Walkie-talkies on board

[notl342]

I've seen passengers with walkie-talkies on their belts. Are these for shore trips? I can't imagine they would work on board.

[Carlz]

hi- we hired the walkie talkies and used them on board to stay in touch with each other. I had one and DH had one. We liked doing different things- I loved going to every event and he loved sitting with our son at the waterslide so we used them to work out where to meet for lunch etc. We also used them at the kids club- left our walkie talkie number with the carers in case they needed us during dinner. I didn't take them on shore at all.

oh I also remember using it to tell him what specials were on at the duty free grog section each day! lol:D

[Iris5383]

We used walkie-talkies on board and on shore during our cruise last month. There were 4 of us, mostly we got them for my 77-year-old MIL so she could call us if she needed to. My DH would call me when I was in town and he was back on board. My SIL & MIL would call me when the three of us were on shore so we could let each other know where the best shopping was – or if we had found a public restroom! :)

[KC_fn]

On the other hand, we found them to be useless. The reception onboard was terrible.

[KC Cruiseaddict]

On our first cruise, it was reccommended by a friend that we bring them...we were so glad we did!! We stayed in contact with our 17 year old son, and since we each had one, we could go off in different directions on the ship and always be able to contact the other, if needed.

 

We now have upgraded to the 10 mile range walkie-talkies, and they do much better with reception. :o You can't just use the smaller range models, and expect to have them work well on a metal ship.

 

We have used them when at port too. When I was shopping with the girls, it was a lifesaver since we all are interested in looking at different shops...and we would always lose tract of each other. ;)

 

Please bring them with you...you'll be glad you did!

 

- Rhonda

[thrisiakaye]

Having walkie-talkies can sometimes be helpful..

[yakdaddy42]

i took a set but have since found out i was using the low power channel (1/2 watt) and they did not work too well.

 

next cruise i will try the high power channels. FRS channels 1 to 14 are low power 1/2 watt, GMRS channels 15 to 22 or higher are 1 watt power.

 

hope this helps

[mrmrscheese]

Anyone recommend one brand over another? Pro's / con's any suggestions would be great as we are thinking of getting them as their will be 6 of us and all going different ways.

Thanks

[FFKampy]

I have a little different twist on the walkie talkie question. My wife & I both have Nextel walkie talkies. Has anyone tried using the Direct Talk feature on these?

 

For those who are not familiar with this, Direct Talk is walkie talkie but without the service, they can be used anywhere, jsut like a line of sight handheld unit.

 

The manual says 6 miles, but I am curious how much the ship will limit communication.

 

We have used regular Talkabout walkie talkies before, and got OK coverage throughout the ship, if you were on opposite sides of the ship on Lido deck great, but as soon as you go down to the room, signal gets busted up pretty bad.

 

They did however work very well at Grand Cayman, all the way from the ship to the main dock , even from the cabin.

[yakdaddy42]

i have mortorola brand from Costco, 3 pack is 79.00 comes with batterys charger and ear buds

[CHIPMUNKSMOM]

I have the cobra brand, I got them for $20 $ after the BJ's rebate a few years ago. They have worked well on the ships for me and son. A good way to be in touch and to make plans to meet up. :) I know some think they are annoying but I am careful to try not the be rude with them but have to keeo in touch with the child.:p

[DiveMaster]

They work aboard although don't assume privacy as others can hear you if on the same frequency. Families with kiddos take them. More powerful ones work better.

 

 

I've seen passengers with walkie-talkies on their belts. Are these for shore trips? I can't imagine they would work on board.

[saturngazer]

My Mother and I cruise together at least once a year. She is in her 90's. We live totally different life styles. I am an early riser and love all the activities onboard. Mother is a late riser and doesn't get too involved in the activities. The walkie-talkies are a real plus for us. We can always keep in touch, arrange to meet for lunch or coffee or just at a particular spot to enjoy whatever might be going on.

We have a Motorola with a five mile range and so far it has worked very well.

[Schlepporello]

I'm glad to hear that the 10 mile range walkie talkies work best. That happens to be what I own. I've actually tried these here in town while I was driving home from work. I actually got an honest two mile range with it from a moving vehicle. I figure it ought to work in a ship just fine. Mine are made by Midland.

[cruise62]

Anyone still shopping for walkie talkies-I second the higher the milage, higher the watt the better. Both Motorola and Cobra work great IMHO but want you REALLY want to look for after strength is one that offers a sub channel.

We had no problem with coverage on the ship, just finding a channel without at least 4 other families conversing as well. Great for learning a foreign language or two. Motorola offers one with subchannels. Good Luck!

[Steviewonder1]

The ones with the higher channels (above CH14) and higher power work best. The higher channels are less crowded since those have been around only a couple of years, and generally cost more than the FRS units. The Blue M (Motorola) is the best out there with the Cobra right behind. Additional features (that come with the unit not have to buy extra) are ear buds, rechargeable batteries, two slot chargers (uses only one wall wart on your multioutlet strip you brought along) are the best models to buy as each brand has the low, middle and high end units). If you can find units that have Scramblers, get those above all others, as they are very private. Monitor the channels with the squelch tone set to 0 or none to find a least used channel, then select a tone, the digital numbers work better than the 38 privacy tones. BTW the privacy tones stop you from hearing everyone else, not the other way around. I listen to everyone in scan with NO tone set.

Good Luck

[pmfan]

We find the 10 mile range ones work best, especially on the larger ships.

[rcacace]

I have a little different twist on the walkie talkie question. My wife & I both have Nextel walkie talkies. Has anyone tried using the Direct Talk feature on these?

 

For those who are not familiar with this, Direct Talk is walkie talkie but without the service, they can be used anywhere, jsut like a line of sight handheld unit.

 

The manual says 6 miles, but I am curious how much the ship will limit communication.

 

We have used regular Talkabout walkie talkies before, and got OK coverage throughout the ship, if you were on opposite sides of the ship on Lido deck great, but as soon as you go down to the room, signal gets busted up pretty bad.

 

They did however work very well at Grand Cayman, all the way from the ship to the main dock , even from the cabin.

 

Does the Nextel direct talk feature allow you to communicate with other frs/gmrs units? If they have their own private coding feature at least you wouldn't be bothered by all the needless chatter all day long.