Walkie Talkies on a Cruise Ship - Cruise Tips TV
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- Опубликовано: 28 авг 2024
- Do walkie talkies work on a cruise ship? This episode we'll let you know what we've discovered about using walkie talkies on cruises.
Hi It’s Sheri from CruiseTipsTV
Today we are going to talk about the hotly debated topic of Walkie Talkies on cruise ships. We’re not going to tell you if you should or shouldn’t use them. We are simply going to offer some tips to help you if you are considering them for your next cruise. And if you stick around until the end of the video, we’ll let you what we have decided.
We thought it would be fun to start with a quick Pros & Cons list, and follow that up with a few tips. First up the pros: I’ll handle the cons. Really? We’re going to do the old split screen routine. Yup, I like it. Okay, but I was here first. Let’s get started.
Pros:
1. Walkie Talkies are a fun way to communicate and can possibly save a few trips back and forth to the room
2. You probably won't be able to communicate by text or cell while onboard and walkie talkies provide a decent alternative
3. They’re great for keeping in touch with kids or when you're traveling with a group.
4. Terrific for shopping (I can look at what I want, and my husband can wander off looking at what he likes)
5.You get to feel like a secret agent (although the feeling doesn’t last very long)
Okay, your turn.
Cons:
1. In our experience they don't work well consistently
2. The beeping buzzing and loud “What!? Can you hear me? Is likely to annoy other passengers
3. They may be illegal in the destination country, and you therefore would be able not use them off the ship.
4. Anyone using the same unprotected frequency can listen in.
5. One more thing to carry around (and don’t guys look silly with stuff clipped to their belts?)
Okay, you can go now. Here’s the list again.
And now a few tips if you are considering using walkie-talkies on a cruise ship;
• Always be courteous (Be aware of your surroundings. It’s usually pretty easy to see when people are annoyed).
• Consider using a plug in earpiece, it’ll help you hear more and help others hear less.
• Don’t be fooled. Many units advertise extreme ranges 25 miles, 35 miles, and while these claims may be true in ideal locations and conditions, a cruise ship is assuredly not an ideal location for a walkie talkie.
• Shouting probably won’t help a garbled or static ridden conversation. If your inside voice doesn’t’ work, it’s best to just turn it off.
• Consider a less high tech solution.
Okay, so we bought the Motorola MR350R 35-Mile pair back when these were the most favor unit available. We had good luck with them the first time out. On the next cruise, however, they were pretty unreliable. We consider taking them from time to time, but ultimately it’s just one more thing to pack, one more thing to charge and make space for on a cluttered counter. But, do we still use them? Sure! You never know when you’re going to need a flashlight!
That’s it for this episode. Thanks for watching, and oh yeah, don’t forget to like and subscribe. Until next time, we’ll see you on the high seas!
I have used walkie talkies whenever we cruise. They make the trip so much better. We use commercial walkie talkies and they work so much better in the all metal and steal environment (similar to the ones that the crew uses). I have been able to rent them before I travel, as commercial walkie talkies can be rather expensive to purchase. The ships are so big these days, it is easy to loose your shipmates. This really helps with coordination and finding each other. It also saves hours of searching around the ship looking for your kids and or travel partners. Keep in mind that these walkie talkies can be expensive so be mindful of not loosing them on the ship. We put our cabin number on the radios, just in case. I hope this helps.
What kind?
The answer depends on your partner(s). If he/she is the type that will plop themselves down and stay in the same place (poolside, casino, library) for hours on end, then you don't need it. If you're a roamer, get it. Privacy doesn't matter because I can't think of anything that you'd say that would be to revealing. One word of caution; don't find each other via text. You'll get sticker shock on next month's phone bill.
My family is going on a cruise this october and are definitely going to need to use them. Traveling with 71yr old grandma, a mom with walking difficulties, and a 10yr old makes them a necessity. The adults are not going to be able to go back and forth to retrieve messages from the room. My 10yr old will always be with one of us adults unless she is in the kid's center and wants to get picked up since I won't be allowing her to check herself out. So regardless of others getting annoyed with us using them, that's simply their problem!
as a ham radio operator, I have plenty of experience using walkie talkies, IMO the best is digital radios, I use old Motorola Nextel radios with direct talk, they are secured, private and cannot be picked up by any scanner. The range is double than analog radios
Additional comments, my last cruise we communicated with Motorola's 900mhz radios, they have the best range, the negative is that it's annoying for others. I went by the pool to relax and read a book, there was several pool butlers talking on their 2way radios at a extremely loud speaker volume, so I put a negative comment on the review. The best is texting if available, it wasn't unless you pay high dollar internet package.
@@carlossantini3605 my GMRS Digital Motorolas we’re more than sufficient for a 1100 foot cruise ship, even if I were outside and kids in cabin. If your walkies can’t do about a qtr mile, even on a ship, time to get a new set. Portable Ham radios for a ship are way overkill.
I sure am glad that we can text each other on Carnival Breeze! Love the split screen "sisters!!"
They are useful and money savers considering the roaming charges. They are more clutter, yes, but efficient. To avoid disturbing other we use earpieces along with the vibrate mode. That way fellow passengers do not have to listen. Try it, its fun.
as a ham radio geek i always bring the FRS. i talked to the wife thru a few decks of metal. but not top to bottom of ship. pick hi power and a channel with pl tone. chances are nobody else will pick what you did. this makes it nearly private. saves a lot of time if i need to find the wife, 'bring me sunscreen, im at deck whatever'. save the battery, used prearranged talk times. has come in handy many times for several cruises. maybe you spent alot of time finding somebody on the ship,but i never did. its called radio.
+cqpate thanks for sharing this. It sounds like you are way more knowledgeable on the topic. I haven't packed one on a cruise for quite some time, but now you're making me want to do it again
if you dont want to be found.... skip the radio. one more thing, i see some people holding the radio straight up and their friend holding it horizontal. thats a good way to hurt communication since the antennas are not 'polarized' the same. so everybody needs to agree antenna up and antenna horizontal. maybe not much reduction if the person is nearby using FRS frequencies but sometimes every bit helps at a distance.
Exactly. Hold the radio straight up and avoid holding it horizontal. And avoid talking loudly or directly into the mic. Also, turn off the obnoxious roger beeps and tones.. They get real annoying.
We're fortunate. Both my wife and I are licensed Hams. We carry our portable radios just about everywhere. Having them is very convenient, and being able to use a somewhat higher power radio (4- 5 watt) is an advantage that keeps us in touch even if we are opposite ends of the ship. The FRS radios, like the one you showed, are lower in power (about 1/2 - 1 watt) and still can be useful if you're not trying to reach between decks at opposite ends.
The unfortunate side of using 2-way radios is, as you mentioned, if used improperly can be an annoyance. As Ham Radio operators, we tend to be a little more discreet, and even over heard many people comment about useful it would be if they had brought theirs along. However, too often I witness improper use. If the other person has a difficult time hearing you, the tendency is to speak louder, and usually that is the worst thing you can do when using a radio. Louder = more distortion. Helpful TIP: talk in a normal tone across the mic, not directly into it and you will almost always sound better to the other person.
One other advantage we hams have is, reciprocal licensing. Applying ahead of time with the communication ministry of a non US territory, will get us a temporary license to operate while in port.
If they can be of benefit, I encourage cruisers to take them even if you end up not using them. Just be mindful of others so as not to be a nuisance. Limit their use with kids, and be sure to instruct them on when to and when not to use, and how to use them properly.
Dmr would be cool to use
You know you need to have both the captains permission as well as agreements depending on the flag of the ship for Ham Radio. FRS is ok on most ships but not on shore. ARRL highlights this topic. Of course many use the "easier to ask for forgiveness" technique ;-P
I spoke with someone who was on a Carnival Ship in the Caribbean once. He didn't care and neither did I. LOL
The Norwegian iConcierge app lets you make calls over the ships wifi. There is a fee, I think it's around $10/week. It's not a feature we needed to use. The old fashioned method of I'll be in X or meet me in X at Y O'clock worked perfectly for us.
Nice! That is cool!
We brought them and never used them... Just back from Alaska so fun!
welcome home!
thejokerspeaks lol I might need it because I always wonder away and get lost
Love both Sherry’s 😍
Haha!
Carnival has the Hubb App and for $5.00 per person for the entire cruise, you can have messaging via Wifi. That's what we did and it worked great.
+danny Mason nice!
We always do that and is the best way and no one hears your conversation jajaja love it.
The "annoyances" related to FRS/GMRS usage like beeps, chirps and all that can be completely disabled. When I'm using a FRS "handy", I usually don't want people to know it so I turn off key tones, squelch tones, use a lower volume, most of the time a headset and turning on "VibraCall" vibrates the thing when it requires attention. You can do without "roger beeps" if you pay attention to the device, it has a light that turns off when no one is transmitting.
To be fair Walkie Talkies would save you tons of money on your phone bill in return so really if somebody reports you just ignore them as end of the day it's like watching two kids playing with Walkie Talkies and been told off by the staff Security or on the other hand why can't the cruise ships rent them out for a small fee?
You can even purchase them on some ships.
I think this would be a great idea! My boyfriends side of the family are always traveling on cruises once, or even twice a year. His family only is 6 people, his parents, himself and the triplets. So walkie talkies actually might come in handy talking between all 7 people. And that's a small cruise, sometimes other family members would want to tag along, more kids and more adults, so maybe up to a total of 15-25 people, so again, this definitely would come in handy, but then again like you said in the video.. It's one more thing to pack, charge and to carry. Might not be worth it. But I think it would be cool to have
+xxlovelaughlivexx20 see, it's a tough call!! Pros and cons on both sides.
With a big group, I can see how it would be handy - one wallow talkie per group or something like that :-)
+CruiseTipsTV *walkie* not wallow....sorry
+CruiseTipsTV it's true every. I remember a story my boyfriend was telling me. That his dad told him to get him a slide of pizza while he was getting one for himself, and when he came back onto deck, his dad wasn't there and his mom had no idea where he went, 15 mins later, HT ended up going to look at stores in the cruise, I think a walkie would have been perfect!
+xxlovelaughlivexx20 very * ops haha
Walk it Like I talk it, Walk it like I talk it....
Last cruise I went on (Carnival Imagination to Catalina Island and Ensenada in March 2015) I used walkie talkies to keep in touch with my brother. Btw the clone of yourself was funny for the video. Attack of the Clones!
Rainbow Runner hi.. how was it?? Leave in two weeks.. how was the walkie talkie use. We have 3 teenagers coming with us also
An onboard passenger communication system using smartphones and tablets would be a step in the right direction. With so many negative comments about the use of W/T devices on cruise ships, it would seem the big cruise line corporations would have rolled out some type of onboard technology to meet the needs of a tech oriented cruising populace a long time ago. Being able to reach family and friends traveling on the same cruise by text or voice would make cruising a real modern day pleasure.
Mort Tort Great comment Mort. We couldn't agree more!
FREE WIFI. Seriously, all they need is free wifi, and all your smart devices can still text and even call each other using any number of apps.
No kidding Mike!
I sometimes have to choose hotels with WiFi over cruises so I can get my work done. Hmmm...you'd think they'd find a way.
Brough My Baofeng Bf-888s with a Motorola UHF 6 inch "whip" antenna and worked great! Went all the way to the back of deck 12. other person went to deck 1 in the comedy club, only a very faint static but other than that, heard loud and clear and both were understood. Before I get yelled at by ham radio users......They were reprogrammed to a legal frequency.
You can prevent others listening in by using voice scrambling or encryption. These features are available on licence free walkie talkies, but will cost more than that consumer grade Walkie Talkie you had.
Depends if you are using them for working on a cruise ship, or being a passenger as to whether you are prepared to pay the extra cost for privacy. Is data protection important?
PS: Even scrambled / encrypted radios are not totally secure from eavesdroppers (with the right equipment to decode), though I would imagine that it would be unlikely that the passengers would have the necessary equipment with them on the ship.
+Yesway Communications Thank you for this insight!
digital radios are encrypted.
Encryption on these can easily be hacked and heard as it's simple voice inversion sure way not to be heard get digital not this rubbish...
I don't think I'd be bringing one - I'm sure it would get old very quickly (like the first day.) There's really only a few of places you're gonna be... the buffet, casino, or the pool.
Thanks for weighing on Pat we've left ours at home on our last few trips as well.
Planning to use UHF Radios (from Australia) with DCS (Digital Squelch) - any comments - 2 Radios with 2W power & one with 0.7W
Well this time with a delay of 3 years thanks to COVID19 we will be taking 4 of Oricom 2 Watt 2190/2195 units to share amongst 3 rooms for our extended family. We have enough chargers to have per room so hoping they prove effective in terms of range. 2 cabins on Deck 10 and 1 cabin on Deck 8. Should be fun using them anyway.
Good Lord, now there's two of'um??.😁😘
most walkie talkies have an option to use a headset and privacy codes
How old are u man?
your videos have been helping us out a lot getting ready to go on a cruise was going to get walkie talkies but you said they don't work that good so nevermind thanks
+Travis Mayes sometimes we pack them, but they tend to be unreliable.
Have a great trip!
Thanks
We discovered by happenstance that Golden Princess offered a pseudo texting option for free via the ship's wi-fi. Guest Services has a sheet on how to set it up. It allows messaging without notifications. One other benefit was the schedule of shipboard activities freed us from the Princess Patter.
Thanks for the comment Dan! We recently used that service on Princess in Alaska and loved it. Did you find it to be consistently reliable?
It seemed to work for us. One of the nice features we found was setting up groups, so we could message everyone in our party at once.
Do you have any updated tips on communicating without walkie talkie? It is a big ship and I know that my family will do majority of things together, but just in case we are separated, what would be the best way? I know for sure that we will stick together while on shore, but on the cruise, I would think a quite alone time would be great.
+sweetpuppy120489 sure! I'll answer this in the next weekly vlog. Is that okay?
Is it Ok if you can give me just one quick tip? I am actually leaving in a couple days and didn't see this video until yesterday. I won't be able to watch until the end of next week. lol
+sweetpuppy120489 sure. I recommend you use the cruise line app to text each other onboard
What line are you cruising with?
I am cruising with Carnival Imagination. Though I heard that it needs wifi and it is very costly
+sweetpuppy120489 the wifi is $60 for the whole cruise and totally worth it - you may consider buying wifi as its one of the cheaper ships to do so
Anyone brought a scanner on board (Uniden BC75XLT).?
Check the allowed list. I noticed on Carnival scanners are not allowed while ham radio equipment is. But don't get to excited. The paperwork and foriegn country licenses are a joke.
Ok ok...
I own this very set in this video.
This is great set.
There is a vibrate setting, a hands free setting, (Reminds me of speaker phone)
An emergency alert button, vox weather and the little flashlight is handy.
I dont like the switch because its not continus light. You have to hold it down.
But...get an ear bud and control your volume. Practice with your radios B4 the application. Most women piss me off in this area. If it has more then three steps they toss it. If they are taught how to use them, if they understand the functions and remember the agreed on chans and privacy codes. 14-115 etc you will be great full you own these. Keep one in each car as well.
Check out the hub on carnival and text using your cell. Just download before or you will have to pay for bandwidth on the ship.
Solution to looking like a dad from 1980: Buy one that offers BT connectivity and use your fancy in-ear head phones.
How about portable FM transmitters??
Going on April 29 cruise on Carnival Pride out of Baltimore. Any advice on a balcony aft suite vs. starboard side balcony stateroom? Is Deck 6 a good choice?
I'd say book that suite as long as deck 6 is not over a bar, lounge or nightclub!
Flashlight??? Really?
I carry and encourage all cruisers to have a flashlight. Crew members carry them for a reason. Inside a ship at night with a power failure can be pretty dark. Don't need much light or for long. I use one of the little flat, rectangular units designed for a key ring. It works well and is all I need. A benefit is that by flashing it on and off, you can get the attention of your spouse on the other side of the theater (IF he is looking for you).
Your too funny.... I love the "my time" and don't want to be found. So we leave the walkie talkies at home.
Just watching this video and they are private there are privacy codes in the channels so you can be private
Thanks for the info Harry!
I think what they meant by private is that others can hear your conversation.
honestly they are not worth the hassle. the metal bulkheafs walls and hull of a ship stop most of the signal especially as low as a frequency as walki talkies. microwave transmitters on phones are ideal as they penetrate steel far better. and generally ships might not want them as the crew use them for communication if possible
+TTT 1 excellent points - we tend to agree!
the crew radios use private repeaters to communicate thru the whole ship.
Sheri… Do you still use Walkie Talkies? Are they still worth it? Can you give us an update? (NovemberJoseph)
Hey Joseph. I personally don't use them anymore, and haven't seen many (if any) on our last few cruises. Great question.
Qual o alcance desse rádio na cidade obrigado
Veja este vídeo para obter informações sobre a gama ruclips.net/video/i_X5TJoSIsk/видео.html
Obrigado
Do you still use walkie talkie? I know that some cruise ships have apps now.
We haven’t for a long time
xox
zello is better app on phones
Cool, what is Zello? Tell us more!
Zello is a walkie talkie app.... that uses WiFi or a phone signal.
So not cool I'm afraid 😉
You will be loathed by your fellow passengers. Period.
I tend to agree with that. If people were considerate and moved to be alone to use them it would be OK but not sure if they would.
Do you mean the same fellow passengers that use speakerphone on their cell phones. Are those the people? It a good thing those people dont annoy anyone. By the way I have earpieces on my radios so that you cant heat what I'm talking about.
radios!!!!!! what about bloody mobile phones me,me,me, flash ! selfe , selfish and loud more like !
I personally don't know the purpose of this video. Positive or negative opinion on walkie talkie in general?
Text....
Don't work and very annoying