Cell Service in the Virgin Islands

I get a lot of searches via google, bing, and yahoo with regard to cell service, so this blog goes out to those that are wondering how their stateside phones will work while visiting the Virgin Islands.

The primary service providers in the territory are AT&T and Sprint. AT&T providing the best service (in my opinion). It may depend upon your particular plan, so you can ask them yourself, but I can move flawlessly between the islands and the States, and there are no roaming charges whatsoever.

My understanding is that other carriers (for example, Vodaphone) "piggyback" off the AT&T network. In this case, the user will be charges roaming fees that may be as high as a dollar per minute. So if you don't use AT&T or Sprint, you may want to research this or use your phone sparingly.

As for how well the services work, that is another issue altogether. Understand that the islands are very hilly and steep, causing areas that do not get a very good signal. So while driving around the islands, phone service is likely to cut in and out. Also, you may be renting in a location that simply does not get good reception, and in this case, there is nothing you will be able to do no matter who your provider is.

I hope this helps you for your travels. If you ever have any questions, feel free to drop me an email or give me a call.