Family and I are headed to Playa del Carmen and Cozumel in November. I usually just hop on the wifi for web surfing on my phone. I have Verizon and don't have an international plan. Last year when we were there several people asked me if I used WhatsApp. I had never heard of it and I've never used it. This year the entire family is staying at a resort in Playa del Carmen, and I may stay at a cheap place in Cozumel for a few days to do some diving.

I want to be able to call the dive shop in Cozumel from the mainland and also call my wife in Playa on her Verizon phone when I am in Cozumel.

Can all this be accomplished if we both install WhatsApp on our phones without adding an international plan?

I think Verizon works in Mexico and Canada without an int'l. plan. I'm pretty sure I've only added an int'l. for Europe and China. When I drive near the Mexican border, I get a pop up that int'l. roaming may apply. But I'm sure I didn't get any charges for using Google Maps while walking around Cozumel or TJ or driving around Vancouver, BC. WhatsApp calling may not work unless on wifi.

Sorry can't comment on Whats App.. however is everyone on an iPhone by chance? If so, Imessage will work on wifi along with WiFi calling simply with Wifi availability.

Another app that works on wifi is Signal.. it's encrypted and it has the ability to wifi call/group chat too.

Worst case, you can get international data/calling for ~ $10 per day.

As long as everyone is on WiFi WhatsApp will be perfect for your situation

quote:

Originally posted by gpbst3:
As long as everyone is on WiFi WhatsApp will be perfect for your situation

This.
Years ago my daughter studied for a semester in France and we used Whatsapp. Worked fine.

Thanks everyone!

We have Samsung Android phones.

WhatsApp is owned by Facebook, and they freely gather data from users.

You should use Signal instead. Works the same way.

It's all I use to communicate in and with Israel.

WhatsApp has been compromised for some time, use SIGNAL instead.

quote:

Originally posted by ridgerat:
WhatsApp is owned by Facebook, and they freely gather data from users.

You should use Signal instead. Works the same way.

Yup. WhatsApp collects a ton of metadata. Signal Private Messenger collects none. Signal does everything WhatsApp does.

I'm in UK and talk to our G*dson in Illinois using whatsapp.

Does that answer the OP's queriment?

Never heard of 'Signal'.

Outside of the US WhatsApp is very popular. I use it whenever I am overseas to call home. They claim 100% encryption on all texts and calls.

AFRICOM: we ALL used Signal with a VPN (I used Nord VPN).

For iPhone>iPhone when decent wifi was available; FaceTime had the best video quality (With VPN FaceTime is about as secure as anyone could reasonably expect)

A little history:

Back when smart phones started getting popular, many countries, esp. developing countries used pre-paid phones - meaning you load your phone account with money and each minute of talk, each text, and each MB of data cost you money. If you run out of money, your phone stopped working until you refill it. This is because in a developing country, credit systems are not developed enough for post-paid systems (monthly bill like most Americans have) and there is no financing of phones - they buy the phone outright, and get a SIM card from a Telecom.

As a result, many countries gravitated to data based apps for text, voice chat, and now voice and video calling, that could be used on WiFi for "free".

Latin America and India use "What's App"
China uses "WeChat" (their only choice really)
South Korea uses "Kakao Talk"
Japan and Thailand use "Line"
Philippines and Vietnam used "Tango" until in changed into a horrific video streaming/dating app. Now they use Facebook Messenger a lot.
Vietnam also uses "Zalo"

I have most of these apps to communicate with coworkers and suppliers in their respective countries. The chosen app for most countries is nearly universal. Everyone in Mexico, Brazil, and India I know uses What's App. Everyone I know in China uses WeChat. These apps are so universal that getting people to simply use iMessage instead of their country's chosen app is difficult and infuriating. One major benefit of the apps is they can be transferred to different phone numbers, and used with local SIM cards when you travel - which is common in the rest of the world.

This didn't really happen in the US because as smart phones became popular, most of our plans turned into unlimited talk and text, with allowances for data paid by the increment. So many Americans simply use SMS text or iMessage depending on the phone they have. For international use, iPhones are the best and most professional travelers use them. A major benefit of iMessage is if you use the same Apple ID on multiple iPhones and other devices, iMessage synchs between all of them.

For Mexico, just sign up for Verizon's international plan that lets you use your phone in Mexico with all your US plan features for $5 a day. Canada is $5. Rest of the world is $10. For vacations it's fine. Or download and try What's App if you can be on WiFi most of the time.

When I travel for work, I have my business iPhone, but I use my personal phone for non-business, AND for all the messaging apps because in the event I no longer work for my company and have to turn in my phone, I don't want to lose all my contacts and chat histories. Right now I use an iPhone 11 Pro with the Verizon physical SIM, and the eSIM programmed for international data roaming with GigSky. I got 5GB of roaming data in Japan for $20 last month, which is way better than paying for an international plan. When set up this way, you cannot use the phone or SMS text without very high per minute or per text roaming fees so you have to be careful.

Good to go in Coz. It's what we and the dive shops and divemasters all use.