Katryn-- It has been 9 years since my son was deployed on a ship, so not sure how ship phone service works now, but when my son has been base-deployed in foreign countries, he has been able to suspend his stateside phone service with Verizon because he is deployed military, then reclaim his old number when he gets home. He buys a new phone as soon as he gets to the new country, that he knows will work locally. Then, he gets his phone service from Google on line. When he calls us, our caller ID shows the number is from "Ontario, California." When we call him, we are not charged for a foreign call, because the Google service is based in California.
I recently got to take a Tiger Cruise on a carrier with my son who is a Chief Warrant Officer. Officer Country gets wi-fi in the wardrooms and the hanger bay but regular phone calls are non-existent. There are no cell towers in the middle of the ocean!! :) My son and I both used our phones all the time to check emails, post pics on facebook, and such like that. He was able to make a couple phone calls to get plane tickets as we were coming near port but I'm not sure how he did it unless they were wi-fi calls. My phone was basically a camera and a computer with internet access.
Thanks everyone for your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. I was just able to connect with someone stateside at ATT and he told me that we could add a "cruise package" to my sons phone for $100.00 per month and the would have unlimited talk, text, data while on the ship. He said the minute he steps off the ship though that plan no longer applies and if he uses his phone we could be charged up to $50 a minute. For shore time, he would need an "international day pass" which is $10 per day or $100 per month...I "think" the cruise package is the way to go as long as he has internet on the ship. I don't want to sign up for something and pay $100 extra per month to find out it doesn't work. If anyone has experience with this plan, I'd love to hear how it's working. Thank you all again for the support. It's really great to know you are out there...:).
M's mom
Katryn-- It has been 9 years since my son was deployed on a ship, so not sure how ship phone service works now, but when my son has been base-deployed in foreign countries, he has been able to suspend his stateside phone service with Verizon because he is deployed military, then reclaim his old number when he gets home. He buys a new phone as soon as he gets to the new country, that he knows will work locally. Then, he gets his phone service from Google on line. When he calls us, our caller ID shows the number is from "Ontario, California." When we call him, we are not charged for a foreign call, because the Google service is based in California.
Dec 3, 2023
Anna
Katryn,
I recently got to take a Tiger Cruise on a carrier with my son who is a Chief Warrant Officer. Officer Country gets wi-fi in the wardrooms and the hanger bay but regular phone calls are non-existent. There are no cell towers in the middle of the ocean!! :) My son and I both used our phones all the time to check emails, post pics on facebook, and such like that. He was able to make a couple phone calls to get plane tickets as we were coming near port but I'm not sure how he did it unless they were wi-fi calls. My phone was basically a camera and a computer with internet access.
Hope this helps!!
Dec 3, 2023
Katryn
Thanks everyone for your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. I was just able to connect with someone stateside at ATT and he told me that we could add a "cruise package" to my sons phone for $100.00 per month and the would have unlimited talk, text, data while on the ship. He said the minute he steps off the ship though that plan no longer applies and if he uses his phone we could be charged up to $50 a minute. For shore time, he would need an "international day pass" which is $10 per day or $100 per month...I "think" the cruise package is the way to go as long as he has internet on the ship. I don't want to sign up for something and pay $100 extra per month to find out it doesn't work. If anyone has experience with this plan, I'd love to hear how it's working. Thank you all again for the support. It's really great to know you are out there...:).
Dec 4, 2023