Internet service on Voyager - GSM phones

[40cub]

Can anyone tell me what the access to the internet is like on Voyager? Is it high speed, readily available, and at what cost? A friend of mine recently took an Oceania cruise and said they only had dial up, it was very expensive and few computers led to a backup of people wanting to use them. Would appreciate any feedback!

 

Additionally, does anyone have any suggestions for someone who leases GSM phones that would work in the Baltic? Unfortunately we are going to have to conduct business on our cruise and want to plan for options.

[CruiserPK]

I have never had a problem getting accessibility to a computer on Regent ships. Occasionally there may be a busy time if the internet is down for a few days due to signal strength. However, they have an ample supply of computers and many people bring laptops to use in their suites.

Cheers, Pam

[Pam]

The speed always seems to depend on the location of the satellite vs location of the ship. I've seen it lightening-fast, and I've seen it so slow that I would pick up a book and read a page or two while my email page was loading.

 

I take my laptop now that there is wifi in the suites, but there are quite a few computers in the computer room on Voyager.

[neviboy]

Pam is correct. I have had very rare problems . Only when the ship is in a 'dark' area which lasts for several hours.

[MomC]

I always use a ship's internet service. Can you tell us approximately what the price packages are? Anyone been on the Voyager recently who might know?

 

Thanks for your input.

 

Mom C

[RachelG]

Fortunately I have enough days on Regent that internet service is complementary (thank heavens--a perk I actually can use). However, before I had those days, I don't recall the cost as being totally unreasonable. You can buy a package (x # of minutes) for a reduced cost, and that is what I did. Used it mostly to keep in touch with my son by email.

[dfb]

40Cub, In my experience, you should find Internet on Voyager as on most ships. Slow and in and out of service intermittently. Pricing is shown below.

PRICING

 

Time Plan #1: $0.20 per minute - 250 minutes for $50

 

Time Plan #2: $0.25 per minute - 100 minutes for $25

 

Pay As You Go: $0.35 per minute

 

One-Time Account Activation Fee _ $3.95 (Applies to all users on first login only)

 

Below is the link to RSSC's supported cell phones. We had no problem using their cell phone service with a Cingular/AT&T Blackberry over the last 2 years and 2 ships.

http://www.rssc.com/cellularservice

 

Debbie

[40cub]

Thank you all for your very helpful insights. :)

[Judyumcer@aol.com]

Had a few problems with the slowness on Regent's internet. While on the ship in the sea near the British Isles; my home cell phone rang. It was our daughter and clear as could be. I thought I had shut off the home cell phone on our flight over but didn't. We bought an international cell phone and had a sim card. But, this was not the international cell phone. I couldn't believe our cell phone from home worked on the ship. We started using it to call out also. I don't know if the ship's satalites pick up the signal or what. But, it was great. Judy

[JoAnne B]

I, too, forgot to turn off my cell phone when I boarded the Navigator transatlantic. Two days out I was shocked when the phone rang. WIthout thinking I answered it and the service was as clear as at home. I turned it off, but two days later turned it on to see if there was still roaming service. There was, and sure enough, the phone rang. Again, service was clear! After that I turned it off for good. Will probably cringe when I check my sprint bill, though! I liked being out of reach of the office, so I hope it was very, very expensive!

 

I always carry my own laptop and noticed that wireless service was markedly better than in the past. Even during busy periods in the internet cafe, the wireless speed was just fine.

 

JoAnne B,

Houston

[Travelcat2]

I've heard of several posters that have worked a long time on a post -- only to have it drop out..... thus having to redo it. It's been suggested to use the word processing package to prepare your document. . . then copy and paste into your e-mail, post, etc.

[freddie]

40Cub - We've been on a number of Voyager cruises (including the Baltics) and have used both a GSM phone and the cellular-at-sea service.

 

First, I agree with the previous posters that the computer room on Voyager is almost never full because there are so many computers and now many of us use laptops in our cabins. The internet connections can be slow at times. The best thing to do if you're sending long messages is to compose them on Word off-line and then paste them into your messages once you're on-line. Saves a lot of $$$. As I recall, the computers in the computer room allow you to do that (unlike those on Silversea, which only enable Word when the meter is running).

 

Regarding phone service, here's my experience and research info, for what it's worth. Other people may have different info.:

 

As Debbie posted, Voyager has the Cellular-at-Sea service. In addition to the link Debbie posted, here is their website: http://www.cellularatsea.com

 

This great service (fairly new, within the last couple of years) allows you to use your U.S.-based cell phone on the ship, even it it is not a GSM phone. You can check with your provider to see what the per minute charge is - with mine (Verizon), it's about $2.50 per minute. The charge shows up on your home cell phone account, not on your ship account. Even at $2.50 or so per minute, it's a lot cheaper than the direct dial from the ship, which was about $9.50 on our crossing last fall.

 

The cellular-at-sea service is not active when in port, however. That is when you would need a GSM phone to connect to a local service. There are loads of companies which rent or sell GSM phones. We rented one on our Paul Gauguin cruise in French Polynesia several years ago; but I discovered that it is really cheaper to just buy a GSM phone and then get the appropriate SIM cards for the areas you'll be visiting. Also, that way you don't have the hassle of having to arrange to receive the stupid phone just before leaving and then send it back when you return from your cruise. You can find providers of cell phones by googling something like "international cell phones".

 

I've had very good luck with Telestial - http://www.telestial.com/ . They offer a wide variety of phones and several multi-country SIM cards. I've used their Explorer SIM card for the last couple of years. It is far cheaper than the cellular-at-sea service on a per minute basis and has worked perfectly in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. Again, it only works when you're in port and can be connected to a local provider. At sea, you have to use the cellular-at-sea option.

 

Hopes this gives you some ideas. Cheers, Fred

[40cub]

Fred,

 

VERY helpful info. Thanks so much for the feedback! :)

[MountainDoc]

Has anyone tried using Skype (or similar) from their laptop to communicate on board. I wasn't sure if the internet isn't fast enough. Dave

[Casemaker]

Do some use phone cards such as Zaptel for calling US from Europe? Can it work on the ship?

[islandhalls]

Before our recent trip I read on this site that Skype was blocked by RSSC.

 

One neat tip for us re: cellphones if you are at the Silver level and get free ship-to-shore - we would turn on our Verizon phone to check if we had messages (no charge), but then would turn it off and then call using our free time to actually check messages.

[MamaQuack]

We just returned from Voyager yesterday. Only once did we have trouble getting internet. The entire ship is wi fi now. We had our own lap top and enjoyed being able to access from our cabin. We are at silver level so were not charged. Had no cell service but used the cabin phone briefly to check in with our housesitters - it was clear as a bell!

[basedow]

Mamaquack,

 

Where did you cruise? I was interested because you wrote you had no cellphone service.

 

Thanks,

 

Basedow

[jhp]

I just returned from Voyager yesterday as well. As I remember, it was $62.50 for 250 minutes (fortunately, I get free internet). I had some problems logging on from my cabin, but it could have been an AOL thing.

[MamaQuack]

Basedow - we were in Italy & France.

[basedow]

Thanks. We'll be in the Baltics and I fear that may have limited cellphone service.:(

[orchestrapal]

Phone and Internet service in the Baltic was perfect with the exception of the port of St. Petersburg where they block everything. Even the ship had no contact with the outside world.:mad:

[RachelG]

Thanks orchestrapal for that info on St Petersburg. My mom is 90, and I was planning on keeping in touch with her using our free ship phone service but will have to get someone else to do so on those days. My sister usually takes care of that, but she is going to be on a cruise in Alaska (her first) at the very same time.

[basedow]

Yes, that is very useful information and thanks for posting it.

 

Basedow

[Travelcat2]

On our recent sailing to Alaska, we lost internet service two or three times (up to about 4 hours or so). I didn't check cell service during that time since the last time I used cell service at sea, the bill was enormous. For our next cruise, I will advise friends/family that there could be a day that I won't be in contact -- just in case.......:o