What do you feel is the best way to communicate with those back at home?

[ricew001]

I'm with the other poster - it's my choice to stay connected. We have sick family members and elderly pets. Last summer I got the cheap social plan ($5/day) and used Facebook Messenger. I called from the room on the cruise before. Wow. Let me tell you those minutes tick by FAST!!!

You have a young child. It's understandable you want to stay connected. Everything will be fine and you'll have a great cruise!

[bar1068]

I use Facebook messenger. I can talk to my family and friends for cheap. Somehow it doesn't ruin my vacation in doing so

 

Pretty odd how that happens is it not?

[serene56]

I'm with the other poster - it's my choice to stay connected. We have sick family members and elderly pets. Last summer I got the cheap social plan ($5/day) and used Facebook Messenger. I called from the room on the cruise before. Wow. Let me tell you those minutes tick by FAST!!!

You have a young child. It's understandable you want to stay connected. Everything will be fine and you'll have a great cruise!

 

 

just curious but if it was a real emergency-- what would you do? its not like you can fly home immediatly

 

 

My parenting advice-- we are taking two teens on a cruise in August. Gave them the option of going on a cruise or staying home to chat with friends-- its a week. They can use their phones for pictures thats about all. I dont want them sitting off to the side chatting when there is a whole ship waiting to be explored or something fun is going on

[coevan]

" its not like you can fly home immediatly"

usually within 24 hours, only longer cruises have 2 days in a row at sea.

[firemanbobswife]

I've been on several cruises on different ships using mainly the Value network plan, and for various reasons had to make phone calls from the ship and have mostly been successful. Was just on the Sunshine last month with Value plan had some personal business I needed to address and no issue with wifi calling from my iphone, which is how I make the calls I've made. We've made calls from the handful of TA's we've been on as those were during our grand-kids birthdays, and we called them for bday wishes, plus they get a kick of talking with us "on the big ship from the big ocean"!! Thing that is really really odd, we've stayed connected for various reasons back home and STILL somehow managed to enjoy our cruises!!

 

I stay connected too and always have a fantastic time. Even my last cruise when I was busy running around. Wish my mom and sister would have had it as I could hardly find where they were so we didn’t spend a lot of time together. I did try to call once using the Premium plan on Conquest but it was so slow it got nowhere. I had upgraded from Value to Premium on the ship and since there was no difference they gave me a refund. I think it just depends on how the internet is working at the time. Or maybe it’s different when you don’t try calling within an app, I’m not sure.

[Purvis1231]

I give them the emergency contact number for the ship.

 

If it is not an emergency, I do not want to hear from anyone at home when on vacation.

 

Everyone can catch up when we get home.

 

Agreed!

[tap_out]

My friends were on the Glory the week before I was (they did a B2B). When they were in Miami they tried to FB call me, WhatsApp call me and I think even Viber call me. Couldn’t get it to work. They aren’t from the US so didn’t have cell data and were going solely off the Social wi-fi Package.

 

I don’t know if calls work with the Premium plan or not, I haven’t tried it. In a lot of cases the internet is so painfully slow that it takes forever to even get a page to load so getting a call to go through may be pretty near impossible. Can you just text their caretaker?

 

Thanks for that info.

 

We will be on the horizon which is supposed to have the new internet set up. Which has received mixed reviews from what I can tell.

 

Seems like I am getting some mixed signals from what I am reading on Facebook messenger. If you were able to call what plan did you have?

[ParrotRob]

You can not send or receive texts at sea, there is no tower. The 50 cent texts is from land.

 

Dude, why do you continually give completely wrong advice pertaining to comms at sea? You absolutely CAN send and receive texts from nowhere even close to land. Your phone absolutely can (and will) utilize the voice and data cellular tower on board the ship.

[coevan]

I thought he was referring to using T-Mobile, not Cellular at Sea. He also was alluding to not spending a fortune. Of course you can call and text at sea. I have been on 50' boats in the Caribbean with fast internet, TV, and phone services.

[Titan_Cruiser]

My wife and I cruise once a year without our sons. When we do we like the ability to communicate with them. We always buy the Social plan (pre-buy to save a little). Then we use iMessage because we all have iPhones.

 

We also have WhatsApp on each phone. With this app we have been able to make voice calls. There is a slight lag that you will have to get used to but it works. On our last cruise we had a 20 minute conversation with one of our sons.

 

Also with WhatsApp I can text with Android users if needed. I have one guy that works for me that knows he can text me if there is an absolute emergency. He doesn't bother me unless necessary but it allows me to relax a little more knowing he could get in touch if things get really bad.

[bobandsherry]

I thought he was referring to using T-Mobile, not Cellular at Sea. He also was alluding to not spending a fortune. Of course you can call and text at sea. I have been on 50' boats in the Caribbean with fast internet, TV, and phone services.

But you wrote:

 

You can not send or receive texts at sea, there is no tower. The 50 cent texts is from land.

 

So you pay 50 cents per text when on land? You must be a fool then. You just plain stated something that was absolutely wrong and now trying to back pedal... Nice.....

 

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

[waterwatcher]

I give them the emergency contact number for the ship.

 

If it is not an emergency, I do not want to hear from anyone at home when on vacation.

 

Everyone can catch up when we get home.

 

 

I agree. Except one time we took grandson and nephew and midway through cruise they called home on the room phone to let their parents know they were ok. Very minimal charge for one minute.

[cruisinqt]

I use Facebook messenger. I can talk to my family and friends for cheap. Somehow it doesn't ruin my vacation in doing so

 

I know right? I hate how some cruisers try to make other cruisers feel guilty for making a simple phone call or text to a friend or loved one while on vacation. Like I’m a bad person or a bad parent because my kids and I have a WiFi plan. :rolleyes: Geez get a life people. Believe it or not, I don’t “disconnect while on vacation” and I still have a blast. And I will continue to do so despite the snarky little comments directed at myself and others who don’t disconnect.

[ParrotRob]

I thought he was referring to using T-Mobile, not Cellular at Sea. He also was alluding to not spending a fortune. Of course you can call and text at sea. I have been on 50' boats in the Caribbean with fast internet, TV, and phone services.

 

Who cares what carrier he's using? You flat out said "you can't text at sea". That's a direct quote.

 

Just to reiterate what we've told you a million times, there very much IS a cellular tower on the ship. Just because it's a cellular-at-sea and not Verizon or t-mobile doesn't mean it works any differently. Your phone connects to it, then it connects to the rest of the world. Your phone doesn't care (or even know) that you're at sea.

[Donh44]

I give them the emergency contact number for the ship.

 

If it is not an emergency, I do not want to hear from anyone at home when on vacation.

 

Everyone can catch up when we get home.

 

 

I agree 100%. I am on vacation and don't want to be in contact with anyone.

[lizardhowson]

I give them the emergency contact number for the ship.

 

If it is not an emergency, I do not want to hear from anyone at home when on vacation.

 

Everyone can catch up when we get home.

 

Now, where is that “Like” button ?

 

With our cruise coming up and having teenaged kids, the thought of a few hundred dollar phone bill is scary.

 

Between Facebook, texts, iMessages and whatever else, I have two questions:

 

1- What have you found to be the best and easiest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

2- What have you found is the cheapest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

 

Thanks for all in the input...........

 

 

Question accurately answered at 9:38 AM in the 1st thread

Edited June 25, 2018 by lizardhowson

[coevan]

But you wrote:

 

 

 

So you pay 50 cents per text when on land? You must be a fool then. You just plain stated something that was absolutely wrong and now trying to back pedal... Nice.....

 

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

 

 

 

Yes, exactly, there is no cell towers at sea, Cellular at Sea works through a satellite, not back pedaling and no reason to. He also said he did not want to spend much. AT&T has a cruise package, I think it's $100 for talk, text, and very limited data.

[ParrotRob]

Yes, exactly, there is no cell towers at sea, Cellular at Sea works through a satellite, not back pedaling and no reason to. He also said he did not want to spend much. AT&T has a cruise package, I think it's $100 for talk, text, and very limited data.

 

For the hundredth time, yes there most certainly is a cell tower, right there on your ship. And I have a news flash for you - many land-based cellular towers in remote areas also communicate directly to satellites. Some communicate by microwave. That doesn't make them any less cell towers just because their uplink is by satellite.

[Towel Critter]

Ditto. What everyone else has said. FB messenger.

[bobandsherry]

Yes, exactly, there is no cell towers at sea, Cellular at Sea works through a satellite, not back pedaling and no reason to. He also said he did not want to spend much. AT&T has a cruise package, I think it's $100 for talk, text, and very limited data.

 

Let's see, based on my suggestion it cost me $5, yep 5 whole dollars, to be in touch for a week on my last cruise. About the same as one day of the lowest priced wifi plan on the ship. That seems to meet the requirement of not spending much.

 

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

[sturderick]

Here comes all the parenting advice.....

 

Right. I think it's so rude when someone asks a simple question for everyone to add why they don't want to be contacted on a cruise. Why even bother to respond if you can't be helpful or why bother to comment if it's a snarky remark. It really doesn't matter why someone wants to be connected since it's THEIR vacation!!

 

To answer the question, Facebook messenger is a fantastic way to stay in touch with those at home for WHATEVER REASON you want.

[Badfinger]

With our cruise coming up and having teenaged kids, the thought of a few hundred dollar phone bill is scary.

 

Between Facebook, texts, iMessages and whatever else, I have two questions:

 

1- What have you found to be the best and easiest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

2- What have you found is the cheapest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

 

Thanks for all in the input...........

 

Face to face...on the day before and the day after your cruise. And the only emergency I want to hear about is one I could do something about from the ship. I don’t want to hear that granny is in the hospital with a broken hip, or cousin eddies car was stolen, or the dog died.

Edited June 26, 2018 by Badfinger

[Sebleo]

With our cruise coming up and having teenaged kids, the thought of a few hundred dollar phone bill is scary.

 

Between Facebook, texts, iMessages and whatever else, I have two questions:

 

1- What have you found to be the best and easiest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

2- What have you found is the cheapest way to keep in touch with those at home?

 

 

Thanks for all in the input...........

 

I buy the social plan and use Facebook messenger to talk to mom and check on the little one. We message and sometimes can get video chat to work. Well, I think it always works but I am usually outside when we talk and the wind prevents us from hearing each other. I have never had an issue with messages not going through or being delayed.

[sanmarcosman]

I don't have feelings for telecom, I have thoughts. You've gotten excellent advice here.

[mgasaway]

Facebook Messenger. Used it almost every night so my granddaughter could send a good night voice message to her mom.