Is it expensive to call from a cruise ship?

Ship-to-Shore Communication The rate is $1.99 per minute, and charges are billed to the guest's on board Sail and Sign Card. Since all communication is via satellite, the charges apply to all calls including calling cards, credit cards, 800 toll-free numbers and collect calls.



People Also Ask

Typically charges will appear on the next monthly bill, but depending on your carrier it may occasionally take up to 60 days for charges to appear on your phone bill. Please note that most cell phone carriers do not allow their unlimited rate plans to apply to cellular calls, texts or data used while onboard ships.

MORE DETAILS

To ensure you are not charged by your phone company on your cruise, you have two choices: Turn off your phone as soon as your cruise ship leaves port, or, if you want to use offline applications, put your phone into airplane mode.

MORE DETAILS

Can You Still Text for Free in the Cruise Line's App if you Bring Your own HotSpot? Yes, of course! As long as you have the app downloaded on your phone and you're on their free wifi, you can use the app to text on a cruise ship for free.

MORE DETAILS

Your phone will automatically connect to the at-sea provider if you don't put your phone in airplane mode. So, if you send a text or make a call, you can be charged for it. These providers are very expensive, and you will receive an additional data charge plus a per-text charge. This applies to any incoming texts, too.

MORE DETAILS

The price of Wi-Fi on a cruise ship can range from $15 to $30 and more per device per day. On luxury cruise lines or even some premium lines there is free Wi-Fi included in the cost of the cruise fare.

MORE DETAILS

Cellular rates at sea can sneak up on you, and you can easily rack up a $500 roaming bill. Even if you're not actively on your phone, most are still using data, so make sure to set yours on airplane mode to avoid roaming charges.

MORE DETAILS

Set Your Phone To avoid unwanted charges, your safest bet onboard your cruise ship is to switch to airplane mode, reactivate your wireless feature and log in to the ship's Wi-Fi network. (Note: Switching to airplane mode will turn off wireless until you manually reactivate it.)

MORE DETAILS

Consider buying a prepaid International SIM card When travelling on a cruise ship, taking full advantage of this highly cost-effective alternative can save a lot of money on roaming, especially high international rates.

MORE DETAILS

Of course, that doesn't mean you have to keep your cell phone off the entire time. If you choose to use your cell phone while on a cruise ship, it is important that you keep it on airplane mode, regardless of whether or not you're purchasing an internet package.

MORE DETAILS

All cruise cabins have room phones with a messaging system the same as a hotel. Also like hotels, there are house phones throughout the ship that you can use to call directly to the stateroom phones. Some cruisers bring walkie-talkies onboard, particularly families with kids old enough to spend time on their own.

MORE DETAILS

Cruise lines have been hard at work improving their Wi-Fi offerings. This is great news, as options in the past were both slow and spotty. Depending on who you're sailing with, you can now find speeds that'll support streaming, video calls and more. It's not all good news, though.

MORE DETAILS

If the ship provides free wifi and internet, then iMessage and FaceTime would be free. Those services are always free from Apple, and you only pay something if you are charged for the internet connection you are using.

MORE DETAILS

The chat feature in the Royal Caribbean app allows you to chat with other passengers onboard your sailing for FREE.

MORE DETAILS