Disney Cruise Line Wave Phones

On our 11 night Christmas cruise this recently past year, we were among the first to experience Disney Cruise Line’s Wave Phones. There were rumors before our cruise began that they would be available for our cruise, but nothing was promised. When we got to our room there they were! On the desk next to the TV were two brand new Philips G955 handsets, a base charger, and an instruction pamphlet.

These are wonderful tools and an incredible way to keep in touch at sea. We have tried Walkie-Talkies and found them to be unreliable at best due to the ship construction and others on the air waves. Cell phone rates are pretty high, so not a great option, plus reception is spotty at best on lower levels. There is always leaving a message on your room phone or putting a message board up on your door – but who wants to run by the room for messages when there is so much fun happening! The wave phones are a great solution to these problems – and at a great price! The two Wave phones are provided for free use to each cabin, with additional phones available for a rental fee of $3.50 per day per phone. Losing, damaging, or failing to return your Wave phone will cause a charge of $250 per phone.

The phones can be used to call each other directly or call the room. You can send text messages as well. You can reach any phone on the ship with these. They have taken the place of pagers for the children’s areas. There are also functions such as an alarm and calculator. It is also a good way to tell time without changing your watch as you change time zones! Pre-programmed contacts are: Character Hot Line, Fire, Guest Services, Host/Hostess, Maintenance, Medical Emergency, Medical Non-Emergency, Oceaneer Club, Oceaneer Lab, Room Service, Security, Stateroom Request, and Vista Spa.

The wave phones can be used on the ships as well as Castaway Cay – yes, I tested them out all over! On our trip we used our phone when we left the room without our room key to reach the room attendant, when our program was moved to a new location and we needed to catch people in route, to talk with our daughter in the kids area – she just enjoyed calling and saying ‘Hi” to check in, it was also wonderful when our family split up on Castaway Cay to be able to reunite on the island! We were also tempted to call room service on our way home late at night for a snack. These phones are great!

There is one thing that would be very helpful to know when planning on using the Wave Phones during your cruise. The phones do not come with a clip or carrying case and are set on vibrate so as not to disturb a show or others. You need to plan on having good pockets or something else to carry your phone in when you are out and about the ship. I think a fanny pack would be a good option. I used my camera case and missed a few calls because I didn’t feel the vibration. The ship’s crew has a clip on their phones, but this is not available for the passengers. I would think this will be added in the future, but until then be prepared!