In case of an emergency...

[Stephieann]

Is there a number that people back at home can contact us, while on the cruise, in case of an emergency at home?

 

[cruisecrzy]

I think it is 1-888-DCATSEA and it will cost the caller $6.95 per minute. If I am wrong someome please correct me. I got the number on one of the tip papers I read....I have never tried it.

 

[Cindi0511]

I can't check at the moment, but it should also be in the sticky FAQ at the top of the thread. It certainly is that costly, though!!!

ETA: OK, I checked and this is what it says:

How can someone reach me on the ship in case of an emergency?
Friends and family can contact you aboard the Disney Magic® or the Disney Wonder® by calling (888) 322-8732†. The cost is $7 per minute and CC information must be entered before the call will be connected.

 

[Stephieann]

would cellphone rates be cheaper? If they pick up out that far!

 

[debabe723]

would cellphone rates be cheaper? If they pick up out that far!

Cellphones usually only work in port or close to land. We didn't get any reception at all in Cozumel and not many cell towers out in the ocean (one reason why I like to sail and leave it all behind).

 

[Cindi0511]

Check with your cell phone company. I've heard the rates can be through the roof, but I haven't personally tried to use them outside the U.S.

 

[sami90tsi]

Several cruise lines now have micro cell systems on board that interface with the ship's satelite phone network. You can send, receive, and text. Rates for this are over 2.40 a min. That is still significantly cheaper than a sat call from the ship.

However.....Disney DOES NOT have this.

If you are looking to use your phone outside of the US, it will depend on your carrier and phone. Most of the carribean uses GSM. If you use Cingular, Tmobile, or any other GSM carrier, and you have at least a tri-band phone, you should be able to use your phone. Most rates for roaming in this area are over 2.00 a min. You also will need to call your carrier to make sure your account is provisioned for international roaming.

If you have verizon, nextel, or sprint, you can rent a gsm phone from them, and use your own number.

THere are a handful of locations that use the Sprint/Verizon CDMA technology, but it is not widely used outside North America.

As I need to be in touch, I use a handheld sat phone. The cost is .95 a min.in or out. Globally.

 

[ESN]

You might try Email instead - a lot cheaper

 

[ivanova]

I can't check at the moment, but it should also be in the sticky FAQ at the top of the thread. It certainly is that costly, though!!!

ETA: OK, I checked and this is what it says:

How can someone reach me on the ship in case of an emergency?
Friends and family can contact you aboard the Disney Magic® or the Disney Wonder® by calling (888) 322-8732†. The cost is $7 per minute and CC information must be entered before the call will be connected.

Recent cruise docs indicated that the charge would be charged to your stateroom, instead of to the caller's c/c.

 

[Cindi0511]

Recent cruise docs indicated that the charge would be charged to your stateroom, instead of to the caller's c/c.

Am I reading this wrong or is the call charged to the stateroom even if initiated by someone still in the States? Ugh. That could get ugly!

 

[ivanova]

Am I reading this wrong or is the call charged to the stateroom even if initiated by someone still in the States? Ugh. That could get ugly!

That's the way we read it ... don't have access to the ol' cruise docs right now, but when I can dig them out I'll double check.

I'm wondering if too many stateside folks have been contesting the charges with their credit card companies, so DCL is now charging the folks onboard receiving the calls.

This of course keeps me from giving out the number to a lot of folks.

 

[scrapperjill]

Here's one thought I had about emergency's happening back at home when we were cruiseing...If something happened WHAT could we do? We're on the ship and in foreign ports....I figure at that point all we could really do is worry the rest of the cruise. It's hard to say but I'd sort of rather finish the cruise (enjoy it while we could) then find out about the emergency once we were home. Of course it would probably depend of the nature of the emergency (like if someone was dieing and our last chance to talk to them would be while we were on the ship...they yes make the call)

It also doesn't hurt that we have our family and close friends cruising with us So it could be easer for me to say..."I'd rather wait to hear the bad news".

 

[Cindi0511]

My grandfather is not doing well, and has had a lot of those TIA mini stroke things lately. I asked the travel insurance company how this would work if something did happen to him and we needed to get my mom home ASAP, and he said they would pay for the most direct route home. I said, "So basically, we get her to the nearest airport and fly her straight." He said, "Yes."

I do think the $7 charge for calls though kept my aunt from trying to put guilt trips on my mom as she tries to do constantly. Never heard a more complaining person in my life! GRRR.

I'd be surprised, though, if the credit card companies reversed charges for something like this phone stuff. Either you really did make the call or your didn't or your CC was stolen. Phone records should be able to prove pretty much all of that, I would think.

All in all, though, good info to know!

 

[ivanova]

My grandfather is not doing well, and has had a lot of those TIA mini stroke things lately. I asked the travel insurance company how this would work if something did happen to him and we needed to get my mom home ASAP, and he said they would pay for the most direct route home. I said, "So basically, we get her to the nearest airport and fly her straight." He said, "Yes."

You also need to verify that your policy would cover a pre-existing condition. Since your grandfather is had TIA strokes in the past, this would be a pre-existing condition, and if your policy excludes pre-existing conditions then it probably won't cover anyone flying home if something happens to him while you're gone.

 

[tvguy]

Several cruise lines now have micro cell systems on board that interface with the ship's satelite phone network. You can send, receive, and text. Rates for this are over 2.40 a min. That is still significantly cheaper than a sat call from the ship.

.

Must have changed, but I don't understand why. Last figures I saw the phone rate on ships with the micro cell systems were exactly the same as using the phone from your cabin. That surprised me since it actually costs the ship MORE for you to use your cell phone since THEY paid to install the micro cell system, and since that just patches you into the same satellite phone system the cabin phones use.

 

[Cindi0511]

You also need to verify that your policy would cover a pre-existing condition. Since your grandfather is had TIA strokes in the past, this would be a pre-existing condition, and if your policy excludes pre-existing conditions then it probably won't cover anyone flying home if something happens to him while you're gone.

Since it was covering my mom who went on the cruise, and not my grandfather who was at home, my mom flying home would have been covered, according to the CSA rep I spoke with and went into detail with.

 

[thomprod]

Upon calling 888-322-8732, you will hear a recording giving you the information needed. You will need to know the name of the party you are trying to reach, which ship they are on, and have one of the following Credit Cards handy: Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Carte Blanche or Diners Club. The call is limited to a maximum of 10 minutes and your Credit Card will be billed at a rate of $6.95 per minute. The operator will ring the stateroom phone of the party called. If they do not answer, you may leave a voicemail message for them.

 

[Capt_BJ]

two possible solutions....

If you know you have a possible situation I recommend using the computer café' and a e-mail system that supports web access. then a trusted friend/family member can send you e-mail which you can check a couple of times a day. You will simply need to buy a small number of minutes on the ship.

or

I've never tried this for a cruise ship but I believe it works.... I've a wee bit of time at sea and over the years a number of my sailors had emergencies back home. The American Red Cross, in the case of a verified emergency, will contact the ship via existing systems, similar to a telegram. The msg will pass the basics of the situation and pass a number for the party to call. ARC, in my experience also followed up, for confirmation that this msg was delivered. I'd guess that in the case of a cruise ship, the msg would be passed from communications to the purser who would handle delivery. Either by a phone call or delivery of a paper copy to your room...with follow-up.

The problem with giving your stay behind folks the ship # is the ship is simply going to try and route the (expensive) call to your room....and if you are not there???? They will get to leave a voice mail....and PAY. In my experience, the Red Cross service was a FREEBIE.....

If someone knows 4sure that this DOESN'T work, please let me know....but I suspect it is a little known service of the Red Cross ... known only to professional mariners.

{verified emergency means they have rules about how many levels they will traverse the family tree when they provide this service...second cousins twice removed do not qualify}

My recommendations are based on better than 10 years sailing ships in the Caribbean plus ...

 

[sami90tsi]

Must have changed, but I don't understand why. Last figures I saw the phone rate on ships with the micro cell systems were exactly the same as using the phone from your cabin. That surprised me since it actually costs the ship MORE for you to use your cell phone since THEY paid to install the micro cell system, and since that just patches you into the same satellite phone system the cabin phones use.

The rate to use your own cell phone on a ship equiped with the new system is set by your own carrier. It is listed in the international roaming section of the various carriers web sites, along with the names of the ships that have it.

 

[Amlee]

DCL can call the ships while they are at sea. If your family has a medical emergency while you are at sea, they can call DCL and get them to call the ship and leave a message for you to call home. They can also send an emergency email out to GS sending a message for you to call home.


Your family just needs your booking number and your cabin number.


This applies to other cruise lines also.