Laptop computer on ship - worth bringing your own with?

[blueseagirl]

Is it worth dragging your own laptop with on the cruise or is it just as easy to use the computers on the ship? We don't have work to do, just emailing our kids and possibly researching some ports, etc.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Carrie

[Dagny]

It depends. On Princess next week, my suite comes with unlimited internet, it's a 12-day cruise, and I like to watch DVD's when I fly. Too, I dont have to print out any of the reams of data I have regarding my ports of call, and as you said, can do on the spot research. I always travel with mine.

[Liv4cruzin]

Online minutes are very expensive at sea no matter who's computer you use. Some, much more than others. So, first, I would suggest you do all your port research before your cruise. If your cruise lines allows you to create your e-mails "offline" (say, in MS Word), it will save precious minutes to "cut & paste" into your e-mails. And if there are plenty of computers onboard, you probably won't have a problem finding an available one. If the answer to these last 2 questions is "no", then you might wish you'd brought your own. Hope that helps some.

[usavvy2]

We don't bring a laptop - although if I had one I would write my journal as I went along rather than when I returned home. The hassle of getting it through security is just enough of a pain to not justify the need. Besides, we usually stay a day before or a day after and I'd worry if I left the laptop in my hotel room that it wouldn't be there when I returned. (One more thing to worry about is something I do NOT need!)

 

Here's what I do: on those ports where we're "on our own" or have plenty of downtime, we hit a local Internet cafe (i.e., Dubrovnik, Santorini) and check emails there as it's much less expensive then using ship time. If we need to check emails when we don't have access on land, then we will sparingly use the ship's computers.

[paul929207]

Two considerations:

 

1. Some cruise lines give frequent customers a break on internet access in the internet cafe but not for wireless. For example, if you are Elite with Princess (5 prior cruises or 50 prior nights) you get some free time.

 

2. You can also use your laptop to download pictures from your digital camera.

 

Paul

[cberge]

Doesn't anyone ever just want to "get away"...no phones or laptops...check in with family at ports on phone if needed,but just chill out??? Just wondering.

[TNTLAMB]

I take my laptop and never use the "net" Its great for journaling etc. acessing your research, Dvd on flites and layovers etc, but the most important reason is to back up Digital Photos. Memory cards out of the camera can be fragile and easily corrupted. Having the photo shop on board backup these files is expensive not to mention the Lady who lost her whole collection of photos from a long once in lifetime Cruise. A "Getaway Carribean" cruise, maybe not, but it'll be in the med with us this summer.

[calmac]

We take a laptop with us when we vacation (not just cruises). On our last cruise we e-mailed our son who was at home with grandparents. On every other vacation we haven't e-mailed but we have used the laptop as storage for our hundreds of digital phots and also to watch the occasional DVD.

[Jade13]

Is it worth dragging your own laptop with on the cruise or is it just as easy to use the computers on the ship? We don't have work to do, just emailing our kids and possibly researching some ports, etc.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Carrie

 

I wouldn't drag around a lap top unless I was going on a World Cruise (a month plus). This is supposed to be a vacation. I kow on Holland Amerca last year it waseally easy to use the ships computer to e-mail our daughter. The ships computers were always empty.

 

We have a small portable DVD player that we take for the plane.

[taxatty]

If you want to send or receive files you will need a laptop if the computers on your ship have no CD-ROM, USB or floppy drives--this has happened to me on Princess and RCI. I agree with the comments above that the other advantage is being able to take almost unlimited digital pictures.

Les

[Duff Man]

I wouldn't drag around a lap top unless I was going on a World Cruise (a month plus). This is supposed to be a vacation.

I never understand comments like this about lap tops or cell phones. I fail to see how using a computer can't be part of a vaction. Do people stop using other everday items?

 

I always take my laptop when I travel, even for a weekend, and it is for personal use and not for business (although it keeps open the option that the office can send something to me, which hasn't been necessary in many years). Mainly for internet use and, for a vacation like a cruise, to download photos. For e-mail use it can actually be more economical than the ship computer because, instead of answering e-mail while you are on line, you can log on, download your e-mail, go off line and prepare your responses or new mail, then go back on line and send!

 

I have never considered going through airport security as a hassle with a lap top. Its actually quite easy, just have the computer out of its case. Easier than taking off my shoes! :D

[MedwardBound]

I too am deciding whether to bring the laptop. In the "bring" column are downloading digital pictures, keeping notes to write a trip report, and DVD watching DVDs on the plane/in the airport during layovers. In the "leave" column are lack of a good travel case and worry about it being stolen from our hotel room post-cruise in paris.

 

So my two question are, does anyone know a good carrying case? I would like it to have wheels but not be too heavy. Also, how worried should I be about leaving the laptop in our hotel room in Paris?

[calmac]

DH carries the laptop in a laptop rucksack leaving me to carry the cameras in a camera rucksack. When travelling by air, and especially when having to change planes, we find having both hands free much easier than pulling (or pushing) a bag on wheels.

[raynvic]

We took our laptop on our recent med cruise and were happy that we did. We both wrote a journal each day. DH posted his to e-mails and sent to family and friends. I posted mine to a LIVE cruise critic thread. The key is to type your info into a Word/Works document off line then copy and paste. We also used it to download 983 pictures, so we had no chance of losing pictures or running out of disk space. Minutes can be expensive, so if you find it is taking along time, then log off and try again later

[Host Karen]

We bring our laptop on every trip we take because we need to check e-mail and do some work while we travel. We also find it handy to download and back-up our camera's memory card at the end of each day, as well as take notes for our cruise review. Since we also have iTunes containing our iPod music, we can listen something other than what is broadcast over the tv in the stateroom. Admittedly, the sound isn't stereo but it's not bad.

[ggprincess2004]

We no longer debate whether to bring the laptop or not. It comes along. We have lots of memory for the camera, but download the chips anyway. Some trips are very photo-intensive. We can also keep our journal.

We use the internet on the ship's internet cafe - one of the platinum benefits.

My husband uses it to play chess against the computer. Hey, for him this is part of vacation. :o

[barb61s]

We're having the same dilema but we'll probably bring the laptop again it's so useful to have it at hand

[nco4242]

Is it worth dragging your own laptop with on the cruise or is it just as easy to use the computers on the ship? We don't have work to do, just emailing our kids and possibly researching some ports, etc.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Carrie

 

 

Well thats the $64,000 question. Just off princess where the net was not working most of the time it was in fact so bad they offered it for free when it was working. And at the new .75 per min fee your better off to hit internet points on shore of which there a tons. 1/2 hour in Rome for example is 1e.same 1/2hour in Turkey was .75e. less than 1e.

 

But on the other hand if you really need to be in contact and your are at the free internet level might as well

[Paul S]

If travelling via Europe there may be an issue with regard to weight and number of pieces if bringing a laptop as carry on in addition to a hand case, camera bag, etc. You might want to check with your airline. Also, if going through security in the UK you can only take one piece of hand luggage regardless of size/weight. I have to put my SLR camera bag inside my carry on case to get them both through security, which means I then have to leave the video camera behind.

 

For backing up photos each day I bounght a Smartdisk Digital Photo Bank. It's a rechargeable battery operated 40gb hard drive slightly chunkier than an ipod, with slots for all the different types of card. Just plug in the card, press the on-button, press the copy button then the rest is automatic and it even shuts itself off when finished.

 

There are more sophisticated types of photobank with a screen for viewing pictures, but they come more expensive. The cheapest option for those with an ipod is to buy a connector which fits onto the docking socket and into which you plug a lead from the camera, approx. £20 from the Apple Store.

 

Paul S

[SelectSys]

For me it's like a credit card or a passport - a mandatory part of my travel gear.