Phones and Phoning

[wangel]

I’m leaving on a trans-Atlantic (TA) cruise in 32 days to England on Celebrity. Due to work and other reasons, I need to be phone accessible pretty much all the time. What is the best way to do this? Phone cards? Ship phone? Cell phone? Internet Phone? I’m told that there are some phones such as Tracphone that can be used on some ships at a much better rate? Are there any better phones or phone carriers? Is Verizon better than Sprint? If I contact my phone carrier, can they do anything while I’m on the boat? Would adding international calling while I’m on the cruise make any difference? Someone tell me the scoop on phones and phoning.

[cherylandtk]

Phone access is by satellite and is never guaranteed. Weather and position are far too variable, particularly on a TA. Cost is determined by your carrier, not the cruise ship. The ship is generally treated as a separate 'foreign country' and the cheapest rates are about 2.50 per minute on Verizon and ATT. Using the ship phone varies, but is usually more costly, up to $10 per minute.

 

I have not heard of Tracphone working outside of North America, and have not found recent posts about it working on cruise ships. Internet phone uses internet access, which is cheaper, but there are bandwidth issues. Sometimes it works, sometimes it is blocked. If you are using internet, email is pretty reliable, but not phoning or skype.

Edited March 21, 2014 by cherylandtk

[kitty9]

Calling cards, for the most part, don't work on the ship. Your choices are your cell phone, at around $2.50 a minute or the phone in your cabin, where Celebrity charges $7.95 a minute.

[paul929207]

While you are on the ship you are at their mercy. Availability is not guaranteed

[jcl410]

Check with your cariier as to what discount, if any, you can get by ordering the International plan for your phone;

 

I have Sprint, and there was no discount onboard the ship ($2.49/min).. but I did get reduced rates in the various countries.

 

The ship's cell tower signal is uploaded via one on the Inmarsat satellites. I have never had a problem calling from the ship; even on a transatlantic.

 

Aloha,

 

John

[navybankerteacher]

If you really need (and not just want) to be in daily phone contact, you should consider a satellite phone. The equipment cost and ongoing charges are pretty steep, but if the need is genuine, you should go for it.

 

As a practical matter, email is the most cost-effective way to keep in contact - supplemented, when essential, by ship to shore phone.

[Laughing Angel]

navybankerteacher is correct. If being phone accessible is a must, you should really explore getting a satellite phone. Sure it's pricey, but you'll be reachable 24/7.

[jcl410]

navybankerteacher is correct. If being phone accessible is a must, you should really explore getting a satellite phone. Sure it's pricey, but you'll be reachable 24/7.

 

Well, you can call out any time you want, but to make or receive a call you will have to be up on the top deck with no obstructions around.

 

Aloha,

 

John

[JanineM]

If you really need (and not just want) to be in daily phone contact, you should consider a satellite phone. The equipment cost and ongoing charges are pretty steep, but if the need is genuine, you should go for it.

 

 

 

As a practical matter, email is the most cost-effective way to keep in contact - supplemented, when essential, by ship to shore phone.

 

 

My boss took a satellite phone on a cruise because he felt that the world would literally stop turning if he was out of touch for an hour (I'm commenting about HIM - not the OP). Apparently he would have to to hang over the side of the balcony to get a decent connection. And even then the calls would get dropped pretty frequently.

 

 

The most affordable option may be email, with a phone call if necessary. You could check emails several times a day for about the price of a 3 minute phone call.

[greatam]

If you really need (and not just want) to be in daily phone contact, you should consider a satellite phone. The equipment cost and ongoing charges are pretty steep, but if the need is genuine, you should go for it.

 

As a practical matter, email is the most cost-effective way to keep in contact - supplemented, when essential, by ship to shore phone.

 

NOT nearly as expensive as they used to be. And sat phone usage is cheaper (even through a company) than cell usage on a ship.

 

We have two we own, one I carry whenever I leave the USA. They are both Iridium, which is Motorola, based in Arizona. We have a monthly plan and the calls are just $1.00 per minute unless I am calling to a phone on the Immarsat system or other sat phone system. I also have a modem that I can use with my laptop for everything I may need an internet connection for. Same $1.00 per minute price.

 

They were a true lifesaver during 911. I had no idea where about 28 trucks were in the NYC area. We were able to reach out to our drivers via Qualcomm and get them all safe out to Long Island or our office in the Bronx. Tense couple of days.

 

The one drawback as someone posted-you need clear line of sight to both send and receive calls. So you be spending time on the top deck of the ship to take care of your business.

 

Here is a company that is extremely reputable, has sat phones for rent at a real decent price and their per minute charges are cheaper than cell phones on the ship. We have used their sat phone rental before we purchased (expensive to purchase the phones), were very, very pleased. And I have two regular Mobal cell phones that I also carry with me. It is really, really nice to be able to land in XXX airport or arrive at a port and have a phone that works IMMEDIATELY without having to mess with international calling, roaming, SIM cards and all that stuff with your US cell phone with international roaming. I have been totally amazed where the Mobal phones work. While not cheap, the first time I went to Vietnam for business (10 years ago), I was on the Mekong on a fast speed boat and sat on the little deck at the back calling everyone in the USA with a GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM greeting. It was fun and the calls were crystal clear.

 

http://www.mobal.com/satellite-phone-rental/

Edited March 23, 2014 by greatam

[Laughing Angel]

Well, you can call out any time you want, but to make or receive a call you will have to be up on the top deck with no obstructions around.

 

Aloha,

 

John

 

Thanks for the info, John.

 

A friend of mine with a sat phone did a cruise in the western caribbean last year and said he had no problems getting or receiving calls, even at odd hours. I went back and asked, and he said yes, he did have to go to the top deck. :)

[reedl]

If you have AT&T, sign up for the cruise ship package which lowers the per minute rate to $1 per minute after you use 50 minutes for $30.

 

That is much cheaper than using the phone in the room.

 

Here is the info about that: http://www.att.com/att/global/affordable-world-packages/?cruise

 

Also incoming text messages on AT&T are the same price as your home system, so they are typically free.