MIAMI If youre taking a North American cruise on the Norwegian Sun next month and want to stay in touch with the family back in Michigan, AT&T Wireless has got you wired. The company announced Tuesday that it has partnered with Maritime Telecommunications Network to let vacationers bring and use their cell phones on board.
The cruise line operator NCL Corp. claims to have offered the cruise industrys first Internet caf in 1999. In 2002, NCL said it was the first cruise line to provide Wi-Fi to its guests. Both services are now standard throughout NCLs entire fleet.
Cutting-edge onboard technology is important to our guests, said Colin Veitch, NCLs president and CEO. While we recognize that some guests traveling with us choose to disconnect, others need to stay connected to loved ones or business associates in order to get away its just another choice offered to our guests as part of the Freestyle Cruising experience.
The new wireless technology is expected to be introduced on the Norwegian Sun as soon as next month and could be available fleet-wide within a year. The package combines satellite and wireless services, enabling passengers to make and receive calls on their own cell phones with their own phone numbers while in international waters.
The service will be available to most passengers with GSM phones that operate at 900 MHz and 1900 MHz, which are common in the United States. These passengers will be able to make and receive both voice calls and text messages. Passengers with data-capable GSM/GPRS devices can access data services, such as email and picture messaging.
Heres the rub: Passengers will be billed by the carrier to whom they subscribe at roaming rates set by that carrier, just as if they were roaming on land instead of at sea. So make sure your roaming charges dont cost more than the trip.
