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agingstarlet · 24-10-2011, 10:36

Hi, I just joined the forum and I'm finding all sorts of great information.

We are planning a circumnavigation and being (only slightly) addicted to the internet I am worried about going cold turkey. Does anyone know how far offshore the broadband to go services work?

Nico Domino · 24-10-2011, 15:16

Depends where in the world you are

SkiprJohn · 11-11-2011, 13:40

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Good to have you here and posting. Sorry I can't help with your specific question but there are others here who can so you might want to post your question in a new thread in a forum other than meets and greets. Go up to the first line and click on forums to see the options.
kind regards,

svWindfall · 11-11-2011, 14:14

Hello, we're full time cruisers (currently in Panama). Why go cold turkey? There is free WiFi at most marinas (and coffee shops, stores, etc...) and USB plug-ins available cheaply almost everywhere you have phone signal...sometimes up to 10 miles offshore. Here, Panama provides FREE WiFi for the city including the anchorages and marinas (around Panama City) and you don't even need a booster antenna aboard to get great signal. For other areas, a good hint is to get an Extreme Bad Boy WiFi antenna booster - we get signals up to 5 miles away (yes really) and it works great.
Mexico works well with the USB Banda Ancha (about $30-$40/mo) that can be re-charged at any OXXO store ...it's easy. And, if you want email anywhere, get your Ham license (General) and use Winlink (Free) - or subscribe to Sailmail (about $240/year) and use your SSB radio. A great place for more cruisers information is the yahoo group Southbound southbound_group : The Southbound Group ...it also provides lots of great information for cruisers.
Hope to see you out here!

Dhillen · 11-11-2011, 20:56

This is the area of boating that is changing the fastest, as you might well imagine. It all depends on your budget and what you are willing to spend. One thing to keep in mind, however, is when people talk about "sailmail" and "winlink" using the shortwave radio, it is not the internet. All that happens is your text-only email is patched into the internet once an onshore station receives the shortwave transmission from your boat. So, while it works great for keeping in touch almost anywhere in the world, it isn't "live" internet.

We used Sailmail successfully on our three year honeymoon cruise around southeast Asia, across the Indian Ocean, up the Red Sea and through the Med. You just have to make sure you have a strong signal and usually can only use it at certain times of the day. While not convenient, it is a viable option for letting people back home know you are still out there (literally and figuratively).

Cheers.

Dhillen