I am going on two cruises in October. I called my cell phone provider, ATT, and they quoted me a price for Nova Scotia, Canada, and the Bahamas. It is per minute charge, and, there is also a different charge while on the ship. She also told me that if I leave my phone on and someone tries to call me and I dont answer but it goes to voice mail that I would be charged for that. Bahamas was 2.29 per minute. Canada .79 per minute. but on the ship flat fee is 2.49 per minute. So what I suggest tat you call your carrier and ask. Hopes this helps and happy cruising. (I was in the Bahamas last year at his time and it was hard to get connectedout on the pay phones and once I did it was very expensive_)
I used my cell on our cruise back in March from the Dawn during rough seas. I seriously thought it would be the last time I spoke to my parents, so ya know. I ended up being charged an extra $40 for roaming. haha It was worth it, though. Just be aware that every minute is racking up the $$$'s.
And oh...I have Sprint by the way. My plan is "no roaming", but I guess when you are out in the middle of the sea, that doesn't happen. haha It's nice to know that you can call and tell people you are ok and all that jazz. My Mother definitely enjoyed that!