mobile phone question

[kw1966]

My phone provider says that on my Baltic cruise I can use my mobile phone in all destinations apart from st petersburg, russia.

My question is this , If I make a call within the port (but not on the ship)can I still be directed through the ships phone system or not.

Or is it best not to use phone in port at all. Im a new cruiser and dont want to get hefty charges that im unaware of.

[tailspintom]

19 minutes ago, kw1966 said:

My phone provider says that on my Baltic cruise I can use my mobile phone in all destinations apart from st petersburg, russia.

My question is this , If I make a call within the port (but not on the ship)can I still be directed through the ships phone system or not.

Or is it best not to use phone in port at all. Im a new cruiser and dont want to get hefty charges that im unaware of.

I would be less concerned about picking up the ship's wireless antenna in the port than being charged some substantial roaming fees in the countries.  Just check the actual charges that will be incurred in each country.  Your provider should have them listed on their site according to the plan you have purchased.

[satxdiver]

When the ship nears a port (~12 miles and leaves international waters) they have to turn off the ship cell tower.  Your cell phone display will indicate if it is connected to the ship cell tower.  When in port feel free to use your cell phone according to your cell provider's agreement.  Turn it on as soon as you enter port and call away. 

[kw1966]

1 hour ago, tailspintom said:

I would be less concerned about picking up the ship's wireless antenna in the port than being charged some substantial roaming fees in the countries.  Just check the actual charges that will be incurred in each country.  Your provider should have them listed on their site according to the plan you have purchased.

Thanks for the reply. I can us my phone as if i was back in the U.K.  within the European union , Russia is the only destination that I will be visiting that is not , but thanks for your concern.

[kw1966]

1 hour ago, satxdiver said:

When the ship nears a port (~12 miles and leaves international waters) they have to turn off the ship cell tower.  Your cell phone display will indicate if it is connected to the ship cell tower.  When in port feel free to use your cell phone according to your cell provider's agreement.  Turn it on as soon as you enter port and call away. 

Thanks for that information , just one less thing I have to worry about.

[Steelers36]

26 minutes ago, kw1966 said:

Thanks for the reply. I can us my phone as if i was back in the U.K.  within the European union , Russia is the only destination that I will be visiting that is not , but thanks for your concern.

Agree.  We visited Europe this May/June and I purchased Orange SIM cards in Belgium.  They were good in the EU/Schengen countries and when on the Baltic cruise part of out trip, only St Petersburg was excluded.  We left our phones in Airplane Mode for the two days and may have connected to Wifi when possible or interested.  But pretty much waited until back on ship and connected to Medallion Net again.

 

[antsp]

You can use your phone onboard as long as you are in dock or near to the coast, you can also manually select networks to avoid the ships network if it happens to be on. Obviously roaming charges may apply depending on your network 

[Haboob]

If you plan to purchase an unlimited-minutes onboard internet plan, ask your cellphone provider about "WiFi calling", which uses the ship's internet uplink instead of it's cell tower for both incoming and outgoing calls and texts.

 

Generally speaking, if your phone and your provider support the feature (and most now do) calls and texts are billed as if you were sitting in your front room at home.  The only remaining question would be whether you actually get audio-quality connectivity from the ship's internet while in the Baltic -- not a sure thing.

[snowskier]

2 hours ago, Haboob said:

If you plan to purchase an unlimited-minutes onboard internet plan, ask your cellphone provider about "WiFi calling", which uses the ship's internet uplink instead of it's cell tower for both incoming and outgoing calls and texts.

 

Generally speaking, if your phone and your provider support the feature (and most now do) calls and texts are billed as if you were sitting in your front room at home.  The only remaining question would be whether you actually get audio-quality connectivity from the ship's internet while in the Baltic -- not a sure thing.

 

Internet is internet,  one does not have to purchase an unlimited  onboard  internet plan, WiFi calling will work with any internet plan purchased on the ship. One has to decide how they are going to use their internet minutes and decide which plan works best for them. 

[Haboob]

3 hours ago, snowskier said:

 

Internet is internet,  one does not have to purchase an unlimited  onboard  internet plan, WiFi calling will work with any internet plan purchased on the ship. One has to decide how they are going to use their internet minutes and decide which plan works best for them. 

One does if one doesn't know when the calls they want will arrive.

[Colo Cruiser]

On 8/10/2019 at 8:10 AM, kw1966 said:

My phone provider says that on my Baltic cruise I can use my mobile phone in all destinations apart from st petersburg, russia.

My question is this , If I make a call within the port (but not on the ship)can I still be directed through the ships phone system or not.

Or is it best not to use phone in port at all. Im a new cruiser and dont want to get hefty charges that im unaware of.

No. The ships cell service is turned off in port.

With AT&T I can pay $10 per day outside the country and use the phone like I am in the US and on my normal plan.

[pompeii]

7 hours ago, Haboob said:

If you plan to purchase an unlimited-minutes onboard internet plan, ask your cellphone provider about "WiFi calling", which uses the ship's internet uplink instead of it's cell tower for both incoming and outgoing calls and texts.

 

Generally speaking, if your phone and your provider support the feature (and most now do) calls and texts are billed as if you were sitting in your front room at home. 

So if I have a ship internet plan and WiFi calling enabled on my phone, then I can text while on board without additional fees?

 

[Jojiboy]

1 hour ago, pompeii said:

So if I have a ship internet plan and WiFi calling enabled on my phone, then I can text while on board without additional fees?

 

 

Yes, provided both your carrier and your phone supports WiFi calling. It uses your current mobile plan features, ie. call minutes, text limits, etc.

Edited August 11, 2019 by Jojiboy

[Haboob]

2 hours ago, pompeii said:

So if I have a ship internet plan and WiFi calling enabled on my phone, then I can text while on board without additional fees?

 

Within the constraints Joiboy laid out you also *receive* calls and texts anytime you're connected.

 

One drawback...  Spam callers time their calls thinking you're at home, no matter what timezone you're actually in.

[janina]

On 8/11/2019 at 1:39 PM, Colo Cruiser said:

No. The ships cell service is turned off in port.

With AT&T I can pay $10 per day outside the country and use the phone like I am in the US and on my normal plan.

This is also what I pay for Verizon.

[Colo Cruiser]

18 minutes ago, janina said:

This is also what I pay for Verizon.

I love it!   

[Scorpio41]

When you turn you phone on it will come up with the network your connected to. Like now your phone will show, o2, three,  your net work provider. If it comes up saying MARINER TIME that is the costly ships cell / internet signal.