Phone Service on Board

[Nickel30]

Hello!  We are traveling on Odyssey of the Seas soon and we were wondering about cell phone service on the ship.  We have young children at home and would like them to be able to contact us when/if needed (emergency or otherwise).  I know you can purchase internet on the ship but we would prefer to be disconnected in that sense.  Our ship is stopping in Jamaica, Grand Cayman and the private island.  

Does anyone have experience setting up an international plan with their phone carrier, and if so, what was your experience like?  We both have T-Mobile and iPhones. 

Thanks for any advice/recommendations you may have!!

[Xaa]

You want to be both disconnected and available for contact?

I don't have T-Mobile, but I think their international plan will handle you while in port.  On the ship if you don't put your phone in airplane mode, you'll connect to the cell tower on the ship and can incur some hefty charges unless you make sure none of your apps use data and nobody but your emergency people send you texts etc.

I think you might want a 1 device plan on WifI and then leave the phone in your safe, but have some agreed upon times with your kids that you will check it.  Maybe first thing in the morning, around lunch time and in the evening.  Then check those times and put it back in the safe.

[Villageidiot]

We've had good luck using the wifi on the ship + wifi calling on our phones. Others have reported using whatsapp with good results. Both require at least a one device internet plan. Good luck and enjoy your cruise.

[PL8SWPR]

We use the ship wifi to make and receive calls if needed.

[DoomSlayer]

If you want them to be able to contact you, an internet plan is your best option.  One phone call would more than likely pay for it.  T-Mobile does not have a plan that covers cruise ships to my knowledge (I have the magenta plus plan with them).  If you truly want to remain as disconnected as possible, then just get internet for one device that they can call and don't open any other apps.  WiFi calling with T-Mobile on iPhone works pretty good on the ship and is what I use to stay connected with work and family.

If you want an emergency only option, just share your ship information and give them royal's main number.  In an emergency, they can reach out to the ship to let them know there is an emergency back home.  This what I give my Ex-Wife when I travel with the kids because I don't want her to ruin my vacation.

[Ampurp85]

There are currently no plans that cover phone service on board. There are tons of phone plans that cover international calling and texting. I don't know the length of your cruise but if you want to avoid buying the internet and stay debt-free. Time and plan out your calls. 

[DoomSlayer]

2 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

There are currently no plans that cover phone service on board. There are tons of phone plans that cover international calling and texting. I don't know the length of your cruise but if you want to avoid buying the internet and stay debt-free. Time and plan out your calls. 

ATT has plans for cruise ships which covers Royal Caribbean.

AT&T Cruise Packages – Cruise Ship Talk, Text & Data Plans (att.com)

[smokeybandit]

I would not recommend any on board cell service plan. If you want to be available on board, get wifi.

 

But at port stops, the major cell phone providers have a $10 day pass to use your domestic plan for 24 hours in most countries. Some of the "unlimited" plans even include service in a lot of countries.

[mk-ultra]

Oof.  Never use cellular you see on a ship.  That will be an expensive lesson.  Buy the WiFi package and turn on "cellular over WiFi" on your phone.  If it's the first time you turn it on, you'll have to provide some info so if you call 911 they might be able to respond to your registered location.  Set it up at home before your cruise.

On the ship, put your phone in airplane mode, then turn WiFi back on if it disables it.

[Ampurp85]

2 hours ago, DoomSlayer said:

ATT has plans for cruise ships which covers Royal Caribbean.

AT&T Cruise Packages – Cruise Ship Talk, Text & Data Plans (att.com)

I consider that no plan, lol. $100 to talk and text with only 200mb of data. 

[smokeybandit]

On 4/6/2023 at 5:31 PM, Ampurp85 said:

I consider that no plan, lol. $100 to talk and text with only 200mb of data. 

While it's still not worth it, it's now 1GB of data. 

[Biaggio]

Use the Wi-Fi plan to connect by email.

[teddy]

WiFi calling ftw

Make sure your cell carrier has enabled it on your account.  I'm thinking most of the big carriers already do this.

[Jack805]

While I have AT&T, like mentioned by @Ampurp85 the pricing of the "plan" leaves me with very little value for the price. But I do have WiFi calling as part of my plan, and have had great success with calling/texting using the ship WiFi and the regular phone features (and not data messaging and/or internet video/audio chats, though I've used those as well without any issue), and the party on the other end is actually quite surprised I'm talking to them from a ship out at sea.

If you are already planning on purchasing internet, check with your carrier if they have WiFi calling (most do now, and free for most as well) and add it if it's free. The WiFi calling helps even if not out far from land, but even back home or in an area with coverage but a bad building layout that kills signal - the WiFi calling has made it seamless for me in those situations as well.

[smokeybandit]

If your carrier is charging for Wifi calling, you need a new provider.