travelingtish

I've never been to the Caribbean. Should I assume that cell phones we use in the U.S. won't work there? We'll be wanting to make a couple of calls back home while we're there. If not, are there inexpensive prepaid phones readily available there. We'll be at a resort in the Dominican Republic.

travelingtish

Oops! In re-reading this for the second time (after posting it) I realized I ended three sentences in a row with the word "there." Looks really strange.

travelingtish

i

jamesr3939

Thanks for the grammer lesson. The answer is "it depends." My spouse had a Treo and now an Iphone. I have a Razor. We both use ATT. Her phones have worked in Mexico, Barbados, and Stockholm the minute we step off the plane or ship. Even her stored speed dial numbers worked in Stockholm.

Mine didn't!

LvSun

Haven't been to DR but have been to several other places in Caribbean. We called our cell phone carrier and had our phones set up for international calls (of course, there is a monthly charge for it).

On some islands, we have found that it is cheaper to rent a phone. Hubby makes a lot of calls to US and often the minutes are much cheaper via the rental phones.

If you have AT&T, goto http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/international/

travelingtish

Thanks. We'll check into that.

Memo to Jamesr--the "grammar lesson" was just to chide myself. I wanted to avoid hearing from someone else about my repetitiveness, so I beat them to it.

jenjay68

Does anyone else have info on cellphones in Dom Rep? Can you buy sim cards there that can be placed in my phone and work? My cell phone co is not intl.

greenie

best thing to do is call your provider.

doug_stallings

While it's possible to buy a SIM card in the DR (or even a cheap, prepaid cell phone), the phone rates there are pretty high, and you will pay a huge roaming charge to use your cell even if it works. A phone card will usually be cheaper. However, if you are staying in Punta Cana, it may be more hassle than you want to deal with to find a store that sells SIM cards, but some of the shopping plazas probably have stores that sell mobile phones or SIMs. If you are in Puerto Plata, then no problem because you're closer to a real town.

If you need to be reached in an emergency, make sure people at home know the number of your hotel. If you really, desperately have to call home during your trip, most resorts offer expensive long-distance rates that are still not much more than what your cell phone company would charge. For that reason, I'd probably just call from the hotel and keep the call short.

Finally, the best (and by far cheapest) way to communicate with the folks back home is email or Skype. If you set up a Skype account on the computer of the person you want to call, then you can call them (assuming they are on the computer) from the internet center of your hotel. Wi-Fi is still rare at the big AI resorts, but that's another way. If you have an iPhone, then you can use Skype on that to call home provided that you are in a Wi-Fi network.

mrcamp

While quite expensive, but for a quick call, you may as well just use your mobile. AT&T and tmobile will owrk there and they charge $1.99 and $1.49 a minute respectively. If you will be there for a while and plan on making more than a few calls, then you can get a DR sim card there easily.

jenjay68

mrcamp... and we just place the sim card in our phone? Where do we get a DR sim card and how much ? thanks!

travelenthusiast

Our Verizon phone worked in Barbados, Mexico and St Martin. It didn't work in Aruba. You might want to call your cell phone company and ask them what you need to do to have it work. They might need to adjust the settings. I'd be interested in reading your trip report from the Dominican Republic when you get back. Where are you staying?

mrcamp

jenjay68,

Yes, as long as your phone is unlocked you can get a sim from any of the shops or kiosks and out it in your phone. Orange DR is one of the GSM carriers there that come to mind. You may need to check their website for pricing.

jenjay68

Travelenthusiast--

Thanks for the info... I have 3 daughters and being gone from them for a week will be hard for me. I definitely want to be able to use my phone while I am there. We are staying at Grand Pallidium Bavaro. You ever been there. I have read so many reviews... Seems people either love or hate the DR. I am a little worried about Montezuma's Revenge, but hopefully food will be ok..... Heard El Presidente Beer is good and my fiance is very excited about that! I have had others recommend drinks too. I will check out that website.

debsnj

Our Verizon phones worked in Aruba. When we got there we did *228 to set up international calling, it was $1.99 a minute.

travelenthusiast

Debsnj - We'll try that next time. Since the phone worked in other countries I didn't think that we could use a code for it.

Tish - I've never been to the DR. We tried an All Inclusive once in Jamaica (Sandals Dunns River in 1998) and didn't like it. Most of the resorts in the DR seem to be AI so it isn't a place that we've been drawn to. I have a coworker that has gone there several times and really likes it which makes me think that maybe I should consider it as a possible destination someday. Where are you staying in the DR?

jenjay68

We are staying at the Grand Pallidium Bavaro in DR.. does your coworker have info info about cell phones there ?