Cell phone charges on Princess - the scoop

[2theship]

I just got back from the Ruby Princess 18-day Venice to Ft. Lauderdale cruise. It was a fantastic trip (of course) but I just checked my cell phone bill and have some specific info I'd like to share.

 

When we travel to Europe, we use a Mobal phone. It's easy to use and I like being accessible to the family at home. There are often questions here about how much calls cost so I thought I should share some facts. My calls (incoming and outgoing) on land were $1.50 per minute. On the ship it was $5.00 per minute. Last year on Celebrity (also in the Mediterranean) it was half that. The companies use different services so guess that made the difference.

 

We had pre-paid at a discounted rate and we did not go over the allowance so the bill wasn't a heart-stopper but it was still significantly higher than I anticipated.

 

On the other side of the coin, I was able to do a Skype video call to my mother from our cabin. I know she enjoyed being able to see me when I was so far away and my internet time was far less than $5.00 per minute.

[AlaskaGolden]

...

When we travel to Europe, we use a Mobal phone....My calls (incoming and outgoing) on land were $1.50 per minute. On the ship it was $5.00 per minute...

 

Just to clarify...Mobal charged you $5.00 per minute while you were on the ship and $1.50 per minute while you were on land? Princess did not directly charge you for the calls? If so, I would think Princess may have passed-thru charges to your cell phone provider.

 

I'd like to hear what some of the major US carriers are charging for cell phone use while at sea. Also, what about charges for text messages and Blackberry usage (specifically email).

[cherylandtk]

Cell phone access charges onboard ship are determined by your cell phone provider, not the cruiseline. Everyone should check with their provider BEFORE going on a cruise to know what their charges will be. In OP's case that would be Mobal.

 

For most US providers, the charge is 2.49 per minute voice (ATT, Verizon) up to 4.95 (T-mobile).

[donna5]

Is Mobal a a local or regional carrier, never heard of them?

[Wishing on a star]

How would a cell provider know that you are 'on a ship'?

 

How does all of that work?

[snowskier]

Cell phone access charges onboard ship are determined by your cell phone provider, not the cruiseline. Everyone should check with their provider BEFORE going on a cruise to know what their charges will be. In OP's case that would be Mobal.

 

For most US providers, the charge is 2.49 per minute voice (ATT, Verizon) up to 4.95 (T-mobile).

 

Be very careful relying on statements that say ... "for most .... providers". There seems to be an assumption here that everyone has the same plan with these providers. It's like assuming everyone pays the same price for a Princess cruise - we all know that isn't a valid assumption. Cell charges are totally dependent on the plan you have with your provider. The rates stated here are way high for the plan I have with AT&T.

 

A savy consumer will always work with their provider for the best rate, if charges for using a cell phone on the ship are important to them.

[skyking]

How would a cell provider know that you are 'on a ship'?

 

How does all of that work?

 

The network Cellular at sea is the company that offers the service. AT&T customers will pay your standard international rate of 2.49 per minute. When I was in Korea I also paid $2.49 per minute. Just a quick example...Ohhh and a text is .50 per text both in and out.

 

 

One other thing, make sure you have International service activated on your account:)

[No.CaliforniaGirl]

;) Verizon cus. service yesterday said this: for the Panama Canal cruise departing FL 10-31-09 on Island Princess: No cell useage in Panama Canal, No useage in Costa Rica; Yes in Aruba $1.99min, Yes in Columbia $2.89 min and Yes in Jamaica $1.99 min.! HOWEVER, while On-board Island Princess THEIR carrier charges $2.49 per min. Whether on Land or Sea text is 50 cents to send and 5 cents to receive.

[hightownCO]

Was planning on using my ATT phone on upcoming med cruise. Have the costs in each country on land. Also plan on using text at the 50cents per but hadn't thought of being able to text from while on the ship.

 

That's still just 50cents per?

[BayCalif-Ariz R Us]

How would a cell provider know that you are 'on a ship'?

 

How does all of that work?

 

The Ship's cell system is only on when they are in International waters which is about 12 miles out from any land. The provider is MCP and they have roaming agreements with most land based cell companies. You will be billed by your own carrier which for Sprint is $2.49 per minute. When the ships system is not on, they you are working off the land based system which could be anyone.

 

Alan

[Wishing on a star]

Thank you, Alan!

[satxdiver]

There are two cell providers for cruise ships. Each cruise line enters into an agreement with one of them. Wireless Maritime Services (WMS), which is a company formed by AT&T and SeaMobile, and Maritime Communications Partner (MCP) are the two providers. Their cell towers will accept both GMS (AT&T and TMobile) and CDMS (Sprint and Verizon) cell phones. They charge your cell provider for using their cell towers and your cell provider passes the charge onto you with no doubt a markup for their effort. The cruise lines have nothing to do with any of it except they receive a payment from WMS or MCP for allowing the equipment to be installed. Contact your cell provider to find out the costs. By international treaty, the MCP/WMS cell tower can only operate in international waters. They have to turn it off when approaching land. The distance is determined by the country they are approaching. It varies. Most cell phones will display "CellularAtSea" or "CellAtSea" when using the shipboard cell towers but not all!

[satxdiver]

Cell phones use either CDMA or GMS to transmit the data. The two types are NOT compatible. A GMS cell phone will not work on a CDMA cell tower for example. CDMA is used primarily by Sprint and Verizon in the USA and Canada. GMS is used by AT&T and TMobile in the USA and Canada. Most of the world cell providers use GMS. Hence a GMS cell phone is often referred to as a world phone. Cell phones use one of the four frequency bands. In the USA/Canada we use one of the two bands assigned to North America. In Europe they use a different two bands by international agreement. A "world phone" must use GMS and have the capability of using any of the four frequency bands.

 

Pax with a AT&T or TMobile phone will find that their cell will work in other countries provided that they are four band capable.

 

Sprint and Verizon users will have no access in a lot of foreign countries although a number of Caribbean ports along with others are installing CDMA cell towers to accommodate their USA/Canadian travelers.

 

Your cell provider has a list of countries where your cell phone will work and the charges for their use. Your cell provider has to enter into agreement with each of the foreign cell providers so the charges you incur will depend on that agreement. Some will be more expensive and some will be less.

[shellbeachjim]

Cell phones use either CDMA or GMS to transmit the data. The two types are NOT compatible. A GMS cell phone will not work on a CDMA cell tower for example. CDMA is used primarily by Sprint and Verizon in the USA and Canada. GMS is used by AT&T and TMobile in the USA and Canada. Most of the world cell providers use GMS. Hence a GMS cell phone is often referred to as a world phone. Cell phones use one of the four frequency bands. In the USA/Canada we use one of the two bands assigned to North America. In Europe they use a different two bands by international agreement. A "world phone" must use GMS and have the capability of using any of the four frequency bands

 

I think you mean "GSM" for AT&T, T-Mobile and "world phone".....

[jsgrandma]

Just to clarify...Mobal charged you $5.00 per minute while you were on the ship and $1.50 per minute while you were on land? Princess did not directly charge you for the calls? If so, I would think Princess may have passed-thru charges to your cell phone provider.

 

I'd like to hear what some of the major US carriers are charging for cell phone use while at sea. Also, what about charges for text messages and Blackberry usage (specifically email).

 

Last year on the Freedom a text was .20 to receive and (I think) .25 to send on Verizon.

[flintg]

I think you mean "GSM" for AT&T, T-Mobile and "world phone".....

!

 

My cell service is no good outside the US (am about to get one that is!) I purchased what was supposed to be a "world phone card" using a PIN

number. It would not work at any port on the Panama cruise. I wound up

calling my ailing mother using my credit card and had a bill of $42 for a 4.5 minute call! At least the company refunded my money but it still cost me!:eek:

[flhokie]

I have AT&T Wireless and add the international plan when traveling. The text messages on our international trips have been $.50 outgoing and no charge for incoming (as long as we had messages left in our plan).

[Pam in CA]

If you use your cell phone while on the ship, the charges are not put on your onboard account or sent by Princess; they are through your cell phone provider. So be very careful and make sure you know exactly what you'll be charged before having a 30-minute phone call with your kids (or your kids use their cell phones to call their friends.)

[mrcamp]

Who is Mobal - Mobal is a company that sells an international sim card with a O2 UK that works in several countries. They have very high rates, bu tthe thing is that their sim does not expire, compared to other similar providers with much lower rates but whose sims expire after about 9 months of non-use.

 

AFAIK, AT&T, Verison, and SprintPCS charge $2.49/min and Tmobile charges $4.99 a minute while using the ship's tower. Complete highway robbery!

[cruisegal101]

I have AT&T Wireless and add the international plan when traveling. The text messages on our international trips have been $.50 outgoing and no charge for incoming (as long as we had messages left in our plan).

 

 

If you use email/internet from your phone, it can get very expensive if you have not also added an international data plan. I learned this the hard way.;) I've just added it along with the $5.99 per mo international phone plan for my upcoming cruise so I won't be hit with another big bill--20mb for $24.99 through AT&T and it can be cancelled as soon as you return since they are no longer doing any delayed billing. It's much better to pay the $30 than to have a $300 or $400 bill.

[David&Heather]

Not yet cruised with Princess but can you make calls from the phone in your cabin?

The reason I ask is that on our last cruise in the Caribbean it was cheaper to use the cabin phone to make calls to the UK than it was to use our mobiles, certainly worth checking. When in the Med it was cheaper to use mobiles - possibly the reverse applies for US citizens.

Again not sure it applies to US networks but turning off voicemail saves a lot of charges also check if you can buy an international call plan which cuts the costs ao calls.

I know many people like to keep in touch with the outside world whilst on a cruise, I tend to do the opporsite and switch my mobile off unless I need to make a call, it is also lovely to not see an e-mail for 2 weeks:)

[AlaskaGolden]

Not yet cruised with Princess but can you make calls from the phone in your cabin?...

 

Yes, you can use the phone in your cabin to make calls. The last time I checked, it was $4.99 a minute.

[David&Heather]

Yes, you can use the phone in your cabin to make calls. The last time I checked, it was $4.99 a minute.

 

That is expensive, on Ocean Village in the Caribbean earlier this year it was about £1.50 ($2.40) per minute to call the UK which was considerably cheaper than using my mobile.

[sept10dsm]

Last week, I got 2 text messages from Verizon stating how much calls would be from the ship. I thought odd because no one else in my group received the text messages. The cost for phone calls per the message were $2.49 per minute and texts were 50 cents to send and 5 cents to receive. I didn't use the service; this is just what my messages said. We were on the CB sailing Canada/New England. I don't think the destination mattered, since the pricing was for on the ship.

[hawkette64]

Just got my Verizon bill from our Emerald Princess cruise to the Eastern Caribbean. I left my phone off during the day and only turned it on for a few minutes after we were out to sea in the evening to check my text messages. The bill had text international roaming sent 50 cents each, text international roaming received 5 cents each. There were voice messages in my mailbox, but I didn't pick them up til after we returned to Fort Lauderdale and did not make or receive any phone calls. The bill had no additional charges.