Cellphone Reception

[Anna114]

I tried to find this subject, sorry if it's a repeat. Last time we went to Disney in 2002 we tried to use walkie talkies, what a mistake! Too many children were using them as toys so they really couldn't be used for communication. Now, each of our family have thier own cell phone. Does anyone know how the reception is in the Parks and at Wilderness Lodge? I used mine at CBR last time and while I didn't have full bars I could make a phone call. Disney's costs to use a phone are most prohibitive. Thanks for any info.

Have a magical day,
Anna

 

[Bob P]

Hi,

It depends on your wireless service provider. We have Cingular and--in general--we have not had problems, although there are some dead spots on the property.

Bob

 

[makinorlando]

I have Cingular, as does most of my family/friends who have visited, and I have never had a problem with the reception in the parks. I also used during our one night get away at the Beach Club from our room with not problems.

I don't always hear the phone ring at the parks... too busy with other stuff - but if I knew I was expecting a call, I would pay more attention.

 

[magicmommy]

We have Verizon and have has no problems in the parks or in the rooms.

 

[wdwoldtimer]

Nextel works well in most areas.

 

[Anna114]

Funny, I thought I had written my provider. I have Cingular also. Since they have merged with AT&T I think their reception is much better.

Have a magical day,
Anna

Hi,

It depends on your wireless service provider. We have Cingular and--in general--we have not had problems, although there are some dead spots on the property.

Bob

 

[First-timer]

i was there 2 weeks ago and we have altell and we had no problem either... vicki

 

[wvjovifan]

DH and I have US Cellular and DD has Sprint. Both of these had great reception at the parks and at CBR.

 

[doombuggy3]

I previously had Cingular before I switched to Nextel (Sprint, whatever!) and I really prefer Nextel's coverage in WDW. Cingular, had good coverage, but for some reason was so spotty at OKW that a lot of times I'd have to go for a walk to try to find reception (picture a Verizon commerical..."can you hear me now? ) Anyway, Nextel's also convenient because of it's direct connect feature, which is NOTHING like having a regular walkie talkie. MUCH MUCH more clear. Hope that helps!

 

[aunt kelly]

My son & I have Cingular. I can't remember who my husband's service is with but I know it is not Cingular. We used our cell phones a lot last week and none of us ever hit a dead spot at any of the parks or our resort, Coronado Springs.

 

[byoung]

Have had no problem with Cingular !!

 

[NotUrsula]

Practice your text messaging, it works much better than voice while in the parks, and you don't have to call back if your party is on a ride when the call comes in. There is so much ambient background noise that it is very hard to speak on the phone without having to yell. Also, put the ringer on vibrate or you may not notice it.

 

[momrek06]

We have Verizon and have has no problems in the parks or in the rooms.

ME TOO WE HAVE VERIZON !!! The kids were home in college and we spoke to them 24/7 from every park and AKL

 

[Anna114]

First off thanks to all of you, the feedback is amamzing....love these Disboards. As far as the text messaging? Hmmmm may have to put that on the phones for the month. Thanks for the great info.

Have a great day,
Anna

Practice your text messaging, it works much better than voice while in the parks, and you don't have to call back if your party is on a ride when the call comes in. There is so much ambient background noise that it is very hard to speak on the phone without having to yell. Also, put the ringer on vibrate or you may not notice it.

 

[NCDisneyMom]

I, too, have Cingular. I found coverage spotty at POR, but it was fine in the parks.

As for the text messaging, they do have plans that you can add-on that allow a certain amount of texts per month. But, I don't have the plan, and we can still text, we just get charged by the message (sorry, I don't recall how much).

 

[brilliantseas]

Disney now uses Nextel phones within the parks at carts and other locations that do not have a wired phone. The managers also use them in place of traditional walkie talkies because of the large area that they need to cover.

Reception with almost any phone will be difficult in buildings due to the large amounts of steel and cement surrounding you, but outside in the parks or at the resorts, most carriers will work just fine. Each member of my family has a Sprint phone that we use at the resort (nationwide coverage with no roaming is wonderful!) and they generally work well. The only problem areas are inside the hotel rooms (outside on the balcony works) and inside attraction buildings. Other than that we have constant coverage and no dropped calls.

 

[eeyoreiscool]

We have Sprint and don't seem to have any problems except when we are in some of the resort rooms. If we step outside or get close to the window though, everything is fine.