-Mobile. Some who have AT&T purchased the $10/day coverage for actual calls. Some were happy some not so happy. On TMobile we paid 10cents per minute for an actual phone call. And as has been posted, if you have access to wifi off the ship you can make phone calls free of charge. Cherie

On WC2011 we tried MagicJack - it was a complete flop. Calls kept dropping off so we finally threw it away after complaining to the company and receiving little if any constructive help.

Subsequently, we have used ATT international plan and discuss with them before we leave port just what we need for the specific itinerary. We have completed two more WCs and one Grand Med. The only caution is that if you don't turn on airplane mode at sea, Cellular-at-Sea will bite you ... we also determined prior to last long voyage that there is a plan to handle that if you need to receive emails and phone calls at sea as I do since I still work.

harry

At the risk of repeating ourselves (from previous posts) the solution is to switch your cell provider to T-Mobile. T-Mobile works just about everywhere (including most of the Caribbean, Europe, Asia etc) and does not charge anything extra for data and text (the same limitations as your normal plan). Phone calls are sometimes assessed a 20 cent per minute charge (depending on the country). You do not have to notify them or make any changes. It just works.

Hank

The only caution is that if you don't turn on airplane mode at sea, Cellular-at-Sea will bite you ...

I’ve seen on the AT&T website that they have plans for various cruise lines, HAL being one. Is Cellular-at-Sea what they are referring to? Also, how did it bite you money wise? Because of calls, or just in general?

Thx

At the risk of repeating ourselves (from previous posts) the solution is to switch your cell provider to T-Mobile. T-Mobile works just about everywhere (including most of the Caribbean, Europe, Asia etc) and does not charge anything extra for data and text (the same limitations as your normal plan). Phone calls are sometimes assessed a 20 cent per minute charge (depending on the country). You do not have to notify them or make any changes. It just works.

 

Hank

AT&T also works just about everywhere. Both T-Mobile and AT&T use the same cellular system. I don't remember the names for it, but it is different than that used by Verizon, which does not work worldwide. And from the preceding posts, it appears that AT&T is at least as cheap.

AT&T also works just about everywhere. Both T-Mobile and AT&T use the same cellular system. I don't remember the names for it, but it is different than that used by Verizon, which does not work worldwide. And from the preceding posts, it appears that AT&T is at least as cheap.

I believe you are wrong. They use the same cellular technology, GSM, but they each have their own networks, I believe. If you have a GSM phone, and it's unlocked, you can buy a SIM anywhere and have it work in the phone. Verizon, still probably uses CDMA, which is not a world-wide standard.

My now-ex had his company cell phone through ATT and my personal phone was with T-Mo. When we went to our vacation house in Arizona, my phone still worked fine while he had some big connection holes; turned out our place was in a spot that was a known ATT no coverage "blac hole" - he had to drive down the road to get a connection for calls. When I first bought my iPad Mini, T-Mobile did not support, but ATT did. I didn't want ATT, but I bought an "ATT-compliant" version and just used the WiFi on it. When T-Mo started supporting iPad Mini, I would have just had to just add it to my account and get a SIM for it.

You have to pay for the international service and specifically ask to enable it on ATT. With T-Mobile, you have it automatically as part of your service.

I believe you are wrong. They use the same cellular technology, GSM, but they each have their own networks, I believe. If you have a GSM phone, and it's unlocked, you can buy a SIM anywhere and have it work in the phone. Verizon, still probably uses CDMA, which is not a world-wide standard.

automatically as part of your service.

Yes, that was what I meant but didn't know what to call it. Thanks for enlightening me.

I’ve seen on the AT&T website that they have plans for various cruise lines, HAL being one. Is Cellular-at-Sea what they are referring to? Also, how did it bite you money wise? Because of calls, or just in general?

Thx

Prior to my understanding how the billing worked, i had a hefty bill on return from a prior WC. ATT was kind enough to negotiate a reasonable amount I was to pay ... after that, we setup with ATT prior to cruise just what we want for plan on sea days - and that has worked out well.

harry