Going on a cruise to the bahamas - what settings to turn off?

[NWI73]

Going on a cruise to the Bahamas next week and was wondering what settings I need to change or turn off to make sure no extra charges are incurred. I want to use the camera and whatever else that doesn't use data or the network.

Thanks.

 

[Small White Car]

Airplane Mode will kill ALL data and phone connections.

Did you want to use it as a phone? If not, Airplane Mode is the way to go.

 

[mattkowalski]

Data roaming is the main one to leave turned off - it kills the data connection when you're abroad (settings -> general -> network).

I went travelling with mine in Cambodia/Thailand/Laos recently. Motion-X GPS is worth a look. Lets you pre-load maps in advance, so you don't need a data connection once you're there.

 

[BDoggPrelude]

Put it on Airplane Mode or you will be sorry. Most cruise ships have a cellular at sea signal onboard that basically charges roaming rates to your bill. These rates are obscene though. I've heard plenty of horror stories of people that went on a cruise, didn't turn off their smartphone and came home to a $1000+ phone bill just from constant updates and such that use up data. Whenever my wife and I go on cruises we take our iPhones but they're on Airplane Mode from the moment we leave port to the moment we get back.

 

[Greenman1]

I too was wondering this, I'm going on a cruise in a few weeks and wanted to know what settings to use so that I won't rack up obscene charges. I just want to bring my iphone 4 and use it as a camera/video recorder.

So..

1. Make sure roaming is turned off
2. Make sure airplane mode is turned on.

Is that it?

 

[Small White Car]

I too was wondering this, I'm going on a cruise in a few weeks and wanted to know what settings to use so that I won't rack up obscene charges. I just want to bring my iphone 4 and use it as a camera/video recorder.

So..

1. Make sure roaming is turned off
2. Make sure airplane mode is turned on.

Is that it?

You can skip step 1. Airplane mode physically turns the radios off. There's no way to roam if the radio has no power.

Also, add to that a final step: "Turn Wifi Back On." This will leave airplane mode on, but with Wifi. You can use any free Wifi signals you find and Airplane mode will keep the other radios off.

 

[BDoggPrelude]

You can skip step 1. Airplane mode physically turns the radios off. There's no way to roam if the radio has no power.

Also, add to that a final step: "Turn Wifi Back On." This will leave airplane mode on, but with Wifi. You can use any free Wifi signals you find and Airplane mode will keep the other radios off.

If you're going on Carnival their WiFi service is expensive and slow. Not worth the money at all.

 

[cambookpro]

I'm on holiday at the moment, my settings are (I'm a better safe than sorry person:

Wifi ON
Cellular Data OFF
Data Roaming OFF
Notifications OFF
Push Mail OFF
Fetch Mail MANUALLY


No data's getting past that wall!

 

[NWI73]

I will turn airplane mode on and leave wifi off. I read that the ship has wifi but you have to pay for it and it's something like .99 per minute. I don't need the net while I'm on vaca anyway. Thanks guys!

 

[April Dancer]

I've just come back today from a transatlantic crossing and my poor phone spent the week on airplane mode although I did use the ship's wifi. Don't be tempted to use the maritime network, unless you fancy a second mortgage! Have a great time 🙂

 

[marcin0903]

Just turn off data transmission and turn off data roaming, than you're done, there is no required to turn on the flight mode.

 

[bobr1952]

I left my phone on Airplane Mode for most of the cruise I was on recently--also in the Caribbean. I used my phone on US Virgin Islands since ATT is there--and you could also get the ATT signal on the ship. On Carnival, the name of the carrier replaces ATT when you are using their signal--probably the same with all of them.

 

[kernkraft]

Turn off the 'Work' setting and enjoy your holiday! Try not to spend too much time with your gadget, you can enjoy it enough when you are not on holiday in a great location.

 

[iproductsuser]

I'll be traveling to Jamaica in one week and re hashing this subject back....all I need to do is flip airplane mode on and then flip wifi on when I get to the hotel if they have it and I should be all set, right?

 

[mlmwalt]

I'll be traveling to Jamaica in one week and re hashing this subject back....all I need to do is flip airplane mode on and then flip wifi on when I get to the hotel if they have it and I should be all set, right?

Airplane mode kills WiFi too.

Turn off Cellular Data and Voice Roaming and you should be good.

BTW I just spent 2 weeks in Jamaica, their network is CDMA. Roaming there from Verizon is $0.50 per outgoing text, $0.05 incoming texts (I think), and $0.99 per minute voice. Data is insane, $20.00 per MB!!!! Both resorts I went to had WiFi.

 

[SteveAbootman]

Airplane mode kills WiFi too.

Turn off Cellular Data and Voice Roaming and you should be good.

BTW I just spent 2 weeks in Jamaica, their network is CDMA. Roaming there from Verizon is $0.50 per outgoing text, $0.05 incoming texts (I think), and $0.99 per minute voice. Data is insane, $20.00 per MB!!!! Both resorts I went to had WiFi.

Airplane will kill everything. You can then go in and turn on WiFi by itself. Fewer taps and drill downs than turning off data and roaming.

 

[nostresshere]

First and most important, do not confuse answers. What happens on the ship at sea, vs ship in port, or while you are in some islands vs others are all different.

If U.S. Virgin Islands - you are still domestic.
Each foreign country has different rates. Check your carriers website for details.

While at sea, you will not get data my mistake. You are required to login. Turing off data roaming is a safety net though.

Phone calls AT SEA are $2.49 a minute. We always leave ours on and can handle a few calls. Your choice.

Texts are cheap.

Your unlimited plans do not apply at sea.

Cruising - make sure you visit cruisecritic.com

 

[kdarling]

If you're going on Carnival their WiFi service is expensive and slow. Not worth the money at all.

Depends on how much you need it, of course. Also, if you're in a suite it's often included for no extra charge.

Personally I usually go to the ship's passenger computer room and pay for just enough time on their desktops to check my email every day or two. The trick is to get on and off quickly, since you're paying by the minute. Don't sit there reading and replying.

It's a minor miracle that these ships have such comms in the first place. Medium speed (2Mbps down, 1Mbps up) satellite links can cost $1,000 a month just for a single user on a private boat. Last time I checked (admittedly a few years back), cruise ships were paying at least ten times that.