Cell Service Raja Ampat and Banda Sea

[Mike Veitch]

Buy a cheap Nokia, get a Telkomsel sim card anywhere in Indo for about $2.50, then add about $10 prepaid credit or more (100,000 rupiah). if you want to make phone calls you need to use the following:
01017 (1, which is the US international code) (area code) (phone number). For example, say you live in Seattle the sequence would be as follows: 01017 1 206 phone number. The 01017 is the best way to make international phone calls from a Telkomsel number, will cost you about 10 cents per minute.
IN Raja Ampat you will have signal in and around Sorong, then you will lose it until you get close to Dampier Strait where you will have it close to the island of Saonek which has a large tower, you can get spotty signal as far away as Manta Sandy but no further. You will not have signal north of the Dampier Strait, so areas like Aljui Bay, Fam, Wayag, will not have signal in North Raja. As you go south, you will not have signal in Batanta. However, in the Misool area you will get signal on the south side of Farondi and further west toward the pearl farm, as well as around Wayilbatan anchorage. You will not get it at Fiabacet or Daram although as you pass Fiabacet and head toward Wayil you will start to get some signal. Once you head south from Misool it will depend on your route. Most boats stop around Koon, no signal there, but you will get it during the night as you pass Ceram, if you go to Banda Neira you will have good signal. Nusa Laut now has signal but not the best. Once you get into the Ambon area once again you will have signal, in fact, it will tell you its 3G, however, Ambon has the worst network in Indonesia, you may or may not be able to make a phone call from there even with full "3G" signal! The network is overtaxed and can't handle the traffic...
I used to be a Cruise Director in the area so I have lots of experience standing around on the decks holding my phone in the air

 

[Zippsy]

I'm sitting on the Black Manta now over Sardines. Cedric can buy you a telcomsel SIM card and credit for you in Sorong when you get here. I put mine in my iPhone 5 and had had no issues. Mike's advice on coverage is spot on. We also have a sat phone on board but at $3/min, I'd only use it in emergencies.

 

[scubamon]

Wow! So glad I posted this, so helpful!

So, frogfish and charlier, would love to compare notes on travel plans etc. Perhaps we will join up in transit somewhere before Sorong? I am through Singapore and Jakarta both directions. I look forward to meeting you, looks like you both may have been to Indo before?

I have a iPhone 42 on Verizon, all I have read says it will not work with any SIM card in RA. So, I am either going to buy, borrow or rent a phone and grab a SIM in either Sorong or Jakarta. If anyone is interested in co-op on this I am happy to share. I am only looking to be able to check in on family in US at a couple points during the week and to let them know I am OK. I do not think they BM folks want you to sue the sat phone for this purpose.

Can't wait! Only like 45 more days to departure!

---Wes

 

[charlier]

Wow! So glad I posted this, so helpful!

So, frogfish and charlier, would love to compare notes on travel plans etc. Perhaps we will join up in transit somewhere before Sorong? I am through Singapore and Jakarta both directions. I look forward to meeting you, looks like you both may have been to Indo before?

---Wes

Hi Wes, I depart from Singapore to Jakarta via Air Asia. Since I will have to change terminals in Jakarta, I booked a flight with a long layover in Jakarta. Let me know you are arriving in Singapore. PM me and I will send you my itinerary. I purchased a SIM card for my iPhone 4 and cut the card to size on the Black Manta with an exactoknife. It worked fine. Cheers, Charlie

 

[Wingy]

I used a telkomsel sim in my samsung galaxy but still find areas of no/patchy reception, but hey, its nice to be unplugged for a while. The way I see it, if an emergency at home were to occur, say house burns down, it will still take you several days to get home - why worry have fun and dive. Remember the world before mobile phones???

 

[Freewillow]

Back from a dive cruise in Raja Ampat. A lot of places have NO signal. Most of the few that have do not provide a very fast connexion.

 

[frogfish]

Wow! So glad I posted this, so helpful!

So, frogfish and charlier, would love to compare notes on travel plans etc. Perhaps we will join up in transit somewhere before Sorong? I am through Singapore and Jakarta both directions. I look forward to meeting you, looks like you both may have been to Indo before?

I have a iPhone 42 on Verizon, all I have read says it will not work with any SIM card in RA. So, I am either going to buy, borrow or rent a phone and grab a SIM in either Sorong or Jakarta. If anyone is interested in co-op on this I am happy to share. I am only looking to be able to check in on family in US at a couple points during the week and to let them know I am OK. I do not think they BM folks want you to sue the sat phone for this purpose.

Can't wait! Only like 45 more days to departure!

---Wes

Flying Singapore Jakarta and then onto Sorong via red eye flight, arriving on 10th am. The boat's satellite phone is fine for checking in a couple of times, that's what we have done in the past...

 

[Gun]

Buy telkomsel sim card instead of indosat, it's coverage is better than others. You can have some signal near sorong, ambon and banda island.

 

[Janice Chilcoat]

I see this is an old thread but if anyone has updated info about cell service in this area it's much appreciated.

 

[jcclink]

T-Mobil with international roaming. Indonesia is on their list of 140+ countries where u can make calls for 20 cents/min. Basic plan is $50/mo. Works great with my LG G4. Satellite works but is $$$ compared to a plan like T-Mobil. Lots of cell towers in Indonesia, including RA & Ambon.