Cell Phones in Hawaii?
 

We will be in Hawaii for 3 weeks and moving from Island to island. Do cell phones from the continental US work on Hawaii and if so - I guess it could get extremely expensive. Can you rent a cell phone by the month while there?

Just got back from Hawaii, and my Verizon cell phone worked fine there -- I could call and recieve calls from the mainland with no roaming charges.

Call your cell phone provider, and they can tell you if your plan covers Hawaii.

Have fun!

You could even turn it OFF ! We leave ours at home, together with laptops etc.

No laptops BUT ............. we are leaving the kids at home (2nd wedding/honeymoon) so we need to be available.

My husband's (NY number) cell phone worked in Hawaii. We only used it once but the roaming charge was about $.60/minute.

My husband's AT&T cell phone worked just fine in Hawaii, and the roaming charges weren't too pricey.

Hawaii IS a US state, so it uses the same cell phone frequencies and operating system as the rest of the US.

My T-Mobile phone worked in Hawaii with no problems. No charges for calls or roaming charges. Since my plan has free mins/nights/wknds, didn't have to pay for any calls or roaming.

I've used AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon phones in Hawaii and had no problem. Coverage is spotty between Sunset Beach and Kahuku on Oahu. Coverage on Maui is generally O.K., except going to Hana. Coverage on the Big Island and Kauai is more sparse yet, but you can still get by. With winding roads and steep mountains all of the islands have scattered pockets with no reception but you'll be surprised at how good the overall coverage actually is.

As mentioned by a prior poster you'll need to check and see if you have a nationwide plan or just a regional plan. It might be worth changing plans for a billing cycle. You'll pay a higher fee for the month but avoid roaming charges.

I have an AT&T national plan so roaming and long distance is included. It doesn't cost me anymore to use my phone in Hawaii than at home. Check with your service provider to see what type of plan you're on and what coverage they have in Hawaii. It might be more economical to change plans for a month as the previous poster suggested than to rent a phone (assuming there is no charge to switch back).

Does anyone have experience w/ Cingular Wireless?? I have their nationwide plan w/ no roaming fees, but am wondering about Hawaii. Just curious. We are taking our phone on our December trip to Maui.

We brought both our cel pones, one uses cingular and the other at&t. They both operate on different bands (I forget the names, look in your book or call your company). The phone that used the older band worked better. We both have nationwide, no roaming no long distance, and everything worked fine and not extra charges. I beleive that there were some spots in Kauai and the big island that neither of us had a signal.

hi Nancy - we just got back from Hawaii and like the previous posters said, before I left, I called Verizon and changed my calling plan to include unlimited long distance. It was only $10 more a month, plus got more anytime minutes. Worked fine both on Maui and Kauai.

Another option is just pick up a couple calling cards from Sams Club. I ended up buying the calling card and then decided to change my cell phone plan, but the AT&T calling card was $19 for 650 minutes.

It appears that lots of people here are bringing their cell phones to Hawaii. May I just request you talk on the phone in your hotel room and not bother other hotel guests that are trying to relax? The reason I travel 3000 miles from home is to get away and relax. I'm not saying anyone here is a offender, I don't know. But please be curtious of those around you trying to get some peace and quiet. I don't care to hear you talk loudly to your friends or the office. Thank You.

sorry for typos

We take our Cingulars to Kauai every year and it seems once you get out past the Brick Oven Pizza in Kalaheo, service is very spotty.

A lot of peaks and valleys on that beautiful island. Worth not having the cell service.

Agree with natilie, too. A little courtesy always goes a long way no matter where you are.

Give your contact info to your kids' caregivers, and THROW THAT CELLPHONE IN THE OCEAN! Believe me, they WILL get in touch with you if necessary...Remember that great Corona commercial?..now that's a vacation!

We just got back from a 3 week, 3 island trip. We've got Sprint - no roaming or long distance charges anywhere in the U.S., including Hawaii.
On the Big Island, phones worked fine in the Hilo and Puna areas. No service up at Volcano. Assume there would be good coverage in Kona area. No problems with service from Oahu. On Maui, no problems in Wailea up to Kapalua. No service in Hana area.

I think some other providers have better coverage in Hawaii than Sprint does.

Does anyone know about Alltel coverage on the BI?

Thanks,
travellyn

Scene: Mexico, on the beach of a resort hotel

Players:
Me - Relaxing and blissfully reading a book.
Woman - in black swimsuit under adjacent palapa

Action!!!

BRRRRRINNNNG!!!!! "Hello," said Woman. "No, you can't go to the movies. It's a school night." etc., etc., etc.

BRRRRRINNNNG!!!!! "Hello," said Woman. "Ask your Grandma if she'll take you to McDonalds tonight." etc., etc., etc.

BRRRRRINNNNNG!!!! "Hello," said Woman. "Yes. You need to water the plants only once a week." etc., etc., etc.

BRRRRINNNNGGGG, BRRRRINNNNGGG, BRRRRINNNNNG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll spare you the rest of the "critical" one-sided conversations "me" was subjected to.

I have a (not-so-charitable) opinion of people who drive while talking on the cell phone, stride self-importantly through the airport talking on the cell phone, and absolutely MUST take their cell phones on vacation with them.

What in the world did we ever do on vacation when we needed to get a message or be available in case of emergency before the advent of the cell phone?

Simple! Give the CIA, the President, your acting or literary agent, or your kids and their caregiver your itinerary and all pertinent phone numbers, and leave the *&^%$ cell phone at home!

(But I'm sure no one on here would ever dream of blabbing on thoughtlessly on the blasted thing while someone is trying to actually relax on vacation...)

Aloohaaaaa,
Joan: The old folks know where to find me but we also use it for
arranging tee times, dinner reservations, see if a business is open/weather, calling Mrs Kal after golfing to meet at the Whaler, calling local buddies to get some info-arrange Taco Tuesday meetings, etc. w/o going thru the hotel's phone system and getting dinged for a call or while in the car/on the go.

Or to call my bro in law from the top of The Sleeping Giant where it was 78 degrees and about 40 degrees in his auto shop! O:) Yeah, I'm not proud but it was pretty funny. Especially when he called me from NYC last month. :&

T'lynn-Short-timer, eh? ((Y))

Another vote for leaving it at home, or leaving it off and checking your messages periodically. What are you going to do thousands of miles away from home? If they need you they will find you.
How I hate cell phones on the beach!!!!!!

"(But I'm sure no one on here would ever dream of blabbing on thoughtlessly on the blasted thing while someone is trying to actually relax on vacation...)"

Guess I was wrong.

I live in Hawaii and my TMobile works fine!

I will admit, I am like Kal...I use my cel phone on vacation every so often to rag on the poor saps sitting at home. hee hee. Well, on the practical side, when on a family trip, we use our cels to keep tabs on each other if we plan to meet at a certain place/time, etc. Keeps coordination less hairy.

Mels, Like for finding a bar in New Orleans? :-"

Diana-"""(But I'm sure no one on here would ever dream of blabbing on thoughtlessly on the blasted thing while someone is trying to actually relax on vacation...)"""

If you EVER found me doing this I would gladly let you climb up on a stool and club me over the head repeatedly. b(

My comment to Natalie-""Agree with natilie, too. A little courtesy always goes a long way no matter where you are.""

The ultimate beach nightmare?: Smoking parents on cell phones while kids are screaming and running around all over.
:((

Yipes Kal!

That is the ultimate beach nightmare =-O

I'm sure I'll run into them eventually. :)

I'm one of those people who leave incredibly detailed itineraries in case of emergency. I'm taking my cell phone because I'm too cheap to drop $1 per local call at a hotel, if I'm in a coverage area anyway. My husband keeps in close contact with his newly-widowed dad, and a cell phone makes that a lot easier. I might also use it to keep in touch with my husband, if we're doing vastly different things in different directions.

The phone would never come to the beach with me, because I wouldn't want to worry about losing it. I hate it when people talk on cell phones at restaurants, buses, ball games, etc., and I'm sure that someone using one loudly at a beach would drive me nuts.

For me it's not about calling work or chatting by the pool and bothering everyone. I would just like my 9 year old son to be able to contact me without having to give my entire itinerary of my honeymoon to my ex.

Nancy, that's one excellent reason for carrying a cell phone on vacation!

CLLRN,
I have cingular and my service was much better in Maui than it was in PA and NJ.

I'm from Atlanta, and I just returned from a week in Honolulu. I was very pleased with how well my Verizon service worked; I didn't have a single dropped call and the voice quality was excellent. With the phone calls in the hotel room costing $1 each, I was very glad I had the cell phone with me (no roaming or long-distance charges).

FYI--Just got back from the island of Lanai and they only have Verizon and AT&T service there. I have a T-Mobile phone and could not get any service!!

Hawaii and Vegas -- two spots that are literally filled with people yakking on cellphones.
I suggest Fodors do a new guidebook on travel destinations where there is little to no cell phone usage. I'd visit each and every spot. Twice. Heck, I might even move there.

question about cell coverage on Kauai... i have T-Mobile, and plannin on stayin on north shore, around princeville... anyone know how the coverage is around there? or anywhere on the island? saw the coverage map on T-mobile site and they seems to cover around lihue but not much anywhere else.. but after readin the threads im not sure anymore.... appreciate any info. thanks.