Communication radios?

[pomcoach]

I had read on here before about a company in Orlando that will bring little radios right to your hotel. We are going to WDW in Jan. with 5 people total. Mom, Dad, 3 teens. We want to be able to split up, but keep in touch. I've read here before, that these little radios are the way to go, because others don't get on the same frequency or channel. Has anyone used these? Or do you know of something better? We have about 43 days to get organized. Thanks so much! We already have the little walky talkies with 14 channels. They were absolutely useless at Mall of America because someone was on every channel. Pomcoach

 

[kecall]

We just got back from DW and the radios were sooo great! I bought cheapy ones from Sam's Club (about $40 for 2...had 4 channels, and 13 subchannels...came with rechargeable batteries) I only heard someone on our frequency one time and it was only for a brief moment.
I'm sure if you go to rent them, they will cost you more than that. My advice? By 'em before you leave.

 

[pomcoach]

Thank you for your reply. I guess I thought I had read on here about some very special radios that were available in Orlando from a special radio company. Ones that would only communicate with each other, and other people wouldn't be able to interfere on the special channel. At Mall of America, even the restaurant waiters were talking on ours. Everybody uses those walky talkies anymore. We couldn't find a channel that wasn't over run with people. Just hoping someone can tell me about this special company, or maybe I just dreamed it! Ha ha.

 

[LiLPrincess]

I believe you may be talking about the radios from In-touch communications. We rented radios from them last year and they were wonderful. I have read on these boards that they recently went out of business.

 

[pomcoach]

I did a search on here, and their website is still up and running. But they are very expensive. $15 per radio per day! My hubby thinks that is outrageous, but it sure would be convenient. We'd be paying more for the radios than our hotel on priceline! I'll have to do some fast talking with my dh. Thanks for the name of the company! Pomcoach

 

[pomcoach]

Well, their Website was up and running but they aren't! I got an e-mail saying they are no longer in business. We have to have some kind of communication at the parks with 3 older kids who like to go off together. So, here is what we did. Maybe this can help someone else also. We are going in Jan. We already have a cell phone from Verizon. Tonight we called them to see what it would cost to add another phone to our plan. They gave us the Family plan which will cost $20 more a month. They said business was really slow, so we got our extra phone for free and 2 free little cute covers for it. The man gave us the no charge for the activation fee. We already have long distance free from our home calling area in Iowa. He said when we arrive in Orlando, just go to a Verizon shop first thing. Have them change our home calling area to Orlando. That way we can call all we want to each other, and we don't even use any minutes, as long as we are talking between our 2 phones, because it's the family plan. We'll also be able to make local calls in Orlando but it will use our minutes, and we'll be able to call long distance from Orlando to anywhere in the US, just like our plan does now at our home. So the "In-Touch Family Communications" was going to cost us $30 x 7 days = $210. Now we have another cell phone and will be paying $240 more for a year plan with Verizon. I guess it's a toss up either way, but we had no choice. There's nothing worse than my husband getting that look on his face when he's waiting to meet the kids, and they are very late! When we get back to Iowa, the Verizon guy said we just have them change our home area back to Iowa. He said it's very simple. Well, one more problem taken care of and 1 more day closer to Disney. Pomcoach

 

[Magickndm]

Be aware that with cell phones in the park there can be interference. Sometimes they don't work at all...walk a few feet away and they're fine. They also do not work when you are on rides most the time. Good luck and have fun!

 

[dianeschlicht]

The personal communication radios you can buy at any electronic shop (like Best Buy etc.) work great. Just be sure to get the kind that has 39 channels. We had ours preset to one channel and had a plan for another if too many folks were on that one. They only work within the same park though. The distance coverage is the reason, and the tall structures cause some interference in some areas.