Walkie talkies aboard ship

Hi all!!

I am going on a cruise on the Carnival Conquest in Fedruary and my wife and I were wondering if those little walkie talkies that you see at radio shack and other places work on board? They seem to range in wattage and distance but I was not sure if the metal on the ship would be a problem....has anyone used these while on a cruise?

Thanks!!

I have not used them onboard ship and cannot comment on their reliability. I would be concerned that if you call and do not get an answer - is it because something is wrong or because the transmission was not received?

I think pre-arranged meeting times at a specific place are better since you do not have to worry about the radios when doing activities. I would suggest anyone using radios consider using meetings as your primary coordination method and have radios as a secondary communication of updates between meeting times. I just would just not want to trust radios only.

central texas traveller: yes, those walkie-talkies can work on a ship, but steel does present a barrier to radio waves. In some places the radios work quite well; in other places, not so good.

There are two general types of these radios: FRS and GMRS. You do not need an FCC license for FRS radios due to their relatively low pawer and limited range.

GMRS radios have more power and their range is greater. For GMRS radios, the FCC does require that users of those radios have a license, which costs about $80 and there is no test. That being said, steel is still a barrier to radio transmissions. The more steel between you and other person, the greater the degradation of transmissions. Some people react to this problem by yelling into the radios which does not help at all and only irritates other passengers around them. :o

Although we have used our FRS radios onboard, I have seen . . . . and heard. . . . . others who have. I am sure there will be others who will share their experiences with more posts on the subject. Hope you have a great cruise! :)

we used walkie talkies-- talk abouts-- for our first cruise.

they do work but more of a pain then anything. EVen with all the various channels-- trying to hear my other person was annoying.

lots of kids will have them and are busy playing tag. most kids are screaming in them for mom or dad...and all the moms and dads are replying...lol

most ships have voice mail on the telephones that can be accessed from public telephones throughout the ship =- just set it up when you are in the cabin. -- its better and safer. (lots of people are not listening to your whereabouts--and where you are heading)

We have used them successfully. You wouldn't want to have a conversation but you can communicate enough to let someone know that you are looking for them even from an inside cabin, although its much easier in the open areas of the ship. I can recall looking for one of my sons and a woman told me to get "off of her channel". I didn't notice when we boarded the ship that we were assigned channels. ;). I told her that with 23 channels, someone was bound to be on "her channel".

My family and I have used them on several cruises and won't go with out them. We use the Motorola Walk or Talk abouts. We go to the higher channels to avoid the crowds. Either by the kind that has a recharger base or bring LOTS of batteriess.

For GMRS radios, the FCC does require that users of those radios have a license, which costs about $80 and there is no test.

I believe the FCC has no jurisdiction beyond 12 miles from United States shorelines. Local laws may apply while at various ports.:)

There are so many out there. Any suggestions on the best ones on the market?

I have experience with three different models of Motorola Talkabouts. I recommend GMRS capable, output 1 watt or greater. Generally speaking, higher output wattage equals greater range. Higher output wattage radios will however, consume batteries faster when transmitting. Hope this helps.:)

Thanks. Such a hard decision with the huge selections and brands available. We leave Sept. 30th, so I have a while to shop!

Out at sea, have at it! But if OP purchased a GMRS radio and wanted to operate it within the US, then a license is required.

Also, operating such radios in foreign countries may be illegal. Each country's communications agency determines which radio bands or frequencies can be used for different purposes. USA GMRS/FRS frequencies may well be used for some other governmental or business purpose in a foreign country,

I would hate for any CCer to have their radio confiscated or have them be fined/detained/interrogated, whatever. In a foreign port, it would a better practice to leave the radios on the ship, IMO.

Sorry to re-post. Newbie to the two way radio scene. Was pricing the Motorola Walkabouts. There are so many makes, which ones are the best for the cruise and excursions?

We tried the walkie talkies on our first cruise; the reception was so terrible that we packed them away after a couple days.

We also use the periodic check-in system. This worked even for my 15-year-old DD. She knows I am unbending about curfews and check-ins, and took seriously my threat that if she was even 5 minutes late for one, she'd be with ME for the next 24 hours. The horror! Worked like a charm. :)

have acobra brand, they were $ 20 after rewbate at BJ's. They do the trick for me and now 15 YO son. I have had them for about 3 years now.:)

We use the Motorola Walkabouts. They were about $50 for the pair a couple of years ago. As an earlier poster said, they work well enough to check in with our kids.

If I was traveling with my hubby (no kids) I probably wouldn't use radios. I'd just get a pack of post-it notes and leave messages for him on the mirror.

But, if you do get walkie-talkies, remember to put your name and cabin number on them, just in case they get lost.

And don't use them in the dining room or any of the public lounges or show rooms. I cannot tell you how many people are using them during dinner and at the shows at night.

On our cruise on the glory we used them. Sometimes they work sometimes they don't dependes on where you or they are. Being a LEO along with trhe others in my group we rely on them everday so it was just part of us. When looking at the purchase of the radios get the ones that claim to be the longest range they have the most power. I would try to stay with a name brand like motorola, cobra, or midland they seem to work best. Use them for what they are. I like the rechargeable ones. As far as others on the same channel we only heard another person when in port next to a RCCL ship. While at sae it was only us. There are many channels to choose from with the privacy codes so if somebody is on one switch to another.

Can't you just use the voicemail in your cabin for exchanging messages and checking in? There are plenty of phones all over the ship that you can use. Unless you are very careful, it can be very annoying to your fellow passengers. Just a suggestion.

Not even sure of the brand, but with occasional blips in the Club HAL schedule on HAL (duh) it was good to know our 9 and 11 year old could keep in contact with us. A bit fuzzy on occasion, but worked well otherwise. I highly reccomend this on a Cruise With Kids. They will appreciate not having adults tagging along while they enjoy themselves.:D

My DH has UHF that we took with us on our last cruise. They were great, he programs them so we had a private channel and did not have to listen to the out of control children screaming on their 'kids' radios. Also, UHF have no trouble sending the signal thru the ships bulkheads etc. They were perfect! We take them everytime + they recharge.

My DH has UHF that we took with us on our last cruise. They were great, he programs them so we had a private channel and did not have to listen to the out of control children screaming on their 'kids' radios. Also, UHF have no trouble sending the signal thru the ships bulkheads etc. They were perfect! We take them everytime + they recharge.

Its really early and I am not fully awake, but what is UHF? :)

UHF means ultra-high frequency. The radios to which psychboss referred operate at radio frequencies within, what is commonly known, the UHF band. It is generally true that UHF transmissions are not as adversely impacted by metal as are transmissions in the lower frequency bands, such as very-high frequency (VHF) and high frequency (HF). A good (and oversimplified) example of UHF radios are cell phones, which in reality, are UHF (800Mhz range) radios with telephone-like capabilities. Hope this helps!

Thank you. :)