River Cruise Excursions

[CPT Trips]

Holy Cow....I just realized that I know basically NOTHING about my iphone!!! :D

 

You might be a Luddite. :p

[Hydrokitty]

You might be a Luddite. :p

 

Hmmm....I have been known to smash things when frustrated...if that makes me a luddite, then I guess I'm guilty. At least I'm trying to keep up and I haven't smashed my new iphone.....yet anyway. :D

[caviargal]

Another option for better data access on and off the ship is to rent a wireless hotspot. The TEP device rents for about $7 per day, and XCom Global is a little more.

 

FuelScience

 

 

Looking into XCom now as I have read the wifi on Uniworld is not very good and I have to have access. 14.95 per day to rent the unit plus some other charges. Seems to be better than international data rates.

[FuelScience]

Looking into XCom now as I have read the wifi on Uniworld is not very good and I have to have access. 14.95 per day to rent the unit plus some other charges. Seems to be better than international data rates.

 

I have a good friend who rented an XCom unit last fall. The only problem he had was that the "unlimited" data isn't totally unlimited. He's a big University of Alabama fan, and on the weekend before he boarded the boat in Budapest, he streamed an Alabama football game to his iPad. XCom shut his device down, but the situation was remedied when he called, and XCom gave him credit for the day or two when he didn't have access.

 

FuelScience

[caviargal]

I have a good friend who rented an XCom unit last fall. The only problem he had was that the "unlimited" data isn't totally unlimited. He's a big University of Alabama fan, and on the weekend before he boarded the boat in Budapest, he streamed an Alabama football game to his iPad. XCom shut his device down, but the situation was remedied when he called, and XCom gave him credit for the day or two when he didn't have access.

 

FuelScience

 

Good thing it is not football season or I would be doing the same.:)

[Cobbie48]

I buy a European data plan for my iPhone from my carrier, AT&T. It costs $30 for a month. I found the wi fi on our Avalon ship pretty good in our aquarium room. The phone will be for texting and uploading photos to Facebook off the ship. Maybe by the time we leave mid-July I'll have figured out Google maps.

[Hydrokitty]

I buy a European data plan for my iPhone from my carrier, AT&T. It costs $30 for a month. I found the wi fi on our Avalon ship pretty good in our aquarium room. The phone will be for texting and uploading photos to Facebook off the ship. Maybe by the time we leave mid-July I'll have figured out Google maps.

 

I've got google maps down.....it's all the other stuff! I think Verizon charges $20/month for international texting, etc. and Vantage has good wifi on board too. I'm mostly concerned about using it on land to find things like restaurants.

[FuelScience]

I buy a European data plan for my iPhone from my carrier, AT&T. It costs $30 for a month. I found the wi fi on our Avalon ship pretty good in our aquarium room. The phone will be for texting and uploading photos to Facebook off the ship. Maybe by the time we leave mid-July I'll have figured out Google maps.

 

Just be aware that the AT&T $30 Passport only includes 120 MBytes of data for the entire 30 days. If you're uploading photos, that's not a lot. For comparison, the TEP device gives you 150 MBytes per day for $7 per day and lets you connect 5 devices simultaneously.

 

FuelScience

[Hydrokitty]

Just be aware that the AT&T $30 Passport only includes 120 MBytes of data for the entire 30 days. If you're uploading photos, that's not a lot. For comparison, the TEP device gives you 150 MBytes per day for $7 per day and lets you connect 5 devices simultaneously.

 

FuelScience

 

FS: Some questions about this TEP: 1. what is it 2. where do I get it 3. does it work if I have Verizon? 4. Can I pay for it per day used or do I need to sign up for 30 days?

[Fairfield Nana]

Looked up CPT's comment on "Luddite" not knowing what it means--- found out definition includes "a person opposed to increased industrialization or new technology".. You--that's me! Still am the proud owner of a flip-phone, and am fighting my kids pushing me to get new smart phones. Figure I'm smart as I need to be and ignorance can really be quite blissful. On the very few cruises we've been on, I much prefer to sit and watch the spectacular sites and people-watch. Have sworn off the internet!

 

--alright, except for this dumb site! Gotta have one vice.

[Hydrokitty]

Looked up CPT's comment on "Luddite" not knowing what it means--- found out definition includes "a person opposed to increased industrialization or new technology".. You--that's me! Still am the proud owner of a flip-phone, and am fighting my kids pushing me to get new smart phones. Figure I'm smart as I need to be and ignorance can really be quite blissful. On the very few cruises we've been on, I much prefer to sit and watch the spectacular sites and people-watch. Have sworn off the internet!

 

--alright, except for this dumb site! Gotta have one vice.

 

Well thank goodness for that....if everyone swore off the internet, we'd have nothing to write about!!! I had a flip phone up until Christmas when DH gave me a smart phone......I know I don't use it up to it's capability....I still shut it off when I'm home....but my kids are scattered and they all want to text so I had to join the modern age. I do not contact them when we're traveling unless it's absolutely necessary, like a change in travel plans. I still use my camera for photos and wait till I get home to download card. But I do like the ability to bring up restaurants, shops, local things to see and do (like concert in Prague) and to keep tabs of my flights on travel days.

 

Luddites can also be people who maraud and destroy things....so if we throw that phone against the wall (tempting sometimes) we could qualify on more than one level :D

[Host Jazzbeau]

The term Luddite comes from England in the early industrial revolution when skilled workers felt their jobs were threatened by the new power looms and other machines. It is believed that the movement was named after Ned Ludd, a youth who allegedly smashed two stocking frames in 1779, and whose name became emblematic of machine destroyers.

 

Now back to your regularly scheduled thread!

Edited May 1, 2015 by Host Jazzbeau

[caviargal]

I buy a European data plan for my iPhone from my carrier, AT&T. It costs $30 for a month. I found the wi fi on our Avalon ship pretty good in our aquarium room. The phone will be for texting and uploading photos to Facebook off the ship.

 

I have that is well but it is a very small amount of data and inadequate for all but the most casual usage.

[FuelScience]

FS: Some questions about this TEP: 1. what is it 2. where do I get it 3. does it work if I have Verizon? 4. Can I pay for it per day used or do I need to sign up for 30 days?

 

HK,

 

1. The TEP device is a small, battery-powered wireless hotspot that connects via cellular networks. So you turn it on , and connect your phone/tablet/computer to it just like you would to the ship's WiFi. It has about a 5 hour battery life, and you can connect up to 5 devices to it at one time.

 

2. If you go to http://www.tepwireless.com/, you can get all the information you need. You tell them when you're leaving and when you will arrive in Europe, and when you will leave. They mail the device to you before you leave, and you mail it back when you return.

 

3. It should work with any device that can connect to WiFi.

 

4. If I understand correctly, you are only charged for the days you're in Europe.

 

Hope this helps. XCom Global has a similar device that costs more, but offers more daily data. I'll probably rent one of the two when we do our cruise in early August. We'll have three couples along, so I figured that we could share the device when we're off the boat.

 

FuelScience

[Hydrokitty]

HK,

 

1. The TEP device is a small, battery-powered wireless hotspot that connects via cellular networks. So you turn it on , and connect your phone/tablet/computer to it just like you would to the ship's WiFi. It has about a 5 hour battery life, and you can connect up to 5 devices to it at one time.

 

2. If you go to http://www.tepwireless.com/, you can get all the information you need. You tell them when you're leaving and when you will arrive in Europe, and when you will leave. They mail the device to you before you leave, and you mail it back when you return.

 

3. It should work with any device that can connect to WiFi.

 

4. If I understand correctly, you are only charged for the days you're in Europe.

 

Hope this helps. XCom Global has a similar device that costs more, but offers more daily data. I'll probably rent one of the two when we do our cruise in early August. We'll have three couples along, so I figured that we could share the device when we're off the boat.

 

FuelScience

 

Now for the stupid questions: If I'm walking around say Amsterdam and I want to find a French restaurant nearby, I can turn on my phone with this device in my pocket and be connected to the internet? If I see something and want to take a picture of it with my phone (this would be rare) and then post it on facebook, I could do it right then and there and not have to wait until I'm back on the ship to post it? If I get lost and can't find the ship, I can turn on my phone and bring up a local map (assuming I have the app loaded) that will tell me where I am and how to get to where I want to be? If I want to convert local currency into dollars, or vice versa, I can do it on my phone as long as I have the tep device in my pocket?

 

I'm going to Canada in June, will it work there? That might be a good trip to test it on since I already know where I'm going and I've been there before.

Edited May 1, 2015 by Hydrokitty

[FuelScience]

Now for the stupid questions: If I'm walking around say Amsterdam and I want to find a French restaurant nearby, I can turn on my phone with this device in my pocket and be connected to the internet? If I see something and want to take a picture of it with my phone (this would be rare) and then post it on facebook, I could do it right then and there and not have to wait until I'm back on the ship to post it? If I get lost and can't find the ship, I can turn on my phone and bring up a local map (assuming I have the app loaded) that will tell me where I am and how to get to where I want to be? If I want to convert local currency into dollars, or vice versa, I can do it on my phone as long as I have the tep device in my pocket?

 

I'm going to Canada in June, will it work there? That might be a good trip to test it on since I already know where I'm going and I've been there before.

 

As I understand it, that's the way it works. It's like you go into a cafe and connect to their WiFi. I checked the web site, and you can get a device for Canada.

 

FuelScience

[Cobbie48]

Just be aware that the AT&T $30 Passport only includes 120 MBytes of data for the entire 30 days. If you're uploading photos, that's not a lot. For comparison, the TEP device gives you 150 MBytes per day for $7 per day and lets you connect 5 devices simultaneously.

 

FuelScience

 

I know the limitations. Only once have I exceeded my data and that was on a 12 day Med cruise.

[Hydrokitty]

As I understand it, that's the way it works. It's like you go into a cafe and connect to their WiFi. I checked the web site, and you can get a device for Canada.

 

FuelScience

 

I checked out their web site.....this is really intriguing....I think I might try it in Canada. Only thing is I'm going to be a train most of the time. Do you think it would work on a train? I'm not sure they have wifi capability and we'll be going from Vancouver to Banff and Jasper and then on to Toronto.

My concern is it would be a waste of money if I couldn't use it at all. But I'm definitely thinking I'll use it in August for the Switzerland Rhine & Moselle, although Vantage has wifi on its ships, so would I need it? Problem is I know how to use this stuff but I don't understand how it works!!

Edited May 2, 2015 by Hydrokitty

[janetcbl]

Does this work like a private connection, i.e. as if you were your own home and could do banking, etc? Or is it like the public wi-fi on the river cruise boats?

[FuelScience]

Hydrokitty,

 

I think that it should work anywhere you have cellular data available. I suspect that cellular data service in the wilds of western Canada may be hard to come by. You might find some coverage maps online somewhere. The advantage on your cruise would be the ability to use it when you're not on the ship.

 

Janetcbl, TEP claims to be secure. You can look at the website and judge for yourself what that means.

 

FuelScience

[Hydrokitty]

Hydrokitty,

 

I think that it should work anywhere you have cellular data available. I suspect that cellular data service in the wilds of western Canada may be hard to come by. You might find some coverage maps online somewhere. The advantage on your cruise would be the ability to use it when you're not on the ship. FuelScience

 

Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. Canadian Rockies are probably just as problematic, cellular wise as the American Rockies, which means none to very limited service, probably only in the hotels. I've already downloaded some off line maps and guides which will probably suffice. Since the only place we'll be on our own will be Vancouver and Toronto, both of which I've been to before and feel comfortable getting around in.

 

Janetcbl, TEP claims to be secure. You can look at the website and judge for yourself what that means. FuelScience

 

I don't have any reason for saying this Janet, but my instinct tells me it would not be a good idea to use if for banking or other personal stuff. HK

[terpshockey77]

My husband uses an app on his cell phone called CityMaps2Go. We've used this in Italy, Greece and Puerto Rico. We've checked the ports for a river cruise we will be on in Germany and most of the towns were available. There is a trial of 5 places and then he paid $4 or $5 after he saw he liked the app.

[Hydrokitty]

My husband uses an app on his cell phone called CityMaps2Go. We've used this in Italy, Greece and Puerto Rico. We've checked the ports for a river cruise we will be on in Germany and most of the towns were available. There is a trial of 5 places and then he paid $4 or $5 after he saw he liked the app.

 

Sounds reasonable. Can you use this without being connected to internet? I found one that you download and it works off the GPS on the phone and doesn't require internet connection. That should work well for finding restaurants and street maps in case I get turned around.

[sharkster77]

Hydrokitty--

 

If you don't mind, what is the name of the app you found that doesn't require you to be on the internet in order to use the maps? Would like to try that out!!

Thanks

[Hydrokitty]

Hydrokitty--

 

If you don't mind, what is the name of the app you found that doesn't require you to be on the internet in order to use the maps? Would like to try that out!!

Thanks

 

I have the Galaxy S 5 and according to the book I bought, "Teach Yourself Visually, Samsung Galaxy S5", the Map App that comes pre-loaded operates off GPS and will provide walking, driving, public transportation. It seems pretty easy to use...but I have to take it out today and try it. I'll report back.