Cell phone at sea question

[cruzemaven]

Will I be able to receive and make calls onboard The Eurodam, while we are at sea? AT&T is our provider. Most of the ships we have been on have Cellular At Sea which is compatible with our phone...not sure about The Eurodam. Would appreciate any info in this ...thanks.

[blizzardboy]

Yes, but check the rates. Extremely expensive!

[Boytjie]

It should be similar to what you have experienced before.

 

From HAL's website:

Mobile Phone Service

 

Holland America, through an agreement with Wireless Maritime Service, proudly offers an advanced roaming network onboard all Holland America ships allowing you to make and receive calls, send and receive text messages and access emails and surf the web while at sea using your own mobile phone and telephone number.

The Wireless Maritime Service system is available for use when the ship is in international waters. When user’s phones pick the shipboard signal, their phone will usually display “cellular at sea”, “Ship Roam”or “901-18”. Depending on the handset and the carrier the user may be required to select “Roam” on the handset.

For frequently asked questions about cell phone service on board, please go to

www.wmsatsea.com

.

For questions about your service or about billing, please contact your home network customer service.

 

Some of the cruise lines using WMS are: Carnival, Princess, HAL, P&O, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Disney, NCL, Crystal, Azamara etc.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Boytjie

[POA1]

Will I be able to receive and make calls onboard The Eurodam, while we are at sea? AT&T is our provider. Most of the ships we have been on have Cellular At Sea which is compatible with our phone...not sure about The Eurodam. Would appreciate any info in this ...thanks.

Yes. Make sure you check with your carrier to ensure that you can use international roaming. You'll probably want to shut down roaming cellular data while you're on the ship. It's very, very expensive. For a while, AT&T offered a discounted per minute rate on certain ships. It was a lot like the old Canada / Mexico plan where you paid $4.95 to add the service.

 

Here's the relevant page, in a mobile friendly format:

 

http://www.att.com/esupport/article.jsp?sid=KB66571&cv=820

 

AT&T has a partnership with Royal Caribbean for reduced rates. I kinda think that cruise ship roaming is $2.50/min on other ships.

Edited October 9, 2015 by POA1

[frankc98376]

As I recall on Westerdam in Alaska on T-Mobile was about 7.95 a minute. I believe AT&T is less

Edited October 9, 2015 by frankc98376

[POA1]

As I recall on Westerdam in Alaska on T-Mobile was about 7.95 a minute

Yes sir. T-Mobile has great roaming rates all over the world, but their cruise ship rates blow chunks. (Totally bringing back an 80s phrase.)

 

It's $5.99 a minute on pretty much all HAL ships. Step off the boat in Canada or Mexico, and it's free with your plan - as is data.

 

Go here if you are a T-Mobile customer:

 

http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html

 

Scroll down until you see the cruise ship search box.

Edited October 9, 2015 by POA1

[frankc98376]

Yes sir. T-Mobile has great roaming rates all over the world, but their cruise ship rates blow chunks. (Totally bringing back an 80s phrase.)

 

It's $5.99 a minute on pretty much all HAL ships. Step off the boat in Canada or Mexico, and it's free with your plan - as is data.

 

Go here if you are a T-Mobile customer:

 

http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html

 

Scroll down until you see the cruise ship search box.

 

Data $15/MB?? OMG :eek:

[POA1]

Data $15/MB?? OMG :eek:

Yep. Crazy expensive.

[frankc98376]

I always wait till we are docked to turn my voice and data on. Twice in Alaska still said "Cellular at Sea"- evidently wasn't switched off right away when we docked. Be careful and always double check the carrier at the top.

[Harry1954]

While the rate at sea for ATT is expensive, if you need to communicate with our office as I do sometimes, it is imperative that it be available. Thus, it is good that it is available.

 

Unfortunately, when the ship is in certain areas, one doesnt have service.

 

while the rate is high, if it is for business purposes, then it is much easier tg accept.

 

harry

[blizzardboy]

With the new HAL internet packages coming on board, you might add a VOIP app (Voice Over Internet Protocol) to your smart phone, although many have "Wi-Fi calling" apps loaded from the factory. The cost per minute using HAL Wi-Fi will probably be substantially lower than the WMS cellular rates. Check with your tech guru about which VOIP plan they recommend. You've been seeing them advertised for home use for years. It's the same method ATT U-verse, Comcast, and other cable providers use for home phone service.

[igraf]

I tried to place WiFi voice calls from various hotels while vacationing in Europe with mixed results. It works in theory, but in practice few hotels had a WiFi data stream fast enough to support voice calls. I usually had to stand in the lobby next to the WiFi point to get it to work, if it worked at all.

 

I imagine that a ship will be worse than a hotel. WiFi calling is great when it works, but don't count on it. Also, WiFi calling will consume your data allotment rather quickly.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

 

With the new HAL internet packages coming on board, you might add a VOIP app (Voice Over Internet Protocol) to your smart phone, although many have "Wi-Fi calling" apps loaded from the factory. The cost per minute using HAL Wi-Fi will probably be substantially lower than the WMS cellular rates. Check with your tech guru about which VOIP plan they recommend. You've been seeing them advertised for home use for years. It's the same method ATT U-verse, Comcast, and other cable providers use for home phone service.

Edited October 10, 2015 by igraf

[blizzardboy]

They're supposed to be bringing the equipment out of the stone age. Speeds are supposed to accommodate streaming video so voice shouldn't be a problem. It's still a crap shoot as not all ships have been upgraded.

Edited October 10, 2015 by blizzardboy

[igraf]

Whatever they have has to be divided among 2000 passengers and 1000 crew. Streaming video, if that ever happens, may end up being like cell phone service on a ship: it might be available but I am not going to like the cost!

 

Try the alternative of putting away your computers and smartphones for a few days and enjoy the cruise. TeDaki said it well in the excellent Voyage of the Vikings review when it was mentioned that passengers were staying on the ship to use their iPads rather than going ashore to visit Greenland!

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

They're supposed to be bringing the equipment out of the stone age. Speeds are supposed to accommodate streaming video so voice shouldn't be a problem. It's still a crap shoot as not all ships have been upgraded.

[LewiLewi]

Will I be able to receive and make calls onboard The Eurodam, while we are at sea? AT&T is our provider. Most of the ships we have been on have Cellular At Sea which is compatible with our phone...not sure about The Eurodam. Would appreciate any info in this ...thanks.

Be very careful using this service. We are also with AT&T and had a bill of close to $1,000.00 for "roaming" charges. We only made two calls but hubby played some games on his cell phone, not realizing that he was being charged. No one told us what to "shut off" or leave on.

[cruzemaven]

Be very careful using this service. We are also with AT&T and had a bill of close to $1,000.00 for "roaming" charges. We only made two calls but hubby played some games on his cell phone, not realizing that he was being charged. No one told us what to "shut off" or leave on.

 

 

Thanks...will contact AT&T and find out what the charges will be.

[Corinne Marie]

I have At and T and have only used my phone in st thomas or san juan otherwise it goes in the safe on the ship. No need to stress about cost of minutes on a ship.

[chengkgoingalaska]

Yes sir. T-Mobile has great roaming rates all over the world, but their cruise ship rates blow chunks. (Totally bringing back an 80s phrase.)

 

It's $5.99 a minute on pretty much all HAL ships. Step off the boat in Canada or Mexico, and it's free with your plan - as is data.

 

Go here if you are a T-Mobile customer:

 

http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html

 

Scroll down until you see the cruise ship search box.

 

Learnt a lot. Thanks!

[creel5857]

for those who are tech savy with cell phones.......

 

while traveling southbound Alaskan cruise.....will you accidently get any extra charges ion cell phone f you keep your phone cut completely off while on ship and just use it to check texts and phone calls while you are in port .....I know my plans covers unlimited in US and Canada but wondering if just cutting phone off while on ship will avoid any extra charges?? thanks

[DaveOKC]

for those who are tech savy with cell phones.......

 

while traveling southbound Alaskan cruise.....will you accidently get any extra charges ion cell phone f you keep your phone cut completely off while on ship and just use it to check texts and phone calls while you are in port .....I know my plans covers unlimited in US and Canada but wondering if just cutting phone off while on ship will avoid any extra charges?? thanks

 

Not certain I understand your entire question, but I always turn off my cell phone when we leave port and place it in the safe. I take it out and use it when in US or Canadian ports (I have a Canada plan) and never have any extra charges.