Communication on ships....

[cheers55]

Just curious, have cruised several times but have never paid to have cell service on the ship. That being said, I was thinking of ways to communicate on ships with my kids and others in my party. Any ideas? Do walkie talkies work at sea?

 

 

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[fortinweb]

Walkie talkies are a bad idea. They do not work well due to the metal walls and floors, and most users get frustrated and start yelling into them in an attempt to be heard on the other end, and this not surprisingly annoys everyone around them.

 

A ship is not that large. Most of the space is used for staterooms and operational workings of the ship. The public areas are actually less that 25% if the total area.

 

Stick with a daily plan, and sticky notes on the door or mirror for communication during the day. Plan to meet for dinner each evening, and then leave everyone to have fun on their own. No one likes being "tethered" to everyone else while on vacation. They like their freedom to do what they want.

 

If your kids need to stay in contact with you during the day, they are too young to be left alone in the first place.

Edited January 7, 2015 by fortinweb

[Cruisin' Chick]

You can scroll down (maybe go back a couple of pages), but you'll find the similar question discussed many times. Many people will try walkie talkies and find them very unusable due to the ship's structure. And many others will say they hate to be around those trying to use the walkie talkies, which can be very annoying to be around.

 

Most ships will have courtesy phones in the public areas that you can use to leave messages on in-cabin phones.

 

On our last cruise, we utilized paper and pen to leave messages for each of us, including our 15-year-old. It actually worked out great. Plus, she knew when we were going to dinner (we had traditional dining) so if she wanted to eat with us, she would stop by the cabin to get changed and go with us. (she sometimes would eat with her friends in the buffet or grab a pizza at the pizzeria, too).

 

The only time I turned on my cell was when we were in port (taxis, etc.). But my hubby didn't bring his cell (which is his work one anyway) on the cruise. So we got to know each other's possible locations (the gym, Skywalkers, wherever the hula class was going to be).

[paul929207]

Some cruise lines are installing systems to allow texting on the ship. In the case of Princess, it will go thru the intranet, not the internet and so there would be no cost. I think Princess has it on one or two ships and will expand it to all by the end of 2015.

 

I am sure others cannot be far behind.

[dsrdsrdsr]

In an emergency, the reception desk will Tannoy. (This very rarely happens. Forgetting where you've arranged to meet does not constitute an emergency!)

 

Apart from that, face-to-face talking is best. Arrange to eat breakfast and dinner together.

[MSN-Travelers]

Just curious, have cruised several times but have never paid to have cell service on the ship. That being said, I was thinking of ways to communicate on ships with my kids and others in my party. Any ideas? Do walkie talkies work at sea?

 

 

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The answer is yes & no. As others have pointed out, the signal has to punch through the steel decks and walls. We tried it and after the second cruise they were left at home. People tend to leave them with max volume and shout into them in the belief that it will help boost the signal.

 

You can do a search and find several heated discussions about walkie talkies. I've heard stories where they tend to "fall overboard" if you leave them unattended poolside.

 

As a side note, they work great and are popular with the sailing community. If you get a decent set and find they were a waste of money for cruise ships, I would take them off your hands . . . :D

 

As a side note, use of walkie talkies is illegal in most foreign ports/countries.

 

Enjoy!

[cheers55]

Great info from all, thank you very much.

 

 

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[cb at sea]

Yeah...make plans when you're together, then you'll ALL know where to find each other! Very easy and simple! You really don't need mechanical means to "communicate"...talk to each other! If plans change, leave a note in your cabin or on the other person's cabin phone. Very easy.