Wi-Fi, power banks and a plan for when the phones go quiet

The boat carries a local Wi-Fi modem. How strong it is depends on where the boat sits. Near the coast and the harbour it can help. Among the islands it can drop out, and at anchor in a quiet bay it can vanish for an evening.

Satellite internet is not promised, so do not plan around it; ask us if the group depends on it. A group of 20 sharing a single local modem will find it thin at the best of times.

So plan for messages. Video calls and streaming are not promised. Treat any signal you get as a bonus, and send what matters, such as a photo for the school or a note to the office, when the bars appear.

A company that needs a call during the trip should tell us before booking. We say honestly what to expect, and nothing about the connection is guaranteed.

Sockets are not listed for this boat. We will not say there are some, and we will not say there are none. We say only that the list is silent, and that you should plan as if power is scarce.

Bring power banks, one per person at least. A group of 20 phones, 20 cameras and a few torches empties a socket strip in a minute, if there is one. A full power bank is the best thing in the dry bag.

Charge everything the night before sailing, at the hotel, with the sockets there. Carry the cables in a dry bag. Switch phones to flight mode when they have no signal, since a phone hunting for a network drains its battery faster than one left alone.

Ask us before you bring anything with a heavy draw, such as a laptop for a company session. We check with the boat team and answer in writing.

Make the group chat on day zero, at the hotel, with everyone in it. Pin three messages: the driver's contact, the pickup time and the leader's number. Message from a place with signal and expect the reply later.

Set a meeting point at every landing, in words, not in a map pin. "By the tender, under the tree" works when the phone does not. Agree a time to be back, and write it in the chat before leaving the boat.

Headcount: count at every landing, going and coming. Twenty people spread over a beach in different directions are easy to lose and quick to find if the leader has a number. Use a second person as the counter.

A whistle is cheap. A loud, shared word works too. Pick one.

Download before you sail. Anything that needs a connection will not arrive when you need it.

Keep offline: the flight tickets for the return, the hotel booking for the night after, the name list as on passports or ID, a scan of each passport and the number of the driver. Save it all in a shared folder and on the leader's phone.

Offline maps help on the days when the group lands in Labuan Bajo and walks to dinner. They do not help at sea, where the captain knows the way and the boat has GPS and a radio.

Print one page: the headcount, the cabin sheet and the three numbers that matter. Paper does not need a battery, and a laminated sheet survives spray.

Assume it will drop, then you cannot be surprised. Tell the group before sailing: for these days, no message means no news, and no news is normal.

Agree what the office or the families at home can expect. A school sends one message at the end of day one and another at the end of day two. A company tells the team to expect nothing until the return. Families get a time, not a promise.

Weather news comes from the captain, not from a phone. If a warning or a change reaches the boat, the captain decides what to do, and the leader tells the group. A group chat is no substitute for the captain.

On day three, as the boat nears Labuan Bajo, signal returns. Send the arrival message then, and the pickup arrives at the port.