Cell phones, wi-fi on the NCL Dawn?

[twomombooks.com]

Since the DAWN will be used for July 2007, maybe some prior cruisers from 2004 Bahamas or 2005 Halifax can tell me if they were able to use their own cell phones on the cruise?

From what I can tell online, some NCL ships have special cell towers that facilitate cell phone usage. Is this accurate? We will be on the July 2007 Bermuda cruise and I will require cell and/or email access. The worst case scenario is having to rely on the ship's internet system which is not in the stateroom, but rather at wi-fi hot spots scattered on board.

All advice appreciated.

[Larry]

i was able to get a signal but it was roaming. That was probably due to the fact we were in international waters sailing to Canada. Once we went to Massachusetts, it was fine. I'm not sure what will happen in the Carribean. Probably more roaming. I got a signal but it ended up costing a lot of money

[Crazy aka Cheryl]

Since the DAWN will be used for July 2007, maybe some prior cruisers from 2004 Bahamas or 2005 Halifax can tell me if they were able to use their own cell phones on the cruise?

From what I can tell online, some NCL ships have special cell towers that facilitate cell phone usage. Is this accurate? We will be on the July 2007 Bermuda cruise and I will require cell and/or email access. The worst case scenario is having to rely on the ship's internet system which is not in the stateroom, but rather at wi-fi hot spots scattered on board.

All advice appreciated.

Hi twomombooks.,
I have Sprint and my Daughter has T mobil. I got regular service this year in in Alaska My daughters was at the roaming rate. In 2005 we had service most of the time when we hit port in P town, Marthas Vineyard and in Halifax we bought a phone card. I dont think that we got service in 2004 in the islands. I guess it is area specific. NCL has an 800 number you might want to give them a jingle. The Dawn has an internet cafe where you can buy a package. I think it was around $35.00 for 100 minutes. Don't quote me exactly on price. You have the option of using their computers or your Laptop.
Welcome to R Family. You are going to have a great time.

See ya on the ship
Crazy
aka

[OneChip]

We unfortunately used our cell phones while on the trips, we've been on all of them. Here's the deal. Your company will tell you what the roaming fees are if any. Most of them had service wherever we went. However, if you are on the ship (no matter if you are in port or not) the NCL system takes over and you have to pay $2.50 a minute, plus whatever your own company charges. We know this from experience.
I called Cingular before we went to Halifax to ask how much it would cost anytime we were in Canada, they told me nothing more than my regular rate. Of course when I got home I had a HUGE bill, so I called them and told them I had called and asked about the rates and that they should have a record of my call (make sure you document when you called and who you talked to) and sure enough they saw the notes where the customer service rep said no additional fees, so they credited my account quite a bit of money.
In Alaska we had a lot of roaming charges and of course my daughter had to call her boyfriend while still on the ship (but we were in port she argued after.....doesn't matter) and the fees were huge. So be careful and call your company first.

If I remember correctly from the first cruise, there is no cell phone service on the private island so if you need to make calls you have to use the ships service at $2.50 a minute.

[twomombooks.com]

Thank you all for the detailed replies. This helps tremendously.

Kind regards,

Kaitlyn

[jblksmith1]

I have Tmobile and I didn't pay anything extra while in Alaska at all. I did pay some roaming charges while in Canada but that was only 69 cents a minute. I used my phone on the ship several times but never had to pay anything extra for that either although my carrier said it would be $4.99 per minute on board.

[RainbowAngel]

I have Tmobile and I didn't pay anything extra while in Alaska at all. I did pay some roaming charges while in Canada but that was only 69 cents a minute. I used my phone on the ship several times but never had to pay anything extra for that either although my carrier said it would be $4.99 per minute on board.

I have been on all 3 cruises, and called from the ship and ports in all stops. I have not had to pay any roaming charges, except in Canada at Victoria. I did not call from Halifax last year so Im not sure about roaming charges there.

But I called from the ship several times....while nearing port, and while in port, and never had any extra charges. I didnt know about the ships antenna, so I called from the ship...in Port Canaveral, in Key West, in Boston and Provincetown and Marthas Vineyard. And also from Juneau and Skagway and Ketchikan. I made my calls while the ship was in port since that was when I had coverage. So I dont know how it will work for others, but thats the way it worked for me.
I guess I was lucky all 3 years to not get extra charges.

[twomombooks.com]

Who is/was your provider? Would you share? I have t-mobile. It's awful. I have heard good things about verizon and also cingular's coverage.

[OneChip]

I have Cingular and was hit with lots of fees and extra charges from the ship.

[wigglewomyn]

I called our cell phone provider before we left and was told to not use our cell phones on the ship, that we would pick up the ship's service and we would be charged $2.99 a minute so I made sure that we were off the ship and down the gangway before dialing. The only place I was charged roaming charges was in Victoria and I knew I would be charged there from the phone call to customer service before we left, 79 cents a minute.

I would suggest you phoning your cell phone company before you leave to ask them what their policy is so you know if you can use your phone on the ship without extra charges and as OneChip posted, make sure that the person you are speaking with is documenting anything they tell you in case you are charged something different when you get home.

[Lisa B]

Ok, we have Verizon. While we were in Seattle, on the ship, about to leave, my phone rang.....it was a friend inviting me to her July 4th party! She thought our trip was a week later. That showed up as regular minutes on the bill. I made calls, from our room, in Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan (here, as we were pulling out) and all were regular minutes. We DID NOT use the phones while out to sea......that caused a problem with others in our group last year with huge bills, so we (they) didn't do it this time. Hope this helps! :)