Caribbean eSIM

The Caribbean eSIM covers 17 islands and territories on one line, from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic to Jamaica, Barbados, St Lucia and the Cayman Islands, using FLOW on most islands, Liberty in Puerto Rico and Claro in the Dominican Republic. It suits cruise port days and island hopping in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean, but the Bahamas, St Thomas, St Maarten and Aruba aren't on it, and no travel eSIM works on a ship's own network at sea.

What a 7-night Caribbean cruise costs in data

A typical Eastern Caribbean week from Florida: 3 sea days and 4 port days, for example San Juan, Tortola, St Kitts and Antigua. All four ports are on this plan. Prices checked on 3 November 2026, per phone.

For a couple on Verizon who use the ship's network on all three sea days, that's $192 for the week. On Telstra, 100 MB in each port costs A$1,200. Canadians get the simplest home deal: the Rogers pass is the only one here that covers the ship and the islands for one weekly price.

If you're on Rogers and staying on land, its Caribbean & Mexico pass is C$55 for 7 days, without cruise ships.

Landing at San Juan, Montego Bay, Punta Cana or Barbados

Before you fly: install the kimsim eSIM at home on Wi-Fi.

As the plane taxis: switch the kimsim line on and turn on Data Roaming for the kimsim line. A connection in Miami doesn't start your days, because the mainland US isn't on this plan. One in Bogotá or São Paulo does, because Colombia and Brazil are.

Into town: at San Juan airport, Uber pickups run from points the app shows you, and they vary by terminal. Elsewhere, pre-book a transfer or use the airport taxi rank, and have your hotel's address saved offline.

If the line doesn't connect within a few minutes, see what to do if there's no signal when you land.

Networks and coverage

• FLOW on most islands. FLOW is Liberty Latin America's Caribbean brand, introduced in 2015 to replace LIME. Jamaica is listed as C&W, the Cable & Wireless company behind FLOW, with 5G. The Cayman Islands also get 5G.
• Puerto Rico: Liberty, with 5G. Liberty bought AT&T's Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands mobile business in 2020, and phones have shown "Liberty" since September 2021.
• Dominican Republic: Claro, on 4G.
• Guadeloupe: Free, through Free Caraïbe, which also runs in the other French islands. Martinique still isn't on this plan.
• "Netherlands Antilles": Chippie. Chippie was UTS's brand in Curaçao, a network now run by FLOW. We haven't confirmed this entry works on Aruba, Bonaire or Sint Maarten, so buy those separately.

Digicel, the region's other big network, is Jamaican-based. This plan uses it only in French Guiana, so a "Digicel" search result isn't what your phone will show here.

Hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November. A big storm can take networks down for weeks: on 23 September 2017, days after Hurricane Maria, the FCC reported 95.6% of Puerto Rico's cell sites out of service. No eSIM gets round that, so save offline maps and keep your home line switched on.

The networks your plan uses are listed above.

Which islands are on the plan

• On it: Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, St Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, Dominica, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Barbados and the Chippie network in Curaçao.
• Also on it, in South America: Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay and French Guiana. If your cruise calls at Cartagena, that's Colombia, which is on the plan. For more of South America, see the South America eSIM.
• Not on it: the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, Saint-Martin and Sint Maarten, Aruba, Bonaire, Martinique, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, and the Western Caribbean ports in Mexico, Belize and Honduras.

Which cruise? Eastern and Southern Caribbean routes fit this plan best. Routes that call at Cozumel, Belize or Roatán are mostly off it, apart from Jamaica and Grand Cayman. How regional plans work

Cruises, ferries and island hopping

At sea, ships run their own network. It switches on in international waters and goes off near land or in port, and phones show it as cellularatsea, wmsatsea, NOR-18 or 901-18. Verizon says the ship's service starts 12 miles after leaving the dock. Satellite networks at sea fall outside normal roaming price caps; the EU's rules, for example, stop at the shore. Your kimsim line won't use them, so it can't run up a bill at sea.

In port, the ship's network goes off and your phone looks for a land network. On a covered island, the kimsim line picks one up. On one that isn't covered, your home line may connect at its own rates, so check before you step ashore.

Ferries: FRS Express des Îles links Guadeloupe with Dominica, Martinique and St Lucia. All of those are on this plan except Martinique, where your line will have no data until the next stop.

Apps worth having

• Uber runs in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, where it has announced Uber Moto for places including Punta Cana and La Romana. In Punta Cana, check the app shows cars before you rely on it.
• Your cruise line's app, for the day's port times and all-aboard time; it often works on the ship's Wi-Fi.
• Maps: save each island offline before you board, on Wi-Fi.
• WhatsApp, iMessage and FaceTime work on your usual number over data, so tour operators can still reach you. Keep WhatsApp and iMessage on your home number
• Bank and booking apps: set up text-code logins at home, and keep the home line switched on to receive them.

SIM and phone rules

Local SIMs need ID. Since June 2025, Dominican operators must tie every prepaid line to an official document such as a passport, or suspend it. Digicel's travel eSIM in the British Virgin Islands also asks you to register before it's emailed to you. Prices vary by island: Digicel's 7-day tourist plan in Barbados is BBD 60 for 8 GB.

A kimsim eSIM skips that. It's data only, with no number, installed at home, and the same line works on every covered island. Your phone must be unlocked.

Common mistakes

• Leaving Data Roaming on for your home line at sea. The ship's network can charge you by the day or by the megabyte. When to use Airplane Mode
• Assuming every port is covered. St Thomas, St Maarten, Nassau and the cruise lines' private islands in the Bahamas aren't on this plan. Check your itinerary against the list.
• Streaming on port days. Packs are fixed, so a few hours of video can empty a small one. Check how much data you've used, and top up onto the same eSIM if you need to.
• Waiting for the dock to buy a local SIM. Port calls are short, shops near the terminal may not sell what you need, and you'll need your passport.
• Losing your home line. Keep it switched on, with roaming off, so bank codes and emergency calls still reach you. How calls and texts work abroad

More on the Caribbean

• How much data do I need for a week abroad?
• eSIM vs roaming: which is cheaper for your trip?
• Does WhatsApp work with a travel eSIM? Keep your number

How we put this page together

We checked carriers' roaming and cruise pages (Verizon, AT&T, Three UK, Telstra, Rogers), Digicel's tourist plans, Jamaican, Dominican, Barbadian, US and UK government sites, NOAA and the FCC, and the other sources noted above on 2–3 November 2026. Our cruise wording uses the same sources as our Europe and Global pages. AT&T's and Uber's own pages block automated checks, so we read AT&T's cruise pass terms from its press release and Uber's details from its search listings. The country list and networks come from the plan itself. We haven't measured speeds or coverage ourselves, so coverage notes are general guidance, not a map. kimsim sells the eSIMs on this page.