Technology, Cell Phones, Lifestyles, Life, Connectivity
SOURCE: CNN
Cell service may be next wave in cruise technology
Wednesday, July 21, 2004 Posted: 10:33 AM EDT (1433 GMT)
MIAMI, Florida (AP) -- Pam Lome loves sitting on the deck when she's on a cruise, the shoreline shrinking on the horizon as the ship pulls out to sea. It's relaxing to know that, at least for a short time, she's leaving her everyday troubles behind.
"It's supposed to be a way to get away from it all," said Lome, a 45-year-old former travel agent from Buffalo Grove, Illinois.
But with a new service the industry is beginning to embrace, the tranquility many passengers cherish on cruises may be shattered by the cacophony of ringing cell phones. The service makes regular mobile phones work even when communications towers are miles of ocean away.
It's just the latest way technology is changing cruise vacations, which now offer Internet access, pay-per-view television and digital music libraries.
To Beth Abrams, the more communications technology onboard, the better.
Abrams, a 40-year-old first-grade teacher from Freehold, New Jersey, recently traveled on the Norwegian Dawn from New York down the East Coast. The ship was close enough to shore to reach Nextel phone's network, so she could stay in touch.
"I need it. My husband's self-employed. He needs to be in contact on a daily basis. We have someone taking care of our home that we need to talk to. We have pets at home that we need to check up on," she said while the ship was docked in Miami.
In the past, "we would just be out of contact for a week and hope for the best," she said.
But what about passengers like Lome who want to enjoy a relaxing getaway?
"I don't want to be on deck by the pool getting some sun and listening to someone talk about their stock options," she said...
For more, click on the link provided...