Cell phones on a Bahamas cruise... a few questions!

[SeaSpray]

We'll be sailing from NYC to Nassau to Castaway Cay to Port Canaveral, back to NYC.

First of all... on the sea days as we sail down the east coast, does anyone know if we'll be close enough to land to pick up a normal cell phone signal??

Secondly, do cell phones in Nassau connect to a normal cell phone tower, or a "foreign" one? In other words, will we be charged extra if we use our cell phones in Nassau??

How about Castaway Cay? Does anyone know about cell phone reception there??


I need to maintain contact with family at home, so I'm just wondering about this because instant cell phone contact is preferable. I really will only consider email/internet as a last resort, if cell service would be too costly.

Thanks!

 

[sissy_ib]

We'll be sailing from NYC to Nassau to Castaway Cay to Port Canaveral, back to NYC.

First of all... on the sea days as we sail down the east coast, does anyone know if we'll be close enough to land to pick up a normal cell phone signal??

Secondly, do cell phones in Nassau connect to a normal cell phone tower, or a "foreign" one? In other words, will we be charged extra if we use our cell phones in Nassau??

How about Castaway Cay? Does anyone know about cell phone reception there??


I need to maintain contact with family at home, so I'm just wondering about this because instant cell phone contact is preferable. I really will only consider email/internet as a last resort, if cell service would be too costly.

Thanks!

Cell phone towers only provide a signal a 3-5 miles so yes, on a cruise ship you will be too far out. There is cell service on the ship but you pay quite a bit for it. And Nassau is in a foreign country so you will be charges foreign rates if you use your phone. You may want to contact your provider to find out what options you have.

 

[TXDCLfan]

We'll be sailing from NYC to Nassau to Castaway Cay to Port Canaveral, back to NYC.

First of all... on the sea days as we sail down the east coast, does anyone know if we'll be close enough to land to pick up a normal cell phone signal??

Secondly, do cell phones in Nassau connect to a normal cell phone tower, or a "foreign" one? In other words, will we be charged extra if we use our cell phones in Nassau??

How about Castaway Cay? Does anyone know about cell phone reception there??


I need to maintain contact with family at home, so I'm just wondering about this because instant cell phone contact is preferable. I really will only consider email/internet as a last resort, if cell service would be too costly.

Thanks!

Check with cellular at sea they are the provider it is like $2.49/ min. Also Nassau will be international service. I have Verizon and never had a signal on CC

 

[dscott1996]

Called my provider (T-mobile) yesterday about this. Its $5 per minute for service on the ship. Off the ship in Nassau you pay international rates - which I do not have an option for on my plan so it was $7 per minute for that. They also said that sending a text is $0.35 pers sent text (even though I have a plan) and that if I get a voicemail (whether or not I actually listen to it), I have to pay $5 per minute for the voicemail if my phone is on when the voicemail is sent to my phone.

I think my family is not going to hear much from us


Call your provider!

 

[cass'mom]

I have no choice as I have to call home and check in on an elderly parent. Does anyone know what the rates are (besides astronomical! ) if I pick up my stateroom phone and call home?

 

[TXDCLfan]

I have no choice as I have to call home and check in on an elderly parent. Does anyone know what the rates are (besides astronomical! ) if I pick up my stateroom phone and call home?

Last time I checked it was around $12/min. Go to cellular at seas web site and see what their pricing is ....should be around $2.49/min

 

[Tauwillow]

My DH and I left our kids with my mom and went on a different cruise line last December. It was imperative that I was able to talk to them if needed.

We have AT&T (iphones) and we went ahead and added the international plan for the duration of our trip. We just cancelled it as soon as we disembarked, and the fee for it was negligible. This gave us the best available calling rates in each country.

We were able to receive texts for free, and sending them was 50 cents each. The kids texted us regularly with tidbits from their days, and were able to alert us when they needed to talk to us. My eldest did have an urgent question that we ended up phoning for and I was so glad we had the international plan!

 

[Mythicalbee]

I have no choice as I have to call home and check in on an elderly parent. Does anyone know what the rates are (besides astronomical! ) if I pick up my stateroom phone and call home?

I would definately call your provider and discuss what your best options might be. You may consider getting a prepaid cell just for this purpose, to help you keep track of how much it's costing. I would think it depends on whether you need to stay in touch in case there is an emergency, or you will need to call in for daily updates on your loved ones' condition.

Hope you find a solution that works for you and doesn't break the bank!

 

[tvguy]

Last time I checked it was around $12/min. Go to cellular at seas web site and see what their pricing is ....should be around $2.49/min

$9.50 a minute is the stateroom phone rate.

 

[tvguy]

I have no choice as I have to call home and check in on an elderly parent. Does anyone know what the rates are (besides astronomical! ) if I pick up my stateroom phone and call home?

I have an elderly parent too , but she absolutely forbides us from calling when we are gone, and when she cruisies, she forbides us from call her on the ship. Her attitude is "there is nothing I/you can go about anything at home until you/I get home, so don't ruin my vacation."

 

[pdwimmer]

I have an elderly parent too , but she absolutely forbides us from calling when we are gone, and when she cruisies, she forbides us from call her on the ship. Her attitude is "there is nothing I/you can go about anything at home until you/I get home, so don't ruin my vacation."

Sounds like my grandma! If your parent has a computer you can also do skype to call her for free on the internet. Well, at least our's will be as we are on concierge. But you can also get internet onboard in various places for not a horrible fee.

 

[sissy_ib]

Sounds like my grandma! If your parent has a computer you can also do skype to call her for free on the internet. Well, at least our's will be as we are on concierge. But you can also get internet onboard in various places for not a horrible fee.

The internet onboard will be too slow for Skype.

 

[mickeyfan1]

Skype is blocked on the ships. All cell phones use cellular at sea for 2.49 per minute, if your cell company says it's 5, they are adding on a lot more.

 

[twindaddy]

Skype is blocked on the ships. All cell phones use cellular at sea for 2.49 per minute, if your cell company says it's 5, they are adding on a lot more.

This is straight from TMobiles website.

DISNEY CRUISE LINE: DISNEY WONDER
Rate per minute : $4.99
*Roaming charges do not include local tolls or long distance charges.
Country code :

Not sure if that is standard or what. I told my dad, there is really no reason to call me at sea. If my house burns down, call me when I am back at port. If someone dies, call me when I am back at port. However, if I was at sea at the twins were at home, I would probably make a few $5 check ins. But with my dads hearing, it would cost me five dollars to hear "huh? what? you are on a whizney booze crip? You are in the middle of the terrific notion?"

 

[disney1990]

We have Verizon. It was $2.49 a minute to use our Cell. I don't remember the texting rates, but i think they were 50 cents to sent and 5 cent to receive (don't quote me on that one). Check with your carrier.

 

[SeaSpray]

Thanks for all of the replies, everyone, they are very helpful!

We have Verizon. It was $2.49 a minute to use our Cell. I don't remember the texting rates, but i think they were 50 cents to sent and 5 cent to receive (don't quote me on that one). Check with your carrier.

We have Verizon as well. We'll definitely check with them before the cruise to make sure that we're aware of the best options, rates, etc.