Cell Phone Use While at Sea..........

[4774Papa]

A couple of things have not been discussed. Cell phone service on board is not ATT, Verizon or anyone else without a cruise ship plan - otherwise it is the ship's cell phone service at a couple $$ a minute. But still expensive.

 

If the kids have an emergency why not simply let them call the ship. Understand expensive but if a real emergency worth it. As for internet - it is almost always VERY slow. I type up messages before connecting and usually only connect every few days.

 

Also if in the Caribbean or other places you should have wifi almost in every port. Can always call with Talkatone or another app.

Excellent advise. We don't take our phone on cruises, since here on cc I have read many stories of someone that incurred thousands of dollars on their shipboard account because they failed to turn off their phones or have it on the right setting.

 

I tell everyone they can call the ship and we will reimburse them, if it is a REAL emergency.

[Charles4515]

Excellent advise. We don't take our phone on cruises, since here on cc I have read many stories of someone that incurred thousands of dollars on their shipboard account because they failed to turn off their phones or have it on the right setting.

 

I tell everyone they can call the ship and we will reimburse them, if it is a REAL emergency.

 

 

So you can't learn how to use your phone?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Edited October 12, 2015 by Charles4515

[Gig103]

Based on the warning from the sales rep, Rather than activate your old CDMA phone on Verizon ($10-$20 for a month plus usage) I'd look for a prepaid phone that uses GSM.

[4774Papa]

So you can't learn how to use your phone?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I am sure that I could always learn more about my phone, but I am perfectly happy not having it on a cruise.

 

My phone doesn't work overseas and I would not use it on-board.

 

Frankly, it is nice that almost no one uses their phones on-board ship. Unlike at home were you constantly see people making love with their cell.

[Paulras]

I thought the same about the new $40 plan on Verizon - sounds too good to be true. But used it a month ago on an NCL ship for 2 weeks plus a week in Europe and it worked great for both of our phones. 100 outgoing texts and unlimited incoming, plus the 100mb data and 100 minutes. And we were able to send picture messages as part of that 100 texts. Of course, the signal was spotty at times, especially on the ship.

 

I would definitely recommend that new plan. But I'd suggest just getting it for the whole month. Data and texts add up quick so why limit yourself to 1/4 of the allotment. We went over the 100mb data block many times over 3 weeks. $25 each additional 100mb. But keep in mind we didn't need to buy data on the ship since it worked through the Verizon coverage so we probably saved money.

 

If you want to confirm on your own about the $40 plan working for your phone on your ship as well as other countries use their trip planner:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

 

I just checked my upcoming Eclipse cruise and my phone will work on it with the $40 plan. So I'm assuming it would work on all Celebrity ships.

 

One other thing to do is to turn off your automatic app updates on Google Play Store (or apple equivalent). That'll eat your data as soon as you turn on the phone. Just remember to flip it back on when you get back.

[Charles4515]

One other thing to do is to turn off your automatic app updates on Google Play Store (or apple equivalent). That'll eat your data as soon as you turn on the phone. Just remember to flip it back on when you get back.

 

Automatic app updates is on by default over WiFi on iPhones but auto app updates is off by default over cellular data. It is worth checking though to make sure updating over cellular data is toggled off. I turn the auto updates off altogether when traveling because I have had instances when the WiFi connection is so poor that the updates stall.

 

If you are data roaming, to save data, you should also turn off image loading in email. I also turn it off when on the ships WiFi because over the slow ship connection turning it off speeds up downloading email.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Charles4515

[dj_crusin]

I have TWC cable and telephone. They have an app called PHONE 2 GO. It allows you to use your home phone from any wireless connection. This would require the unlimited internet plan on the ship but will allow you to make and receive phone calls.

 

I am sure this works in Europe but I have never tested it on a ship. There's always SKYPE?

[rootbear]

I bought the $40 Verizon plan last month for our trip to Germany, Italy and 11 day cruise on the Silhouette. I made phone calls while at sea and the calls were included in the price. Overage was .25 a minute And .25 a text (unlimited incoming text).

 

After my last European cruise without a phone, I said I would never make that mistake again. It was very easy to use and didn't even have to dial any special prefixes when calling since my iPhone (or maybe it was Verizon) had "dial assist".

 

Oh, and by the way, someone mentioned Skype but you can not use it while on the ship as it will not work.

[ClassicalSax]

Does anyone have any experience with Tmobile wifi calling on the ship ? Although I'm currently an ATT customer, it appears TMobile's plans are currently better deals for international calling and the option to use wifi calling on the ship with an internet package. ATT does not have wifi calling yet - just got approved last week. I'm seriously considering making a change but would love to hear about folk's experiences.

Edited October 13, 2015 by ClassicalSax

[Charles4515]

Does anyone have any experience with Tmobile wifi calling on the ship ? Although I'm currently an ATT customer, it appears TMobile's plans are currently better deals for international calling and the option to use wifi calling on the ship with an internet package. ATT does not have wifi calling yet - just got approved last week. I'm seriously considering making a change but would love to hear about folk's experiences.

 

 

ATT WiFi calling does work now. It is turned on. The purpose of WiFi calling is to make calls on your carrier where the cell signal is weak. You still get charged the same rates as your plan. That includes international. TMobile probably does have better international rates but their coverage in the US is not as good as ATT and Verizon. I personally need my US coverage more than better international deals.

 

If you use WiFi calling on the ship it would be the same as using Skype or FaceTime except you are going thru your carriers switch. I have never been able to get Skype or FaceTime to work on Celebrity WiFi. The same might be true of TMobile, Sprint or ATT WiFi calling since it works on the same principle as Skype (VOIP). Until Celebrity puts in high bandwidth Voom internet like on Royal Caribbean's Oasis Class ships (Skype works on those) any kind of VOIP is problematic.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Charles4515

[Spartan1771]

I am sure that I could always learn more about my phone, but I am perfectly happy not having it on a cruise.

 

Frankly, it is nice that almost no one uses their phones on-board ship. Unlike at home were you constantly see people making love with their cell.

 

I agree with you on this point. I have zero desire to have my phone with me at all. Personally, I don't see the need for this, but my wife feels differently. Like they say: Happy wife, happy life. After all the money we have spent on this trip, if another $10 gives my Wife peace of mind, I don't mind spending it.

 

Also, I'm very familiar with all of the functions on my phone. Data and wi-fi will be off for the trip, which will eliminate any auto updates and push notification.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Spartan1771

[Iamthesea]

We were gone for 15 days as well. You can cancel and get the price pro-rated when you return. However your allowed minutes/data/texts in the $40 plan will also be pro-rated. In this case make sure that the minutes/data/ texts that you actually used are covered by half a month pro-rating.

 

Good point and it's only another $15, thank you!

 

I thought the same about the new $40 plan on Verizon - sounds too good to be true. But used it a month ago on an NCL ship for 2 weeks plus a week in Europe and it worked great for both of our phones. 100 outgoing texts and unlimited incoming, plus the 100mb data and 100 minutes. And we were able to send picture messages as part of that 100 texts. Of course, the signal was spotty at times, especially on the ship.

 

I would definitely recommend that new plan. But I'd suggest just getting it for the whole month. Data and texts add up quick so why limit yourself to 1/4 of the allotment. We went over the 100mb data block many times over 3 weeks. $25 each additional 100mb. But keep in mind we didn't need to buy data on the ship since it worked through the Verizon coverage so we probably saved money.

 

If you want to confirm on your own about the $40 plan working for your phone on your ship as well as other countries use their trip planner:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

 

I just checked my upcoming Eclipse cruise and my phone will work on it with the $40 plan. So I'm assuming it would work on all Celebrity ships.

 

One other thing to do is to turn off your automatic app updates on Google Play Store (or apple equivalent). That'll eat your data as soon as you turn on the phone. Just remember to flip it back on when you get back.

 

Another good point. ;)

 

I bought the $40 Verizon plan last month for our trip to Germany, Italy and 11 day cruise on the Silhouette. I made phone calls while at sea and the calls were included in the price. Overage was .25 a minute And .25 a text (unlimited incoming text).

 

For those that used this plan last month, have you received your Verizon bills that include this time period you were overseas?

 

And do you receive alerts if you go over the limits?

[Paulras]

Good point and it's only another $15, thank you!

 

 

 

Another good point. ;)

 

 

 

For those that used this plan last month, have you received your Verizon bills that include this time period you were overseas?

 

And do you receive alerts if you go over the limits?

 

Yes, i received my bill and only thing additional was the data overage. But we were getting text alerts each time another 100mb was being charged. So i knew what i was ringing up

[Iamthesea]

Great!

[Spartan1771]

This past June we used the international plan on my Son's phone. He spent two weeks in France and Spain. There were no surprises on the bill and his phone worked flawlessly during his trip. When I created this thread I didn't realize this plan would also cover the Cellular at Sea service on the ship.

Edited October 14, 2015 by Spartan1771

[Iamthesea]

So I took a look at Verizon. A couple of things that I don't understand. :confused:

 

Do you purchase the $40 plan AND a separate International plan? This is based on the following from that link:

 

Before you travel, sign up for International Services

 

Get UNLIMITED access to select International Wi-Fi hot-spots with Verizon Wi-Fi Connect when you add a International data plan to a line on your account.

 

Stay connected while you travel with International Data and Preferred Bundle Options that give data allowances and talk, text and data bundles in 140+ countries

And do you have to buy a separate plan for each Country and another for the ship, or does the $40 plan cover all together?

 

Also, saw the following (see screen shot) under Special Info This makes it sound like although your plan will work on the ship, you still have to have a celluar service through the ship. if you cannot read, is says "Cruise Ship rates apply in International waters............"

[hrhdhd]

No problem.

 

We set it up so it automatically comes off our account on the day we get back from our trip.

 

I thought I did that too but ended up paying for the international plan for another month because the rep apparently didn't enter an automatic end date. You should call and make sure the plan has been removed when you retrun.

[Spartan1771]

I thought I did that too but ended up paying for the international plan for another month because the rep apparently didn't enter an automatic end date. You should call and make sure the plan has been removed when you retrun.

 

 

I plan to. Thanks for the heads-up though.

[drafterdw]

Verizon has an international plan for cruise and overseas. It costs $40. for a month If you go to their web site it explanes it further. We are getting this for our 23 Oct cruise on Constellation.

 

Good luck with that....I did that because my mothers health was bad...set everything up and guess what - did not work. When we arrived back in states my daughters phones blew up with all my messages asking how she was doing. Tried everything to make it work.....nothing. I spent over and hour on phone with Verizon setting this up. If it works please let us know.

[TeeRick]

So I took a look at Verizon. A couple of things that I don't understand. :confused:

 

Do you purchase the $40 plan AND a separate International plan? This is based on the following from that link:

 

And do you have to buy a separate plan for each Country and another for the ship, or does the $40 plan cover all together?

 

Also, saw the following (see screen shot) under Special Info This makes it sound like although your plan will work on the ship, you still have to have a celluar service through the ship. if you cannot read, is says "Cruise Ship rates apply in International waters............"

 

The $40 international plan covers each country and also the ship. There are no extra charges from the ship in international waters or from Verizon. It really is very easy.

[Iamthesea]

Thanks! Going online to sign-up, now. :) We leave tomorrow for England.

[Spartan1771]

Good luck with that....I did that because my mothers health was bad...set everything up and guess what - did not work. When we arrived back in states my daughters phones blew up with all my messages asking how she was doing. Tried everything to make it work.....nothing. I spent over and hour on phone with Verizon setting this up. If it works please let us know.

 

I have successfully used my current cell phone (Samsung Galaxy S4) on a cruise before, just not with this plan. The plan has nothing to do with your phone working or not, it only provides a flat rate as opposed to additional charges per minute. If your phone doesn't work over seas because it's hardware is incompatible with the local networks, it doesn't matter what plan you have.

[Paulras]

Also, saw the following (see screen shot) under Special Info This makes it sound like although your plan will work on the ship, you still have to have a celluar service through the ship. if you cannot read, is says "Cruise Ship rates apply in International waters............"

 

That only means that if you're docked in a country that doesn't allow the plan and you're sitting on the ship, it'll follows the country's rules. Once you get out to international waters, the plan covers you because you're now considered to be on the ship through the ship's service. So all you need is the plan and you'll be good to go. If every country you visit and the ship is on the plan, you shouldn't need to worry about anything.

 

Someone else asked about the website talking about an "International Plan" but also listed the Global Plan. I'm pretty sure the International Plan has to do with calling other countries while you're in the US, not using your phone in other countries. I almost never call other countries so I only add the Global Plan when I'm cruising.

[Iamthesea]

Oh, thank you. That does explain things better. :D

[AquariusOne]

This is taken from Celebrety Cruise's website Q&A

 

Q: Will I have cell phone service while on my cruise?

 

While you're on the cruise you can use your cell phone to make and receive calls, send and receive text messages, access email and surf the web. To stay connected while at sea, remember to pack your phone charger.

Cellular service is available once the ship enters international waters. When you're at sea and the system is on, depending on the type of phone you have, you will see "NOR18," "901-18" or "cellularatsea" on your mobile display. You will be billed at international roaming rates, and charges will show on your monthly cellular bill from your home carrier.

 

For questions about your service, rates or billing, please contact your home carrier.

 

Note: Wireless Maritime Service provides the cellular service onboard all Celebrity ships.