What happens if there's an emergency at home?

[seattleslew]

What are the options if I'm on a 19-day Trans-Pacific cruise (two stops:  Tahiti and Hawaii) and there's a serious emergency at home?  Does What's App work?  Ship to Shore phone call? Anything else?

[Potstech]

There is a number your family can call that will send a message to the ship. They will then notify you adout the situation.  Contact your TA or Princess for that information for your ship.

Edited January 18, 2019 by Potstech

[jlp20]

Cell phone and email?

[satxdiver]

If you have bought internet minutes, you can check your email online at your convenience.  People can call you on your cell phone or vice versa but will have to pay your provider for the time used and it is not cheap.  You have to turn it on and not put it in airplane mode to send or receive a call.  Each cell provider has their own rate chart.  

Edited January 18, 2019 by satxdiver

[floridalover5623]

3 hours ago, satxdiver said:

If you have bought internet minutes, you can check your email online at your convenience.  People can call you on your cell phone or vice versa but will have to pay your provider for the time used and it is not cheap.  You have to turn it on and not put it in airplane mode to send or receive a call.  Each cell provider has their own rate chart.  

I've often wondered, if you leave your cell phone on to receive calls and don't answer it when it rings, would there be a charge? 

It seems to me that there would be. 

[satxdiver]

Some cellular carriers will charge you for the call even if it was not answered.  However this is not the biggest problem.  If you leave your cell phone active (not in airplane mode) then the aps on the phone will cause automatic data downloads which can be very expensive.  Look at your monthly bill sometime and see how much data you have used that month.  Also some carriers will charge to receive a text so that if you have people that regularly text you and do not know you are on a cruise ship, your monthly bill will go up.  

 

We were on a cruise many years ago.  On the lido deck we overheard one teenage boy telling another one "hey we can text".  We later saw several teenage boys running around the ship with their cell phones in hand texting madly.  I imagine a few parents were in for a shock when they got home. 

[skynight]

Here is a list of phone numbers for the fleet. You also have e-mail.

https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/onboard/in_touch.jsp

[hllwdcruiser]

7 hours ago, seattleslew said:

What are the options if I'm on a 19-day Trans-Pacific cruise (two stops:  Tahiti and Hawaii) and there's a serious emergency at home?  Does What's App work?  Ship to Shore phone call? Anything else?

Do get the internet package, especially since it is so reasonable now. Whats App does work, as well as Skype and FaceTime (if you have an iPhone or iPad). We stay in constant touch with family members via email, iMessage, WhatsApp and FaceTime.

In addition, we also give everyone the emergency phone numbers for Princess and our ship just in case they can't get hold of us via the aforementioned methods. 

Edited January 18, 2019 by hllwdcruiser

[h20skibum]

Almost five years ago, we were on a Panama Canal cruise, and we needed to keep in touch back home because of some family members medical issues. We used email, and rationed our minutes to make our per minute plan last the duration of the cruise. 

 

In addition, we used our cell phone while onboard for calls and texts.  For an idea of the cost, For an extra $128 on our cell phone bill, we had 21 minutes of calls,

106 outgoing and 158 incoming texts. 

 

I think, overall, it was less than what ship to shore would be. 

 

[Oak City Man]

Check with your carrier.  AT&T offers cruise packages with reasonable one time charges that allow you to use your phone on board.

 

$50 gets you 50 minutes voice and unlimited texting.

 

$100 gets you 200 mb of data, unlimited voice and unlimited texting.

 

These packages are good for 30 days.

 

 

Edited January 18, 2019 by Oak City Man

[1Gizmo]

4 hours ago, floridalover5623 said:

I've often wondered, if you leave your cell phone on to receive calls and don't answer it when it rings, would there be a charge? 

It seems to me that there would be. 

Once the phone is turned on and hits a tower, any thing that is waiting will download to your phone. Charges start then and roaming added if out of net work. Happened to me in the  Bahamas.

[neverbeenhere]

If there is an emergency at home, I can't do anything about it because I'm on a cruise.  

[tonit964]

Our family knows that when one of us is on a cruise and something happens at home, we'll wait until they're back. We don't want to put the family member thats on a ship (maybe days from a port in the middle of the ocean) in that kind of helpless agony when they can't do anything at all about it.

 

I know that's not what the OP was asking but it's just another perspective.

[floridalover5623]

Unless there's a funeral that you'll miss, there's nothing else you can do about any emergency when on the ship.

Tell me all about it when I get home. 

[h20skibum]

7 minutes ago, tonit964 said:

We don't want to put the family member thats on a ship (maybe days from a port in the middle of the ocean) in that kind of helpless agony when they can't do anything at all about it

 

That was our situation.  We were a couple days from the nearest port, and started looking at getting off the ship and flying back from South America.  Fortunately, things resolved by the time we made port. Just glad we were able to keep up on things. 

[seattleslew]

Thanks for all the valuable replies.  This will be the longest cruise we've ever taken ... and our emergency would be life & death.  I would need to be involved for decisions, but obviously know that I couldn't fly out until Tahiti or Hawaii.  No one else can make these decisions about our daughter so it's not a frivolous question.  We embark knowing things will be fine at home (they always have been), but I HAVE to know what my options are in case of unspeakable tragedy while we're gone.  We're rolling the dice because I need to have a life, too.

[memoak]

Just make sure you have internet access and check your e-mails like once every few days - it will be fine

[Potstech]

Make sure you have insurance that would cover costsand expenses if something does happen.  Princess is not responsible for refunds or travel expenses if somethingdoes happen.

[echoshipmate]

We have used Skype while on board. My wife checks in with her ageing mother who lives by herself in the UK, nearly everyday. All you need is an internet connection and some pre loaded money on Skype. You can dial a landline or a cell phone for pennies a minute. Was a comforting solution for us and her mom. We have used this on many cruises, longest was 45 days, many 20 or more. Hope this puts your mind at ease.

[seattleslew]

Thank you especially to Skibum, Memoak and Echoship.  I feel better already.  So many of you really get it!  And for the record, daughter fell in her stateroom a day out of Juneau and we had to medically disembark there.  She was Life-Flighted home for the flight's cost of $26,000;  PCL Juneau agent was fabulous, Bartlett Memorial in Juneau was fabulous, PCL itself was fabulous and we never paid a dime, thanks to our elite Platinum insurance, but our file was an inch thick!   NEVER NEVER NEVER travel without GOOD insurance.

[hllwdcruiser]

1 hour ago, echoshipmate said:

We have used Skype while on board. My wife checks in with her ageing mother who lives by herself in the UK, nearly everyday. All you need is an internet connection and some pre loaded money on Skype. You can dial a landline or a cell phone for pennies a minute. Was a comforting solution for us and her mom. We have used this on many cruises, longest was 45 days, many 20 or more. Hope this puts your mind at ease.

 

We do this as well. I have an elderly mother that does not have a cell phone, computer etc - we put money in our Skype account and this enables us to call her landline when we have traveled to Europe or are on a ship. 

[satxdiver]

9 hours ago, seattleslew said:

Thanks for all the valuable replies.  This will be the longest cruise we've ever taken ... and our emergency would be life & death.  I would need to be involved for decisions, but obviously know that I couldn't fly out until Tahiti or Hawaii.  No one else can make these decisions about our daughter so it's not a frivolous question.  We embark knowing things will be fine at home (they always have been), but I HAVE to know what my options are in case of unspeakable tragedy while we're gone.  We're rolling the dice because I need to have a life, too.

 

I fully understand your situation and sympathize with it.  Cell phones using the ship's cell tower and ship internet access sounds like your best bet.  Consult your cell carrier for any rate plans they may offer.  If possible tell someone at home the phone number to contact the ship in case of emergency.  I hope you have an uneventful and enjoyable cruise. 

[Greg4502]

Another thought, would be written instructions/permission, notarized, a medical directive.  If it is a life or death situation, this may be needed. As you can not count on 100% of the time that the phone call, email will come through. Depends on where the ship is, for satellite connection. You could miss the call.

 

[Clownfish Cruiser]

15 hours ago, seattleslew said:

Thanks for all the valuable replies.  This will be the longest cruise we've ever taken ... and our emergency would be life & death.  I would need to be involved for decisions, We embark knowing things will be fine at home (they always have been), but I HAVE to know what my options are in case of unspeakable tragedy while we're gone.  We're rolling the dice because I need to have a life, too.

I understand completely! Sounds like you’ve been given the contact options. I just hope you have a wonderful cruise and all goes well at home! 

[Host CJSKIDS]

I’m currently at sea and got a text yesterday that my 52 year old brother suffered from a heart attack. 

I’ve been using FaceTime,, Facebook messenger,  duo and texts to keep in touch with everyone.