Calling the US from the Caribbean

[esper10]

Hi all, first I can't begin to thank Cruise Critics for the information and the help I received from all of you. Now I have one more question. I will be in a cruise to the Caribbean for 2 weeks. In the past I never called home while l'm outside the US. I was wondering if their is an economic way to call. I have Viber out so I don't know if it can help in any way. How do you all make few calls home and how expensive is it. I will post also in Royal Caribbean and princess to get every ones advice. Thanks

[smootsdce]

I don't know much about it as I am not tech savvy but since no one has posted, I will respond. Have you looked into WiFi calling? Several of my friends use that. I am not sure of the details, but that might be something to look into. I know you can use Facebook calling if you are all on there and have your mobiles listed. Hope this helps/or someone much more knowledgeable speaks up. Good luck! :)

 

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[edgee]

I am on 2 week Eclipse cruise in Caribbean now. My wife and I each bought unlimited ship wifi. We put our phones on airplane mode to avoid roaming charges. Then we can make unlimited calls to the U.S. over the internet at no charge just like we are in the U.S. We have Verizon so we cannot text over the internet..I believe with some carriers you can also text over the internet..we just use email and make calls as we wish. Only caveat I will offer is that sometimes the quality if the calls is diminished and there can be a voice delay but overall we have found that it works okay. We have also used facetime from the ship to call family back home.

[Rapsmac]

If you have Verizon I copied this from their web site:

 

TravelPassSM

 

Now your wireless plan travels just like you do. For just $2 a day per line in Mexico and Canada and $10 a day per line in more than 100 countries you can take your domestic talk, text and data allowances with you. You're only charged on the days you use your device abroad. It's an economical way to stay connected while you travel.

[upwarduk]

Although I don't have it myself, I'm told that WhatsApp works on Android like Face time does on an iPhone.

I saw a passenger using it in the Terminal building in Seguenay ( Canada) where there was excellent Wi Fi connection.

He was phoning his family in U.K.

[killsport]

If you need to call a phone number, you can use Google's Hangouts (on iOs) or Hangouts Dialer (android). Free calls to the US (using whatever internet connection you have). So, on the ship, do the following:

1. Turn on airplane mode

2. Turn on wifi and connect to the Celebrity wifi network

3. Download/install Hangouts (or Hangouts Dialer)

4. Use it to make phone calls

 

Note: due to the bandwidth (technically it's the latency), it may not be *perfect*. However, if you need to listen to a conference call, make a few comments, etc, then you'll be fine. If you want to have a debate over the finer points of Rembrandt vs. Bruegel, you might need a faster connection.

 

Now, because you have Viber out, you can also use that to make calls (I think 2 cents / min). Still do 1 & 2 (as above) to avoid getting roaming charges.

 

Enjoy!

[81Zoomie]

Although I don't have it myself, I'm told that WhatsApp works on Android like Face time does on an iPhone.

I saw a passenger using it in the Terminal building in Seguenay ( Canada) where there was excellent Wi Fi connection.

He was phoning his family in U.K.

 

I've used "what's app" to talk and text with wifi in the Caribbean. You can also iMessage between Apple devices. We have TMobile and Intl data and text are included. Worked in every port we visited last week. The crew knows where the best free wifi is in port.

[C 2 C]

I have Ooma internet phone at home and can use the Ooma ap to make calls as if I was at home using my "land" line.

There is no charge for any call to the US or Canada... except for the cost of internet.

[DancerOT]

What'sApp works great over wifi! I have used it while in England to call my parents who were traveling in Israel. It was crazy! No fees at all.

 

Also, different plans have different coverage. You need to call your carrier and verify what coverage you may or may not have. For instance, on my plan, I can call for about 20 cents a minute from certain countries. I don't want to pay, but in an emergency, it has been helpful. I'm not sure where in the Caribbean you are going, but some places are US territories (i.e. St. Thomas and San Juan) and therefore your cell should work.

[shovelrae1959]

We used Facebook Messenger You all have to install the app, then you make sure you are hooked up to wifi. Send messages or call from Messenger, doesn't cost anything. At least it shouldn't. Will check my bill shortly.

 

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[Medic5emt]

Try this link for some extra help.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2428311

[gw2fll]

Not sure of your provider, but we are with Verizon. They have a new plan that is $10 per day per port that you use the phone. You activate the plan before you leave and it uses your home plan, e.g., if you have unlimited minutes and text - when you use the phone in a port you pay $10 for 24 hours and have unlimited minutes and text. Plus you are using your data allowance from home.

 

It worked great for us on our recent cruise. We were not looking for "hot spots" plus our elderly parents could easily call as from their landline (just as if we were at home).

 

Sure, there are probably easier and cheaper options, but for a $10 investment (we spent a total of $30 for a 6 port cruise over 11 days), it was great. Plus for our parents (that don't use a computer, etc.) they were oblivious to it.

 

Just a thought...

[eaglewar]

Just heard a radio ad for Iplum . it is $1/minute anywhere in the world. I have not yet checked out the fine print but that sounds very good.

 

Eaglewar

[TeeRick]

I have Verizon and just came back from a 12 day cruise to the Caribbean. I purchased an unlimited internet package so when I was online on the ship, I used WiFi calling on my iPhone 7 ( also available on IP6 models). Turn it on under Settings>Phone. Then simply put the phone on airplane mode and turn the internet on. I was able to call, and send/receive texts the entire time. On Shore, if I found a free wireless area such as a cafe, and connected, I was also able to place calls and send/receive texts. There was no charge for any of this except the internet package on the ship. It works great! Instead, if you really want to use Cellular (not WiFi) on shore, Verizon does have an international plan with several options. Verizon has changed their international Cellular plan on ship however, and now you pay per minute. Much better to use WiFi calling.

[oroszdb]

If you have wifi in the ship and either att or Verizon turn off your cell service and turn on the wifi, your cell phone will work just fine assuming you have a newer cell phone with the wifi calling enabled, I know iPhone six and later have this function, there are others but not sure which

 

 

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[rwb]

I have Verizon and just came back from a 12 day cruise to the Caribbean. I purchased an unlimited internet package so when I was online on the ship, I used WiFi calling on my iPhone 7 ( also available on IP6 models). Turn it on under Settings>Phone. Then simply put the phone on airplane mode and turn the internet on. I was able to call, and send/receive texts the entire time. On Shore, if I found a free wireless area such as a cafe, and connected, I was also able to place calls and send/receive texts. There was no charge for any of this except the internet package on the ship. It works great! Instead, if you really want to use Cellular (not WiFi) on shore, Verizon does have an international plan with several options. Verizon has changed their international Cellular plan on ship however, and now you pay per minute. Much better to use WiFi calling.

 

Correction: Verizon does NOT support wi-fi calling on the iPhone 6. Only on the iPhone 6S/6SE and the 7.

 

Also, to be precise, the iPhone does not text over w-fi. SMS texting uses the cellular network. You were undoubtedly sending and receiving messages rather than texts, using the iMessage function to communicate with other IOS devices.

[oroszdb]

Correction: Verizon does NOT support wi-fi calling on the iPhone 6. Only on the iPhone 6S/6SE and the 7.

 

 

 

Also, to be precise, the iPhone does not text over w-fi. SMS texting uses the cellular network. You were undoubtedly sending and receiving messages rather than texts, using the iMessage function to communicate with other IOS devices.

 

 

Actually according to vzw wifi calling works with "6" and later though there are reports of it working on 5s after iOS 9.3 was released

 

 

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[rwb]

duplicate

Edited December 10, 2016 by rwb

[rwb]

Actually according to vzw wifi calling works with "6" and later though there are reports of it working on 5s after iOS 9.3 was released

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

I can guarantee that it is not supported for US customers on the iPhone 6 or below as of this past week. The Verizon website makes that clear, last I checked. If you look for "HD Calling" as Verizon refers to it, and look for "supported devices", only the 6S/6SE and 7 are listed. I have both a 6 and a 7 with Verizon and only the 7 can make a wi-fi call. Both phones are on IOS 10.1.1

Edited December 10, 2016 by rwb

[TeeRick]

Actually according to vzw wifi calling works with "6" and later though there are reports of it working on 5s after iOS 9.3 was released

 

 

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I had an iPhone 5s with the latest software update and WiFi calling was NOT available.

[Duanerice1]

This is great news. I never knew until I started researching calling packages for my next cruise. We each get 90 minutes of internet and never even use close to that so we'll have plenty of minutes for calls if needed.

 

Also will be at St Thomas but hear these calls aren't free since Verizon doesn't have a tower there. Any experience with USVI and calls or texting on Verizon?

Thanks

Edited December 10, 2016 by Duanerice1

[oroszdb]

Never mind lol

Edited December 10, 2016 by oroszdb

[Lsimon]

I see lots of answers that, depending on your needs, might be more expensive or more complicated than what you need. First thing you should do is check your mobile phone service provider's website for their "international roaming" rates for each of the islands you'll be traveling to, and also the rate for making calls from your ship at sea. Check the rates with and without some sort of calling package. If you can't find the information then call customer service to ask about them. Be sure to check the rates for each island as it sometimes varies.

 

If you're just planning a couple very short calls to check in then this is often the best way to do it. Be sure that your provider has your line enabled for "international roaming" or you phone might not work outside the country at all.

 

For example: On AT&T Mexico is $1/min if not already included in your plan; US Possessions (Puerto Rick, St. Thomas and other USVI Islands) are included in your base plan at no extra charge; other Caribbean Islands are $3/min. Calls from the ship are $2.50/min on your cell phone. There are various packages that can decrease these rates and might be more economical depending on how much calling you'll be doing.

Edited December 10, 2016 by Lsimon

[esper10]

I have Verizon and iPhone 6 I called them and they said if you only need to use your phone for calling home for $15.00 you can get 100 minutes of calling from the Caribbean or $25.00 for more minutes. In Mexico you can pay $2.00 per day if you prefer that. You will need to call them before you go. They can email you more details on it. I did not look into this in detail but I will before I go it works for me.