Verizon International Plan -- Liberty of the Seas

[jm485]

I currently have an international plan as part of my wireless plan, as I travel internationally for work fairly regularly.

 

I called Verizon today because the plan (allegedly) includes "Cruise Ship Rates" that Verizon says means "you can talk, message and use data on more than 400 cruise ships", including Liberty.

 

The plan is $40 for the month and includes 100 minutes of talk, free incoming and 100 outgoing messages and 100 MB of data, which should cover us for anything we want to do in terms of email while on board and in Bermuda.

 

But there's a part of me that wonders if it would really work on the ship, especially given how much cheaper it is than the WiFi package. I fully understand that my "regular" cell service doesn't apply, but VZ was pretty insistent that it should work on board with this plan. I don't really understand how I'd get reception though, unless the ship has a cellular network connection.

 

Has anyone ever tried this? I'm curious to see if it does really work.

 

Thanks in advance.

[Clarea]

The ship has a cellular tower that connects to the cell network via satellite.

 

The ship turns off it's cell tower when they are in close vicinity to land.

Edited August 6, 2015 by clarea

[jm485]

Thanks, Bob. That makes sense. Since I can use the plan I have in Bermuda also, I think we're good. My MIL is house-sitting for us, and I think she'll feel a lot better if she knows she can reach us even while we're on the ship, but I couldn't figure out how it would work.

[mimmymia]

Thanks, Bob. That makes sense. Since I can use the plan I have in Bermuda also, I think we're good. My MIL is house-sitting for us, and I think she'll feel a lot better if she knows she can reach us even while we're on the ship, but I couldn't figure out how it would work.

 

My husband just inquired about this as well with Verizon. We don't have the international plan with Verizon, but a friend told him once we get to Bermuda we could use the MAGIC Jack app to call home. If we purchase the " cruise ship package" from Verizon I wanted to make sure we could receive and make calls at sea. It's our first time cruising without our children. Just wanted to make sure we could be in contact with them at all times!

 

Kim

[Wildcatfish]

From San Juan any Verizon plan will work since it is a U.S. Commonwealth. After docking on our Liberty cruise I called Mom, and there were no extra charges.

[RocketMan275]

Verizon charges 50 cents for sending a txt and 5 cents for receiving one and that's with just their standard plan. Why spend a lot more for voice? Yes, in an emergency, you might need to talk but the chances of that are remote. Your friends can always just send a txt: "House on fire. Please call." if a true emergency arises. Verizon charges $2.49 per minute on their standard plan for voice.

 

They can also send you a txt everyday: "AOK" if you need reassurance. Cost you $0.35 for a seven day cruise.

Edited August 8, 2015 by RocketMan275

[TeeRick]

I currently have an international plan as part of my wireless plan, as I travel internationally for work fairly regularly.

 

I called Verizon today because the plan (allegedly) includes "Cruise Ship Rates" that Verizon says means "you can talk, message and use data on more than 400 cruise ships", including Liberty.

 

The plan is $40 for the month and includes 100 minutes of talk, free incoming and 100 outgoing messages and 100 MB of data, which should cover us for anything we want to do in terms of email while on board and in Bermuda.

 

But there's a part of me that wonders if it would really work on the ship, especially given how much cheaper it is than the WiFi package. I fully understand that my "regular" cell service doesn't apply, but VZ was pretty insistent that it should work on board with this plan. I don't really understand how I'd get reception though, unless the ship has a cellular network connection.

 

Has anyone ever tried this? I'm curious to see if it does really work.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

I signed up for the same Verizon international plan as you describe. We used it continuously on our Baltics cruise all the way through Russia and back. On ship your phone will be "Roaming" and will use the Royal Caribbean signal. Verizon recognizes it no problem. No additional charge from the ship. On land it will use the local carriers, again no additional charge outside the plan. I was very happy with it. A couple of tips. Initially I had to reset my iPhone 5s network in order for it to find the ship roaming signal. Once I did this it was OK. To call from the ship you need to dial 011,1,area code,number for the US. No +1 for the country code. From shore within countries you do not dial the 011. Instead it is now +1,area code,number for the US. It is the same formula for other country codes. On my phone I used Voice Roaming only. Good for calls and simple texts (no data). To text from the ship you need to create contacts that have the 011,1 prefix when on the ship roaming network. If you are on ship wireless internet ($$ fee) you can just text per usual. We were on the Brilliance and we purchased the ship wireless plan ($300 for 12 days - but $40 diamond discount) and we had the Verizon call plan. The ship wireless did not work in our cabin. We had to go out to the centrum area to get a (slow) signal. We were able to find decent free wireless at most locations on shore. In Bermuda- go to the Frog & Onion Pub in the Royal Dockyard. They will provide a pass code.

[jm485]

Thanks to all for the helpful answers. We're just on the 5 night to Bermuda, but good to know about PR for the future. I think we're going to have to check out the Frog and Onion. I've heard a lot of good things about it and free WiFi seals the deal.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Thanks to all for the helpful answers. We're just on the 5 night to Bermuda, but good to know about PR for the future. I think we're going to have to check out the Frog and Onion. I've heard a lot of good things about it and free WiFi seals the deal.

 

Bermuda sells a wifi plan that is available for the Royal Dockyard. We did not buy this--but, several people we talked to did. I did a quick search and this is a thread from someone from the Dawn that reviewed it.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2132807

 

You might find this useful.

[Thebrundogs]

I currently have an international plan as part of my wireless plan, as I travel internationally for work fairly regularly.

 

I called Verizon today because the plan (allegedly) includes "Cruise Ship Rates" that Verizon says means "you can talk, message and use data on more than 400 cruise ships", including Liberty.

 

The plan is $40 for the month and includes 100 minutes of talk, free incoming and 100 outgoing messages and 100 MB of data, which should cover us for anything we want to do in terms of email while on board and in Bermuda.

 

But there's a part of me that wonders if it would really work on the ship, especially given how much cheaper it is than the WiFi package. I fully understand that my "regular" cell service doesn't apply, but VZ was pretty insistent that it should work on board with this plan. I don't really understand how I'd get reception though, unless the ship has a cellular network connection.

 

Has anyone ever tried this? I'm curious to see if it does really work.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Have you sailed, and did it work well? We are considering adding the Verizon international plan for our Bermuda cruise in 2 weeks. We want to be able to call since we will be leaving our kids--texting would work fine for the older two, but i want to be able to "talk" to our 1.5 year old. Verizon is cheaper than using the ship wifi for FaceTime audio.

[rt1092]

Have you sailed, and did it work well? We are considering adding the Verizon international plan for our Bermuda cruise in 2 weeks. We want to be able to call since we will be leaving our kids--texting would work fine for the older two, but i want to be able to "talk" to our 1.5 year old. Verizon is cheaper than using the ship wifi for FaceTime audio.

 

We used it on the Freedom worked fine even in our Promenade room.

[Thebrundogs]

We used it on the Freedom worked fine even in our Promenade room.

 

Thank you! Did you have to dial anything special first?

[Thebrundogs]

Thank you! Did you have to dial anything special first?

 

Also,were there any charges from the cruise line? I'm finding conflicting info online, but it seems like it would make no sense to have the plan if the cruise line also charged to use their cell network.

[Clarea]

Also,were there any charges from the cruise line? I'm finding conflicting info online, but it seems like it would make no sense to have the plan if the cruise line also charged to use their cell network.

There are no charges from the cruise line to use the cellular at sea nework.

[ccletzgo]

in my past experience, the international plan does not cover the cruise ship rates while going through the ships service. Cruise ship rates for pay as you go voice are $1.79 a min. text: 50¢/message sent

5¢/message received OR.......... you can pay $40 for 100 minutes

100 sent texts

Unlimited received texts* WHILE ON THE CRUISE SHIP.

 

The international travel pricing is for "country's in a list and says nothing about the cruise ship pricing. Its for use the countries towers. $40/mo. 100 minutes, 100 sent texts and unlimited received texts 100 MB Monthly Allowance* most countries are listed.

Edited September 5, 2015 by ccletzgo

[jm485]

We sailed last week and did use the plan while we were on board -- made calls, used the internet and sent texts.

 

Once the ship's cell service became available, we received the standard message from Verizon about available time/texts/data, showing the correct rates per the plan. When we hit Bermuda and then when we left and went back "on" the ship service, we got the same messages.

 

We were not charged any additional fees by the cruise line.

 

Internet service was slow (1X vs. 4G or DSL), but it was the same as if we'd connected through WiFi, as I understand it.

 

The prices quoted by ccletzgo are for "on demand" service. If you sign up for the international plan, you get things included, as long as the cruise line/ship are included. Scroll to the bottom of this page for information:

 

http://www.verizonwireless.com/landingpages/international-travel/

[davelliott]

I just sailed on the Majesty (8/24/15) with my aunt who has Verizon. My uncle can't travel and doesn't use a smart phone, so my aunt added the $40/mo cruise ship plan to her phone. She was able to use her phone all over the ship and even on Cococay to talk with my uncle. I borrowed her phone once to call home and the calls connected quickly and were as good quality as if I had called from land. I know she mentioned that she got 100 minutes, and a text/data allowance, but she only used her phone to make calls.

[rt1092]

No charges from Royal.

I was told (by a verizon rep) to turn off the data on my phone to assure not going over on it.

[dbali]

Has anyone used this on a transatlantic cruise? Will it work in the middle of the ocean without additional charges rom RCL?

[Clarea]

Has anyone used this on a transatlantic cruise? Will it work in the middle of the ocean without additional charges rom RCL?

Whether it will work in the middle of the ocean is a question for Verizon. In any case, as long as you don't have WiFi on, there can be no charges from Royal.

[Thebrundogs]

We used it in the middle of our sea day on the way to Bermuda. Not quite transatlantic, I know, but the reception was perfect with no delay. There were no charges at all.

[Sherri914]

This is odd. I have Verizon as well, and just went to their website to learn more. Under the "cruise ship" plan description, there's a link view the list of cruise lines where this plan is available. Royal isn't listed at all. ??

[MerrylandCruiser]

This is odd. I have Verizon as well, and just went to their website to learn more. Under the "cruise ship" plan description, there's a link view the list of cruise lines where this plan is available. Royal isn't listed at all. ??

 

Search by ship name, e.g., "Royal Caribbean Liberty of the Seas." Just used it on 9/19 LOS sailing to Bermuda. Worked great, but data gets used up quickly, so keep it turned off unless needed. Also, if you have an iPhone, turn off Background Refresh for your apps.

[Sherri914]

Search by ship name, e.g., "Royal Caribbean Liberty of the Seas." Just used it on 9/19 LOS sailing to Bermuda. Worked great, but data gets used up quickly, so keep it turned off unless needed. Also, if you have an iPhone, turn off Background Refresh for your apps.

 

Thanks so much! I'll do that. I'm mainly using it to communicate via text on board w/ another family traveling with us.

 

I plan to turn Cellular Data completely off. I was just looking in settings for the background refresh you mentioned, but I don't see that anywhere. Under the App & iTune Store (in General Settings), I see where I can opt to "use cellular data". Is that what you're talking about? If not, where can I turn off the background refresh?

[reallyitsmema]

This is odd. I have Verizon as well, and just went to their website to learn more. Under the "cruise ship" plan description, there's a link view the list of cruise lines where this plan is available. Royal isn't listed at all. ??

 

You are correct, for some reason, they are not listing Royal Caribbean when you click view cruise ship coverage in this link.

 

http://www.verizonwireless.com/landingpages/international-travel/

 

The ships are listed when you use the interactive trip planner.

 

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/tripplanner/tripplannercontroller

 

You do have to type Royal Caribbean before the name of the ship.

 

We just used our Iphones while on the Jewel. We turned off bluetooth and wifi to save battery, under cellular, I have my roaming set to voice only. We did not do anything else. Calls on the ship are now $1.79/min and texts are 50 cents to send, 5 cents to receive. We did not buy an international plan as we were not planning on using the phone on the ship other than an occasion text home. We did not incur any data charges on the ship with these settings.