Rcac Posted October 7, 2018 #1 Share Posted October 7, 2018 I am looking for the best alternative to cell phone service. We will be cruising with Carnival this December. My kiddos will be left back home with grandparents. I want to still have contact with them back home. It doesn't HAVE to be video chatting, but I would at least like to be able to either call them or do some sort of voice chat. I have looked into the WiFi packages, but 14 something a day seems very high. I don't need access to anything else other than some way to voice chat with my kids...We have Verizon, but they have informed me that Carnival and them have a "deal" where we won't get cell service on the ship, even if we did some form of international plan or rate... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bury me at sea Posted October 7, 2018 #2 Share Posted October 7, 2018 You can make a couple of quick calls very reasonably from the phone in your room. I don't remember the exact amount but it's in the vicinity of a couple of dollars a minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lottacruises Posted October 7, 2018 #3 Share Posted October 7, 2018 Sounds complicated. Just dial from your room for 2-3 $$ per minute. You're going to find the kids won't be that interested in talking to you anyway, probably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw67 Posted October 7, 2018 #4 Share Posted October 7, 2018 With the cheaper plan you get fb and fb messenger. You also can use WhatsApp. Sent from my SM-G930V using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaseballMomof4 Posted October 7, 2018 #5 Share Posted October 7, 2018 We recently traveled to Europe and found that Facebook calls through private messaging was a great alternative! There's wifi in multiple locations both on and off the ship in most ports and you can make a called through private messaging. It worked so well I never used my phone to call home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fla Mike Posted October 7, 2018 #6 Share Posted October 7, 2018 Another vote for the room phone. Also, when in port, try to find a free WiFi location and maybe Skype will work. Any of the crew will be able to tell you where the best free WiFi is. I always leave a few $$$ on my Skype account to make voice calls in an emergency. The $$$ never expires and it usually works fine. Voice calls are also cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purvis1231 Posted October 7, 2018 #7 Share Posted October 7, 2018 It is my understanding that Carnival's wifi does not support calling. If I am wrong let me know. If I were leaving my young children at home, I would buy the unlimited AT&T cruise ship calling and text for $100.00. I think other companies have similar plans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teslyn Posted October 7, 2018 #8 Share Posted October 7, 2018 I always call the family from the ship. I don't talk long, just a quick check in. It's cheaper and reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpcaruth Posted October 7, 2018 #9 Share Posted October 7, 2018 Verizon has a Travel Pass add on for international travel which you can use in port. Basically, for a $10/24 hour fee (or only $5 in Mexico), your service is activated under your existing Verizon plan. https://www.verizonwireless.com/solutions-and-services/international-travel/. You sign up for the program on-line. It is only activated when/if you turn off airplane mode in port. We have used it in Bermuda and Mexico. I received unlimited text and talk, and the data was subtracted from my monthly allowance. I was able to use gps maps and data to navigate a boat we rented in Bermuda. I turned on my Hotspot, and the whole family was able to use their phones to check in with social media. The Travel Pass service is not available on the ship, but you can save longer phone calls for port days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A&Jfamily Posted October 7, 2018 #10 Share Posted October 7, 2018 Where are you traveling to? ATT now has free calls/texts when in Canada and Mexico. Also the US ports like San Juan and St Thomas work just like home... Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert64 Posted October 7, 2018 #11 Share Posted October 7, 2018 Have 3 kids at home. Get the "social internet plan" and use Facebook Messenger. You can even get the kids version of Messenger (tied through your FB account, you setup up which of your friends they can message with, they can't speak with anyone else and no one can see they have it/"friend them) and speak with your kids directly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hotdog 52 Posted October 7, 2018 #12 Share Posted October 7, 2018 We have att and called from Mexico 2 weeks ago, no charge. You must sign up but, it's free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmBear Posted October 8, 2018 #13 Share Posted October 8, 2018 We have T mobile and its also free from Mexico and Canada, and of course St Thomas and Puerto Rico! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inurdreams2379 Posted October 8, 2018 #14 Share Posted October 8, 2018 We have att and called from Mexico 2 weeks ago, no charge. You must sign up but, it's free. I have AT&T, sign up for what nd it’s free? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treyatl2006 Posted October 8, 2018 #15 Share Posted October 8, 2018 If you have the internet package you can make free calls using the google hangout dialer app. Also, some phones have wifi calling built in. You can call people using wifi calling and you wont be charged roaming fees. Just make sure your phone is in airplane mode before making the call. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wo5m Posted October 8, 2018 #16 Share Posted October 8, 2018 I was just on the the two week repossessioning cruise on the Carnival Breeze and before the cruised I opted for the AT&T unlimited talk and text cruise plan and I also had the premium internet package The WiFi on the ship was just too unreliable. While I was sometimes able to make VOIP calls on both google hangouts and Facebook messenger it was buggy at best and I couldn't rely on it for incoming calls. The AT&T plan in contrast worked really well. All the ports we visited were covered on the plan. The only condition was I had to make at least one call from the ship before any of the islands we visited would be covered(to prevent non cruiseser from abusing this plan I guess). The plan was $100 and covered you for exactly 30 days from when you activate it. It also gave me 2 or 3 gb that data that I didn't really use. There were really only two negatives I experienced. The first was while at sea there was increased delay that sometime lead to two people talking at the same time, but it minor. The other issue was anytime you were leaving or coming into port the cell service on the ship would be turned off so you would have no signal from inside the ship. Even when docked, unless thee was a cell tower right at the port, you still had to go outside to get a signal. While at sea, there was not anywhere on the ship I didn't have coverage. The only other annoyance(small) was I had my phones timezone set to sync to the cell provider. When they first turned on the cellular at sea after we left Galveston my phone switched from central time to GMT so I had to hard set the time zone on the phone. Normally I would not have gotten the phone plan, but it was a 14 days cruise and I was cruising on my own and we had two family emergencies(why my wife stayed behind) just before the cruise and wanted to stay in touch with the family if something bad happened. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rcac Posted October 8, 2018 Author #17 Share Posted October 8, 2018 If you have the internet package you can make free calls using the google hangout dialer app. Also, some phones have wifi calling built in. You can call people using wifi calling and you wont be charged roaming fees. Just make sure your phone is in airplane mode before making the call. I have read that the cruise ships don't support wifi calling? I take it this isn't always true? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rcac Posted October 8, 2018 Author #18 Share Posted October 8, 2018 Verizon has a Travel Pass add on for international travel which you can use in port. Basically, for a $10/24 hour fee (or only $5 in Mexico), your service is activated under your existing Verizon plan. https://www.verizonwireless.com/solutions-and-services/international-travel/. You sign up for the program on-line. It is only activated when/if you turn off airplane mode in port. We have used it in Bermuda and Mexico. I received unlimited text and talk, and the data was subtracted from my monthly allowance. I was able to use gps maps and data to navigate a boat we rented in Bermuda. I turned on my Hotspot, and the whole family was able to use their phones to check in with social media. The Travel Pass service is not available on the ship, but you can save longer phone calls for port days. This sounds like my best bet! Thank you for the info. I am a version customer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A&Jfamily Posted October 8, 2018 #19 Share Posted October 8, 2018 I have AT&T, sign up for what nd it’s free? If you call ATT they will add calling from Mexico and Canada to your account if you have a certain plan level or higher. But you have to call and set it up. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caracbeara Posted October 8, 2018 #20 Share Posted October 8, 2018 I have two little ones at home and our last cruise, I splurged for the internet plan on board. I was able to FaceTime them at grandmas house. Worth every penny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coevan Posted October 8, 2018 #21 Share Posted October 8, 2018 I have read that the cruise ships don't support wifi calling? I take it this isn't always true? You need a decent wifi signal to make calling work, which is not available on all Carnival ships. We got messenger to work, but no video. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCruisingOkies Posted October 9, 2018 #22 Share Posted October 9, 2018 About to show my lack of technical knowledge :) I think I need to take Phones and Internet on Board 101 You're supposed to keep your phone in Airplane Mode, correct? Can you have Wi-Fi turned on when in airplane mode? If you purchase the ship's internet plan, do you still access Facebook Messenger from your phone, or do you need to log on from a computer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgdick54 Posted October 9, 2018 #23 Share Posted October 9, 2018 "airplane mode" prevents your phone from trying to connect to cell tower which will rack up charges even if you're not using your phone. WiFi is an alternate way of connecting to a private network and would be used for the Hub app or using WhatsApp or other VOIP (voice over internet protocol). Personally I keep my phone on WiFi only as much as I can whether sailing or not. About to show my lack of technical knowledge :) I think I need to take Phones and Internet on Board 101 You're supposed to keep your phone in Airplane Mode, correct? Can you have Wi-Fi turned on when in airplane mode? If you purchase the ship's internet plan, do you still access Facebook Messenger from your phone, or do you need to log on from a computer? Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treyatl2006 Posted October 9, 2018 #24 Share Posted October 9, 2018 I have read that the cruise ships don't support wifi calling? I take it this isn't always true? It works. I do it all the time. It actually works fairly well in my experience. Also, wifi calling use very little data/bandwidth so the internet doesnt have to be fast in order for it to work. I was on the Magic and they had terrible internet service and I was able to wifi call anyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
summersigh Posted October 16, 2018 #25 Share Posted October 16, 2018 We don't have any little ones at home so if we need to call back to the states we use the cabin phone. Was $1.99 a minute when I last used it. Easy and reliable. If you stop in San Juan or St Thomas - for most providers - your phone works just like on the mainland USA because they are US territories. Check with your company to be sure.😀 Also ,,, I leave this info with our adult son and my siblings: Copied and pasted from the CCL FAQ's : In the event of a true emergency, family may contact our call center at 1-800-227-6482 on a 24/7 basis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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