Quite place for Zoom call early morning on Discovery

[ChanaC]

I'm sailing on the Discovery Princess to Alaska in a few weeks. I just found out I may need to join a Zoom call early one morning, 7:30am Alaska time, right as we are pulling into Ketchikan. I don't want to take the call in my cabin and disrupt my travel companion. Can anyone suggest an area on the ship that might be relatively quiet enough for a call?

 

And yes, I'm already aware that the "quietness" wouldn't be guaranteed. And even though I'll have Princess Plus and internet on my phone I know the service is spotty, and not great for video calls. It's a group meeting and I already let the person leading it know I may not be able to connect at all, but I'm hoping to at least listen in, even if I don't have my camera on. I'm hoping to at least give it a try!

[TracieABD]

Sometimes you can go for the back of the Crown Grill and find a little quiet there.  

[Thrak]

If you can get a good enough connection on the ship for a Zoom call while in Alaska you will win the prize. Ship Internet in Alaska is horrid. Best of luck.

[Rick&Jeannie]

Yes, as @Thrak says...getting a good enough connection using the ship internet will be a challenge.

 

Disconnect from ship and go with "shore" coverage.  As far as a location...maybe on your balcony?  Maybe you could slip into Princess Live assuming that they are not doing anything in there yet.  Even out on the pool deck in/under one of the alcove areas away from any wind.  Vista Lounfe might even work...same restrictions as Princess Live.  The real trick, though will be ditching the ship internet and going on normal cell service.

[Thrak]

9 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

The real trick, though will be ditching the ship internet and going on normal cell service.

 

Just be absolutely certain you don't connect to the ship's cellular service. That is quite expensive.

[lx200gps]

On the Sky and Enchanted, pretty much sister ships to the Discovery, we've had great luck with Take 5 when we need peace and quiet. During the day, aside from occasional game shows and lectures around mid-day, it's been VERY quiet for us, usually almost deserted and is our go-to place for a quiet reading spot. Great window seats to boot.

[ChanaC]

Thanks everyone! And yikes I meant "quiet" but I can't edit the title!

[Rick&Jeannie]

2 minutes ago, ChanaC said:

Thanks everyone! And yikes I meant "quiet" but I can't edit the title!

Hah!  I didn't even catch that one!  Don't give it a second thought!

[MissP22]

Last cruise in the Caribbean I couldn't connect tp Zoom reliably during a sea day and they have better signal than Alaska.

Another time when in port, when most people were off the ship I had no problem.

[jeromep]

If the ship is at dock or close to the dock at Ketchikan you should be able to get terrestrial cellular service from your normal provide pretty easily.  You'll need to do two things with your phone to ensure that you are not on ship WiFi or connecting to ship cellular.  First, turn off your WiFi on your device, that will disconnect you from ship's WiFi for sure, then ensure that your phone is set to not allow roaming.  This should force the phone or other cellular device to go looking for a native broadcast tower owned by your cellular provider.

 

According to signalchecker.com, naitive service in Ketchikan is limited to Verizon and T-Mobile.  AT&T isn't there, and neither is U.S. Cellular (who is famous for great rural cellular but atrocious metro cellular).

 

https://www.signalchecker.com/ak/ketchikan

 

So my earlier advice about turning off your roaming on the ship so the device doesn't connect to ship cellular ensures that you don't have any odd charges show up on your bill, but that advice might impact your ability to get cellular service in Ketchikan which is considered roaming for some services, although you probably don't pay for terrestrial roaming on your regular plan as very few people have plans like that anymore.

 

You'll want to check with your cellular provide directly for their service in Ketchikan, most providers have a service map that indicates the type of cellular that is offered in a geographic location (4g, 5g, etc.) and how strong the signal might be.

 

Depending on who your carrier is, you might find yourself having to try to use ship's WiFi for your Zoom session if you can't get terrestrial cell service that is effective.  Also note that the ship is a huge Faraday cage as it is full of steel boxes and framework.  You may find yourself on a top deck or out on a balcony to get a good cellular signal, if your provider does offer service in Ketchikan.

Edited March 22, 2023 by jeromep

[ChanaC]

Thank you! I'm AT&T so I may be out of luck.

[VibeGuy]

AT&T would be shocked to learn they don’t serve Ketchikan, what with their retail presence there and all. The vast majority of populated places in Alaska are now considered on-network for AT&T. 
 

Besides Take Five, I would also consider a couple of outsideish areas that are pretty calm that time of day, especially when docked.  Look just outside Bistro Sur La Mer or Gigi’s Pizza on Deck 7 midships - they’re usually pretty low-traffic and either side of the ship should have good coverage in Ketchikan (there are towers on the airport side of the channel).  I’d also look just aft of the exits from the World Fresh Marketplace    at the soft seating slightly *forward* of the exit doors (this makes sense when you actually see it).  It’s a quiet little alcove.  

Edited March 23, 2023 by VibeGuy

[jeromep]

1 minute ago, ChanaC said:

Thank you! I'm AT&T so I may be out of luck.

Don't take my word for it, check with AT&T first.  Their web site should have a service map and it should clearly state if they have access and how it is provided.