Cellular Phones in the Caribbean

If you own a charter yacht or are a frequent yacht charterer in the Caribbean, and if you have to remain connected to the business world you thought you left behind, then you are probably using a cellular phone during your cruises. And if you do, then you are in the — expensive — hands of Boatphone, or Cable & Wireless Caribbean Cellular, or one of their franchises. In which case, you probably choke every time you, or your boss, see your telephone bill when you get back home. Not to mention the lethal rates of those inocuous-looking pay-phones in the Bahamas or in the BVI. When used with a credit card operator, who gives no warning, rates are often around (get this) $7.00 per minute. Beware!

At $4 per minute for outgoing calls from the Caribbean to the continental US, that is about 40 times more expensive than what we typically pay in the US. We will not try to qualify this; it's just a fact! And if you try to use a land pay phone, "Cable and Wireless" assaults your mental health as well at $2.50 or so a minute for a call to the US. At those rates, I would not even think about connecting to the Internet unless I wanted to alter my sanity for a while! Can we fight back? Yes, we can. Here are a few ideas.

1. Many charter yacht owners in the Caribbean have managed to get Boatphone in the BVI to let them open "Flexphone" accounts, available in some areas. Either by themselves, or with the help of their Charter Company.

1. A Flexphone account gives you a permanent phone number in your area, even if you bring your own cellular phone from the US. Boatphone's network will switch your phone automatically when you enter its area.

2. Flexphone rates are twice as low as the regular rates above, and even lower off-peak and on weekends. No daily flat charges either. For incoming calls, the rate is ¢75 a minute, which definitely beats the $2 a minute for the plain tourist!

3. To obtain the Flexphone plan, you will probably need to establish that you are a regular visitor, although at this writing (March. '05) we have reports that the Flexphone accounts are opening up more liberally. Or you will need to have your Charter Company apply some leverage on Boatphone for it to accept to give this privilege to all its owners' fleet. We've done it, so we know it is possible.

2. When you cruise in some areas that are in clear sight of a US island, even if you are not in the US territory, your personal phone can acquire the US signal (from Cingular or Verizon for example) and by-pass the Boatphone network altogether. The areas we know get US signals: in the British Virgin Islands, Jost Van Dyke, Cane Garden Bay, Sopers' Hole, and some places at the Bight (Norman Island) which are in remote sight of St. Thomas and St. John, but where you get the US signal for much cheaper.
   Even if you receive a signal from a US phone carrier, watch out. Cingular, for example, depending on your calling plan, may consider the US Possessions as roaming zones, even though your phone display shows the Cingular logo. Check with your carrier before leaving to be on the safe side.

3. If you don't need privacy for some of your calls, you can use your VHF to give phone calls. Check that the island you are cruising near has a general purpose station (like "BVI Radio" for example), raise it on the VHF and ask the operator to patch a phone call for you. They will assign you a frequency and you will get your call within a few minutes, using only the VHF. Remember, anyone tuning on the same channel will be able to listen to your conversation. Rates vary, but are cheaper than local cellular phone companies.

4. If you are a heavy user and communication is essential for you, consider the following. Either on your own or in partnership with other friends/owners, investigate the purchase of a mobile satellite phone. Equipment prices have come down sharply and the per-minute rate is about $1 as of this writing. Besides, the usage of this phone is not limited to your cruises, of course. Consider either Globalstar or Irridium -which is back in business with very reasonable rates, at about $1.50 per min.
   
   And now, satellite phones are available on a weekly rental basis, by Outfitters Satellite in Nasville, TN, or Worldcell. Rates around $50 per week + about $1.50 per minute. (Note: This is not paid advertising.)

5. Lastly, why not consider simply shutting off all communications with your world back home, and enjoy your time in paradise?

We realize that for some of us, this is the impossible dream, but isn't it the ideal solution, come to think of it? :-)

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