do cell phones work in alaska ?

[melika091900]

hey everyone, we are heading to alaska in a few days,

so any verizon wireless users ever use your phone in alaska? and did it work ? i know alaska is a state and its not like another country, but im wondering about the distance from CA .

 

im just wondering,

we always get good reception in hawaii, so im assuming that alaska would be ok..

 

any info would be great.

 

melissa

[CC Help Michell]

hey everyone, we are heading to alaska in a few days,

so any verizon wireless users ever use your phone in alaska? and did it work ? i know alaska is a state and its not like another country, but im wondering about the distance from CA .

 

im just wondering,

we always get good reception in hawaii, so im assuming that alaska would be ok..

 

any info would be great.

 

melissa

 

What are you "wondering about the distance from CA?" Verizon (and the other providers) have towers/facilities in many states -- that's how they provide nationwide coverage. We live in Georgia, and had service both in Hawaii and in port in Alaska with our nationwide Verizon plan -- but I don't think the distance from Georgia factored into it. :) We had connectivity because we have a nationwide plan with a provider with facilities in those locations. That doesn't mean we had service everywhere (like out in Kenai Fjords National Park -- water, water, everywhere -- no service! ;) ) -- but in general, in town, we had a strong signal and service.

 

Just remember that when the ship is at sea it likely will have its towers turned on, so you probably won't be within network then and likely there will be a surcharge.

 

Have a great trip!

[kenish]

The phones are called "cell" phones because the network is made up of overlapping radio cells. Visualize round lily pads covering a pond and you get the idea. Each cell is a few miles across at most. Your distance from home has nothing to do with reception or signal availability. You've probably seen poles with a triangular platform at the top? That is the antenna for a cell.

 

Verizon (and all the other companies) either have a network of cells, or in the case of Alaska they have another company carry their subscribers. If you see "Verizon Wireless" or "Extended Network" on your phone the rates are the same as at home. If your phone says "Roaming" then extra charges will apply and they can be expensive!

[barbpatter]

Hi Melissa - I am heading to Alaska on the NCL Star August 23rd and was wondering if we would have service. After reading many posts, I decided to call VerizonWireless and ask. Here is what I was told:

 

While on the ship, whether at sea or sitting in port, our phones will pick up the ships towers and we will pay a charge of $2.50 per minute or $0.50 per text message. When in port, and while ON LAND, NOT CLOSE TO SHIP, we should pick up Verizon's towers (or at least extended network) and charges will fall under our normal cell phone plan.

 

We are going to Ketchikan, Skagway and Juneau. Two of those ports have VerizonWireless coverage and one does not. Sorry, but I cant remember which did not at the moment.

 

So...as long as your phone says VerizonWireless or extended network while you are on land, your calls/texts shouldnt cost you more than when you are at home.

[PennyAgain]

Be very careful when near Canada that your cell service provider isn't listed as Rogers especially if you have an IPhone. The costs are extremely high for Rogers with an IPhone or something similar.

 

You will have cell service in many places in Alaska, just look at the name of your provider to know if it is ship or shore.

 

After causing many coastal Alaskans to have huge expenses if they used their cell phones during cruise season, the State of Alaska passed a law that the ships absolutely have to turn off their repeaters when in port. But still be careful as there are many ships and some do slip up on this. If you can see a ship, be careful.

[FritzG]

We have Verizon, and we added a Canadian plan with for about $20/month which worked for all phones on our plan both incoming and outgoing for no additional per minute charge. We figured that was safer than having the phone pick up a Canadian tower. We were able to use our phones a good portion of the time from the ship, and in all of the ports with no problems at all. It was also very convenient to be able to call DH onboard rather than searching for him.

[jojamidwood]

I have traveled extensively in British Columbia and have paid to add Canada to my cell phone for the month of our trips. However, if you will be in Alaska you don't need to upgrade. All you need to do is dial *228, press option #2 and this will upgrade your phone to the Verizon network in Alaska. There is no charge for this. Just remember to turn your phone off if you are going to take the WPR or any other trip into Canada You do this at your first post--you can call Verizon or stop into one of their stores and they will tell you this.

[midwestsolo]

I was in Alaska in both May of this year(Vancouver to Whittier, and then an independent trip to Denali) and May of 2007(round trip Seattle). I have Verizon. I called my travel agent, my mother(who doesn't have Verizon) and my kids(who also have Verizon) while on the trip. I didn't purchase any additional package either year, and it just cost me my regular fee. While the ships were moving, my cell was turned off. As soon as we anchored, I turned my cell back on. The only time I can remember any problems was as we drove north to Denali in spots.

[2Oregonians]

Our Verizons (3 total in our party) worked just fine.

[darin2]

Someone told me that the pre paid TracFone you can get at Walmart works. Has anyone heard of that?

[gambit57]

Prepaid just uses the towers of the big cell companies. If you already have a regular cell plan, don't bother getting a prepaid just for a trip to Alaska.

 

Verizon works fine. If your ship has no towers, while in port, it can pick up the towers on land. I made calls from my balcony at a couple of stops (ok, it was just checking voicemail, but same diff).

 

Canada calls are considered int'l calls and can be pretty pricy. However, SMS messages are considered the same as in the US, so if you're in Canada, text message if you can. It's cheaper. We started in Vancouver and we just used text messages to locate everyone in our group in order to meet in one place. And no, I didn't have to do a *228 first. If you haven't updated your phone in a while, you prolly should, but it's not necessary. My phone found the towers just fine. Of course, it's free so if you have a spare 5 minutes and remember to do it, go ahead and update your phone. Just make sure to not do it in Canada.

[NMCRUISERS]

Just want to pass on information regarding our experience with T-Mobile. We took 2 phones (Nokia and Motorola) which have a shared plan. The Nokia worked fine (thru Cingulair) and the Motorola never worked at all.

[PennyAgain]

When you are on the ship, moving or not, and you use your cell phone you will get the additional $2.50 charge per minute. It may come months later!

 

Especially watch those young folks with their cell phone use so you don't get a bill that will give you a panic attack.

[SOMBRERO6]

My Verizon worked at all the ports, however my hubby's Sprint phone never worked anywhere until we were home.

[Corndog819]

You will have service in all the ports. It depends if your ship has a cell tower to determine whether or not it will work while sailing.

[ysr_racer]

I have a Verizon cell phone ( I work for them). When I was in Alaska in Aug, my phone worked OK, but my wife's son's T Mobile phone worked everywhere.