Pricing information is almost impossible to find. Here is what Princess says on its website, and AIRC the information provided at sea was similar:
Pricing
Neither MCP nor Princess set retail pricing. Retail pricing is set by your cellular provider, and while we would like to be able to provide guidance, it is impossible for MCP or Princess to comment on independent rate plans. When in doubt please contact your cellular provider.
or in other words: We're not going to tell you what it costs!
I know when we used our cell phone at international roaming rates ashore to check with a guide, the rate was $6 a minute! Presumably at sea it would have been the same.
When using the cruise ship network, the International Roaming voice rate is $2.49 per minute. Data usage is billed at the standard pay-per-use rate (approximately $20 per MB).
From Att.com though I would assume they may use your minutes from your plan in addition and possibly add connection charges as well.
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11 cruises in 2012 finished!
Total: 90nights at sea visiting 15 countries
BOOKED: Princess Diamond May 25th for 28nights to Alaska
PM me if you need a cruisemate for any Panama Canal cruises in 2013
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Date, ship, cost pp
From Att.com though I would assume they may use your minutes from your plan in addition and possibly add connection charges as well.
No, not at all likely. They are paying for the ship's satellite service. They are effectively partners with the company that supplies the ship's satellite service, who are in turn partners with the cruise lines.
They are all going to want a share of the income from your phone calls. No plans are going to cover calls from a ship at sea.
I haven't seen any cell phone towers out in the ocean. The ship's repeater converts your cell phone into a sat phone.
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Bob
A Bad Day At Sea [with power] Always Beats A Good Day At Work
Alaska 2014 - haven't picked a cruise yet
Carnival: Glory 2004, Destiny 2008, Splendor 2009, Freedom 2011, Valor 2012
Celebrity: Summit 2011
Princess: Ruby 2010, Caribbean 2013
When I cruise, I call my son everyday. I keep the calls short and turn off my phone after each call.
Our bill has allways been reasonable.
TM
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CRUISES
Century 4/1998
Mercury 4/2000+4/2006+7/2007
Sensation 4/2002
Infinity 4/2003
Summit 4/2004+4/2005
Carnival Liberty New Year's Eve 2007
Liberty of the Seas 5/2008+11/2009
Solstice 4/2009
Oasis 4/2010+4/13/2013
Allure 1/16/ 2011
Equinox 4/11/2011
Right now I am in Lezno, Poland. For this trip and previous trips I purchased an International Data Plan from Verizon. The cost is $25/100 MB. I have gone through 100MB and have used 26 MB of the second 100 MB increment.
By the time I get home I am guessing that my data cost, from Verizon, for my phone will be around $75 for eight weeks. If I did not sign up for this plan my cost would be over $1,000. I check my usage and charges every few days.
If you have International Calling your "Anytime Minutes" or monthly allowance IS NOT DEDUCTED. You are charged .99/minute to $2.99/minute, depending on country, for voice calls. You are also charged, on Verizon, .50 for outgoing texts and .05 for incoming.
I am expecting a total bill of around $400 for eight weeks in Europe. This includes my normal allocation for three phones, 2000 minutes, unlimited domestic texts and domestic data. The International charge will be about $250 of the $400. The voice calls are what cost the most.
This is for Verizon only. Other providers may, and probably will, have different rates and plans.
On the ship you are charged $2.49/minute, for voice calls, no matter what plan you have but data was covered under the International Data Plan while on the ship.
Take care,
Mike
__________________ Cruisemates Community Leader/Moderator
"There is a great difference between being well traveled and just having been to many places." ~Me
Right now I am in Lezno, Poland. For this trip and previous trips I purchased an International Data Plan from Verizon. The cost is $25/100 MB. I have gone through 100MB and have used 26 MB of the second 100 MB increment.
By the time I get home I am guessing that my data cost, from Verizon, for my phone will be around $75 for eight weeks. If I did not sign up for this plan my cost would be over $1,000. I check my usage and charges every few days.
If you have International Calling your "Anytime Minutes" or monthly allowance IS NOT DEDUCTED. You are charged .99/minute to $2.99/minute, depending on country, for voice calls. You are also charged, on Verizon, .50 for outgoing texts and .05 for incoming.
I am expecting a total bill of around $400 for eight weeks in Europe. This includes my normal allocation for three phones, 2000 minutes, unlimited domestic texts and domestic data. The International charge will be about $250 of the $400. The voice calls are what cost the most.
This is for Verizon only. Other providers may, and probably will, have different rates and plans.
On the ship you are charged $2.49/minute, for voice calls, no matter what plan you have but data was covered under the International Data Plan while on the ship.
In a moment of stupidity on my cruise, i decided to try and find out what happened on the season finale of one of my favorite shows. 5 minutes of searching turned into a very hefty bill...i could have put a nice downpayment on my next cruise, or depending on the ship, could have just paid for a whole one!
Plus...didn't even find what i was looking for until i got home anyway!
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NCL Epic 2012
"A painter paints pictures on a canvas, but musicians paint their pictures on silence"
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