Cell Service Question

[Amjs1126]

Hi all, my husband and I are cruising in Norwegian Gem this June. I know the cruise ship has its own cell service, but I was curious in the charges. We use T-Mobile and were told that internationally texts and data is unlimited and calls are .20 a minute. Does this apply on the cruise ship as well, or are the charges different?

[SuiteTraveler]

This article might be helpful:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=1752

 

I usually turn my cellphone off when on a cruise and put it in the safe. I only use it when in port and then only briefly.

[Clarea]

Hi all, my husband and I are cruising in Norwegian Gem this June. I know the cruise ship has its own cell service, but I was curious in the charges. We use T-Mobile and were told that internationally texts and data is unlimited and calls are .20 a minute. Does this apply on the cruise ship as well, or are the charges different?

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

The place to check for charges on a cruise ship would be your cell carrier. Either call them or check their website for cruise ship coverage and charges while at sea.

Edited April 26, 2016 by clarea

[klfrodo]

The cell provider is going to charge you their rates

 

AND

 

the ship is going to charge you for using their tower.

(It's not really a cellular tower, it's a satellite uplink to get you to a cellular network.)

 

If you need to make a phone call while at sea, most ships now only charge $1.99 a minute. (Only a couple of years ago it was $10 per minute)

Edited April 26, 2016 by klfrodo

[Clarea]

The cell provider is going to charge you their rates

 

AND

 

the ship is going to charge you for using their tower.

(It's not really a cellular tower, it's a satellite uplink to get you to a cellular network.)

 

If you need to make a phone call while at sea, most ships now only charge $1.99 a minute. (Only a couple of years ago it was $10 per minute)

This may vary by cruise line, but on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean, there are no charges from the ship for using the cell tower. Only the cell company charges for using a cellular connection at sea.

[Mary Ellen]

Seeing that you're with T-Mobile, that seems like a logical place to start. I googled Cellular at Sea T-Mobile and found: http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html

According to T-Mobile, for the Norwegian Gem, you'll pay about $6/minute to talk.

[cherylandtk]

Amjs,

Mary Ellen is correct. That lovely international plan with 140+ countries with free data and 0.20 minutes calls does not include cruise ships. Each ship is considered to be its own 'country' and is charged the table listed rates. Phone, text AND data are all charged at very high rates if using ship cell service. Of course, once in port, you are probably within a country that does work in the Simple Choice plans and that is far cheaper to use. While on ship the safest choice is to turn the phone off.

[Bonnie J.]

Don't call from the ship. Make calls when you are off the ship in a port on local towers. Check with T-Mobile to find out cost to you if you do this.

 

My cell phone goes in our safe, turned off, until we finish the cruise. I answer voicemail in the car driving home.

 

Unhappily a passenger was contacted on the ship when her son died. The ship was called, not her cell. She was notified by the ship to call home and the ship helped her arrange a flight home. Tell someone what ship you'll be on and they can contact you in an emergency. (She got the message at our Meet & Greet.)

[GUT2407]

Put it away.

[SPacificbound]

Hi all, my husband and I are cruising in Norwegian Gem this June. I know the cruise ship has its own cell service, but I was curious in the charges. We use T-Mobile and were told that internationally texts and data is unlimited and calls are .20 a minute. Does this apply on the cruise ship as well, or are the charges different?

 

We have T-Mobile also which has been quite handy when traveling, except....

if you look at the top left corner and see "cellular at sea" or similar, you probably won't want to make that call unless it's an emergency.

 

When the ship is docked and/or when you are off the ship, you should get a text "welcome to ____" etc. The message will tell you what the service is.

 

I have not had a horrendous cellular phone bill since I switched us to T-Mobile.

[donaldsc]

Christopher Columbus managed w/o a cell phone and he discovered a short route to India - at least he thought it was India. Now if he did have Google Maps, he would have realized that it was not India. Why does anyone really need a cell phone on a cruise. Have you ever listened to the inane conversations that people have with their ship board cell phones.

 

DON