Eight years ago when I first travelled overseas, a phone was only a secondary consideration. The smartphone as we know it today was still in its infancy, and the ability to get a short-term SIM card in some countries was all but non-existent.

The following year when I decided to take my first cruise the landscape had not changed much. I had explicitly purchased a phone that would hold two SIM cards to allow for an international SIM card and the one from home. However, once I left the United States on that cruise the phone was useless. I could receive text messages and send them at a premium price and if I wanted to make calls at an even higher premium.

In the time between my first cruise in 2011 and my most recent in 2017 things have changed significantly. We have gone from smartphones being in the hands of the minority to not being able to live without them. When you think about heading off on a cruise ship how does this play out? Today I want to try and answer some of those questions you might have about taking a phone with you when cruising.

Is It Worth Taking?

Back in 2011, it was kind of pointless to take your phone with you when cruising. The only reason I carried it with me around the ship was that I wanted something with the time on it and I had opted to travel without a watch. Many other passengers that brought a phone left it in the safe in their cabin while onboard.

Fast forward to now, and there is a long list of reasons why you might like to carry your phone. However, making phone calls and sending text messages are likely not in that list. That is one thing that has not changed the costs that are associated with using your phone.

But there are still some reasons to consider taking your phone with you when you are cruising. With some of them below along with some things to consider while you are away.

Turn Off Mobile Data

The very first consideration when you are travelling on a cruise is to turn off Mobile Data. Mobile data is how your phone connects to the internet, and there are many applications these days that use this connection in the background. Things like e-mail, weather, social media apps and the list goes on.

The costs associated with data on cruise ships are surprisingly expensive. I will include some details on this below. But I would suggest checking with your specific provider before travelling as the costs may change or be different. But I would recommend turning this off to avoid one excessive phone bill when you get home.

How To Turn off Mobile Data on iPhone

1. Open device settings.
2. Select the “Mobile” or “Cellular” option.
3. Make sure the slider for “Mobile Data” or “Cellular Data” is in the off position.

How To Turn off Mobile Data on Android

I understand the below to work for turning off Mobile Data on Android. However, I am not a native Android user so it might be worth checking for your particular device.

1. Swipe Down from the top of the screen.
2. Select Settings.
3. Press Data Usage.
4. Flick the mobile data switch to off.

Only Use On Wifi

While onboard the cruise ship there may be options to use your phone (or other devices) on wifi. While this can be a somewhat lower price than what you might pay for mobile data it is neither free or cheap for the most part. In the past, I have spent anywhere between $100 and $250 for internet access with varying amounts of time included for accessing the internet.

However, more cruise ships are starting to bring many onboard services to a digital medium. My most recent cruise on the Sun Princess in 2017, I was able to check my account, chat with other passengers and review the daily events on my phone using wifi for free.

Watch Your Minutes or Data

If you choose to purchase an internet package while onboard a cruise ship you need to be aware of how much you are using to try and avoid using it to quickly. The cost of onboard internet services is often far from cheap, and the inclusions are usually not that much.

The first cruise that I travelled on I paid $100 for 250 minutes, which averaged to less than 10 minutes per day over 28 days. While my third cruise I paid $250 for 1000 minutes, which averaged around 34 minutes a day. But that is still 25cents a minute and if you forget to log off the minutes can disappear rather quickly.

On the other hand, some cruise lines are starting to offer a more diverse range of packages. Some packages work on the amount of data that you use as opposed to the time that you spend online. A somewhat appealing option when you are on a cruise ship considering that the speed is often not that great. You just have to be aware of what your phone may do in the background that can quickly make the data allowance disappear. So make sure things like auto updates and the like are turned off.

Another option that is starting to appear is the social internet plan. Often these plans will give you some level of access to a select range of social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the like.

The offers are something that does change significantly from one cruise line to another. So it is worth taking a look at what the company you are travelling with offers. The biggest problem I have found though is that online information can differ to what you find once onboard the ship. So always be prepared for things to be different.

Know How To Log Off

Especially when you are using a plan on a ship that limits how many minutes you are connected you need to know how to log off. It is better to take some time and find this out before you get connected. Usually, the information is readily available, but if you don’t understand take the time and ask the Internet Manager. It is better to know up front than to be trying to find someone to show you want to do while the minutes are ticking away.

Another little tip is to find ways to do things without being logged on to the internet while onboard. For example, if you are going to check your email, connect to the internet and download your email and disconnect the internet. You can then read your email and write replies while disconnected. Finally, connect to the internet to send your responses. You can save plenty of time by taking this approach as opposed to writing responses while connected.

Onboard Websites

Most cruise lines are starting to offer websites that are available while you are onboard. The sites will provide a range of different services but are designed to try and make things easier.

You might find you can check your cruise account, chat with other passengers, view the daily activities, book shore excursions, or numerous other options depending on the cruise line. These websites are often free to access and only require a wifi connection.

In some cases, you may even be able to access modified versions of news websites for free onboard. However, it will vary considerably between cruise lines and sometimes even between ships.

Know the costs

If you are taking your mobile phone with you on your cruise, it is essential that you know what it is going to cost if you use it. Phone providers might be starting to offer much better international roaming deals but this rarely cover usage onboard cruise ships.

They say that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but in this instance, the saying knowledge is power is much more appropriate. I do want to give you a little look at some potential costs below. But with hundreds of telecommunication companies around the world, everyone may be different. So I urge you to do a little research with your company.

Some of the prices may differ a little but either way, you look at you are paying a lot of money. So the basic thought from my point of view is unless it is an emergency avoid using your phone.

Now You Know

I hope that I have helped you to better understand and prepare for taking your phone on a cruise, without scaring you too much. The reality is that knowing this sort of information is the best defence against being caught out by it.

There is a question that comes up on occasions when talking about cruising. It is a question that does not seem quite as silly as you might think when you first hear it. The question of “Do I have to go ashore when we are in port?”

In most cases, the answer is a very simple “no.” However just like every answer there always a time that the regular answer does not apply. But let’s take a look at a couple of examples that I have experience or friends have followed.

Sometimes Leaving The Ship Is Mandatory

Before getting into other examples I will say that yes there have been times that it is a requirement to leave the ship in a port. The ports that this occurs in are generally few and far between and it is often an immigration requirement more than anything else.

In some 40 or so port calls while cruising there have only been two instances where I was required to leave the cruise ship. Of course, I did leave the ship in every port, in some way. The two instances were in Fort Lauderdale and Barcelona.

On my first cruise, the halfway point was Fort Lauderdale in Florida. Since the ship had visited multiple ports in Central America, we were essentially re-entering the United States. What this means is that every passenger had to pass through the US Customs. Even if you were continuing onboard the ship you still had to disembark to pass through this check. In some ways, I am glad this happened, as I had planned to stay onboard for the day. But while waiting in line met some people who I end up spending the day exploring Fort Lauderdale.

The second time was on my third cruise when the ship arrived at Barcelona. Essentially, the reason behind the requirement to disembark was the same. However, it seemed to be more a formality than any stringent process. I say this because the ship had already visited multiple ports in Europe and Spain before arriving in Barcelona. But I suppose they have to designate somewhere as the entry point to Europe for such purposes.

Staying Onboard is Just Fine

There have been days when cruising when I have spent the vast majority of a port day onboard the ship. One that comes back vividly is the city of Acapulco in Mexico and another was Antigua in Guatemala. In saying that I did spend some time off the ship in both ports.

When I visited Acapulco, I was not keen on heading out into the town after hearing stories from fellow passengers. There had been a number of passengers who when heading for the old town had people try and lure them down alleyways with offers of directions. Being a solo traveller I was not keen to test my luck and opted for a short walk around the terminal and a drink in a restaurant in the cruise terminal. In total spending probably less than 1 hour off the ship.

The story was rather similar in Guatemala. It was Good Friday there was not much close to the cruise dock except for a small market and a bar/restaurant. I took a short walk around the port area and had a drink in the restaurant before returning to the cruise ship. Again I spent maybe an hour off the ship.

In comparison, a friend I cruised with in February 2017 opted to stay on board for the majority of the cruise. There end up being four port calls on the cruise and she only left the ship for a short walk around the markets in one port.

It Is Your Holiday

Just remember that when you cruise it is your holiday. There is no one there saying that you must get off the ship and explore the port. While there may be the occasional port where you must go ashore due to immigration requirements. Ok and maybe that very last port when you must leave the ship to go home. Every other port it is generally your choice to go ashore or stay onboard. Of course, though remember to enjoy your cruise.