For anyone who has Verizon and has been to Japan how is the reception there? I had good reception in Narita but have never been out. We will be in Tokyo then cruise to Aomori, Hakodate, Kushiro and Otaru. We will also be in Korsakov, Russia.

Thank you.

Larry.

Verizon and the other US carriers partner with local Japanese carriers. Since Japanese cellular service is generally excellent, I expect that you will have no problems. Be advised that for voice, you will be roaming and paying a pretty steep per minute rate even if you have an international plan. If you use your phone primarily for data, look into an international data plan to avoid high overage fees. You might also look into pocket Wi-Fi for data:
https://japanwifiservice.com/en/what...cket-wifi.html

We switched from Verizon to T Mobile as T Mobile offers free data in 200 countries. We used Google maps extensively in Paris, and didn't pay a penny for the service. This is a relatively new offering by T Mobile, or we would have switched before our Japan trip.

Verizon had a data offer of I think 10 gigs for $25.00 so I took it.

I got a price from Verizon and IIRC it's about $3.00 per minute for calls.

How is intl. reception on T-Mobile Kathie?

Craig thanks for that link. As we will be on a cruise for most of our time there I wonder if it would connect while at sea. On land I think finding wifi should not be a problem.

The www rates on the ship are pretty high.

Pocket Wi-Fi uses the cellular system to connect so if there is no phone service there is no Wi-Fi.

Got it.

Thank you Craig.

Larry.

The reception in Paris was great. I can't speak for other places. We did have poor data reception in the Poipu area of Kauai, but voice was fine.

I expect you will have difficulty with any kind of reception on your cruise.

Once you are at sea its pretty much gone.

I can use the ships www service though its expensive and slow. Sometimes I end up just not even trying as the connection time is too long and I am chewing up my minutes waiting.

I've used T-Mobile's data/talk/text feature in Japan, Thailand, Cambodia, and France. Worked perfectly. The internet was sometimes 2G sometimes 3G. It was so nice being able to use things like google maps while out and about!