Fastest Cruise Wi-Fi & Internet at Sea: Voom

Table Of Content

• Can you stream movies on a cruise ship?
• Cost of Wi-Fi for Main Cruise Lines
• Holland America Line Wi-Fi and Internet
• What’s the Verdict on Cruise Ship WiFi?
• Princess Plus & Premier Offers: Package Details and if it’s Worth it
• Important Differences Between MSC Cruises and Other Major Lines

Booking wi-fi before the cruise, we paid around $17 for the first device. As mentioned above, it’s not clear if this sort of speed we experienced is unusual or if it is the norm. But if we had to pay the full $15 per day for the service, we would have been disappointed.

Can you stream movies on a cruise ship?

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A - No, you will always have to ensure that the LOG OUT button is clicked, or that you visit loginnow.com in the browser's address bar to end your internet session. If you are using your laptop, please ensure that your pop-up blocker is disabled to allow the "Logout/Time Remaining" window to appear and log out from there. Look at the cruise line websites and reviewers on popular websites like the CruiseCritic Forums who can be brutally honest in reviewing such amenities.

Cost of Wi-Fi for Main Cruise Lines

A package suitable for four devices, plus streaming and VPN capabilities is available for purchase. It is complimentary for guests in Penthouse and Premium Suite categories and for guests who have reached Diamond level or higher. The Voom Surf + Stream Voyage package is available by the day or for the duration of the voyage. Family-friendly packages for up to four devices are available. Book packages pre-cruise for discounts of up to 20 percent off.

Holland America Line Wi-Fi and Internet

Carnival offers fast ship wide Wi-Fi, as well as internet access at onboard cafes and kiosks, across its popular fleet. Wi-Fi is not available on Carnival’s private island in the Bahamas, Half Moon Cay. On some ships operated by Carnival, you even can order beer and pizza to wherever you happen to be using an app. Most of the other major cruise lines are not far behind either. In fact, for me it’s now one of my deciding factors on what cruise ships I will sail on – Do they have Starlink? So before we get into the nitty gritty of what different cruise lines have to offer, let’s cover the basics of what you need to know about Internet and WiFi on cruise ships.

Using Wi-Fi on a ship without paying for a package

There are time blocks available for purchase, as well as a daily rate that is higher than the multi-day package rate. We also asked other passengers about the performance of the Internet, and they seemed to share a similar experience. Due to the slow speed, we visited the Internet Cafe on the ship to speak to someone to see if this was normal. They indicated that the service was just slow and there wasn’t much that could be done about it, but didn’t provide a reason for the slow speeds.

What’s the Verdict on Cruise Ship WiFi?

This plan includes general web browsing, email access and posting to social media accounts. Princess Plus includes a beverage package (with alcoholic drinks up to $15 each), Wi-Fi for a single device and crew gratuities. The Surf Voyage package is the most popular option at $17.15 per day per device and provides access to most social media websites and applications. Choose from options based on your browsing needs—simply surf the web, call your friends on a messaging app, or stream your favorite shows and movies. Unlimited packages are available for the duration of your cruise. All packages support just one connected device at a time.

Price: Complimentary to $9.99 per day

These are the beginning stages of this technology on cruise ships, so stay tuned to see how this effects both price and performance of Wi-Fi at sea. That said, we wouldn’t push it by trying to download the Lord of the Rings trilogy. First of all, it would take forever at the connection speeds. Beyond that, the internet is being provided by satellite for thousands of passengers at any given time. It’s likely that you would be asked about using such a massive amount of data.

Book one of these and you don’t have to worry about the cost of access. However, if you are trying to look at pages with adult themes, then you’ll likely find you’re unable to connect. For example, Carnival says that “access to certain sites such as mature or violent content is blocked” over their network. If you’re doing what the service is designed for — streaming shows, checking email, etc. — you likely won’t be running into issues.

Use the Logout button to save your minutes if you have a minute plan. You can return to this window at any time by visiting loginnow.com in your browser. If you are planning to utilize VPN access while onboard, be sure to discuss your VPN limitations with your company’s IT department if you are planning to work while sailing. The Premium Internet plan includes video streaming and a three times faster connection speed than the Essential plan. The cost for this option is $36 per day, or $24 per day for the whole voyage.

Members who book a Suite or Verandah Plus category can also combine their loyalty and suite Wi-Fi minutes. Perks of membership range from a 5% savings, including 30 free Wi-Fi minutes, or 20% toward a Full Voyage Unlimited Package at the Azamara Circle Adventurer level. For Discoverer Platinum members, there's a 100% savings on Wi-Fi that provides a Full Voyage Unlimited Package, no matter the category of cabin or length of the voyage.

Cruise ships traveling through the famed Norwegian fjords, for instance, can lose their satellite signal due to the height of surrounding mountains. Many ports offer their own Wi-Fi, which can be a godsend. It’s easy to find – just watch to see where all the crew are huddled in port. It’s only good when you’re off the ship, and network security could be an issue. Don’t use the Wi-Fi for any financial transactions and use a VPN for peace of mind.

If you don’t see a login prompt to connect, then simply open a window and go to “Login.com”. From there, it should walk you through the steps to sign up for access, including creating a username and PIN. In our case, we recently took a 4-day cruise from Los Angeles aboard Discovery Princess — a new ship in the fleet. The trip saw perfect weather and we were never far from shore. One thing we also noticed is that even when logged out of the wi-fi, we were still able to send texts through iMessage to our cabin mates. That made it easy to make plans and figure out where they were even when exploring on our own around the ship.

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Here you can log on to the internet on workstations (for a fee), take classes, get help with your Apple devices and even buy new Apple products. For a fee, passengers ages 13 and older can access the app's chat feature to message other family members and friends onboard. Below is a rundown of Wi-Fi and internet availability on popular cruise lines.

Disney is one of the few major cruise lines that has not yet started installing Starlink on their cruise ships. The plans below are for browsing the internet, checking email, and checking social media sites. Video streaming services are not accessible with these plans. Many cruise lines offer lower tiers of service that are less expensive, but do not offer streaming capabilities. Expecting to have blazing fast internet on the ship like you would back at home?

Nor do they come with any other sort of fee — at least for most features. If you purchase their “All Included” package at the time of booking you get free drinks plus free basic internet. You can then upgrade to the Premium service for $9.99 per day. You cannot purchase the Basic Internet package separately.

Reviewed: Royal Caribbean VOOM Internet at Sea Speed, Features, and More

Table Of Content

• Search Cruises
• How Much Does Royal Caribbean Wi-Fi Cost?
• Do I Have to Buy Wi-Fi For the Princess App?
• Do cruise ships have Wi-Fi? A line-by-line guide to internet access at sea
• Ways Cruise Passengers Get the Crew in Trouble
• of Carnival’s Cruise Lines Changing How Prices Are Advertised

For privacy or work, some people connect to the internet via a VPN. Using the VOOM service, we had no issues using a VPN while on the ship and were able to easily connect. Yes, there may be spots where the signal strength declines some (from a full three bars to two), but that’s never seemed to impact the speed of service. In fact, whether in a cabin, a dining room, the theater, or anywhere around the ship, we’ve been surprised at how consistent the wi-fi signal is onboard. The same can be said for streaming on Max, YouTube, and other streaming services we’ve tried. Following a recent upgrade to SpaceX’s Starlink service, it appears that speeds have improved dramatically.

Search Cruises

Taking a cruise in late 2023 — well after the full rollout of Starlink across the fleet — the speeds were blazing. We frequently tested the VOOM speed and consistently reached Mbps, making it just as fast as our home internet. What if you just want to hop online for a single day or just for a few minutes to check email?

How Much Does Royal Caribbean Wi-Fi Cost?

You will have to switch networks from the one provided on the ship to the one provided on the island, but you’ll have full access just like you were onboard. Our impression was the speed — while still slow by standards at home — was faster than the speed tests suggest. Websites loaded relatively quickly and streaming video started grainy, but quickly presented in HD. It wasn’t that long ago that having the internet on a cruise was a luxury.

Do I Have to Buy Wi-Fi For the Princess App?

If you're headed on a cruise vacation and want to stay in touch with family and friends — or stream movies and music on board the ship — it is possible to stay fully connected while at sea. But you'll need to adjust your expectations if you think the connectivity will be similar to a hotel. Connectivity can be slow and spotty, although cruise lines are working to change that.

Do cruise ships have Wi-Fi? A line-by-line guide to internet access at sea

Want to know what's available at sea before booking your next cruise? Here's a list of the available Wi-Fi plans and pricing for each of the major mainstream and luxury cruise lines. Most prices listed are per person, per day for the length of the cruise, and for one device unless otherwise indicated. Note that cruise lines can update pricing and plans at any time.

As you might expect, there is some blocking and filtering of websites while on the ship’s wi-fi. Of course, if you buy a lower-tier plan that doesn’t allow full access to the internet (such as Carnival’s Social plan) then you won’t be able to access the full internet. Even if you do have full online access, you can still expect some content filtering. Early tests and user reports have shown that Starlink offers download speeds ranging from 50 to 150 Mbps, with latency typically under 50 milliseconds. This makes it comparable to, and sometimes even surpassing, land-based broadband connections.

The answer is usually “maybe,” but you won’t likely know until you go to actually use it. It will inform you the device limit has been reached and ask if you want to connect the new device. If you do, then the new device will login and knock the other device offline.

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For example, a show might stream well for a while and then suddenly have a pixelated picture or pause while data loads.

Clicking on a favorite show, I only could watch for a few minutes before the connection inevitably froze. All major cruise ships offer Wi-Fi and internet, but it’s a bit different than your home connection. Cruise ships use satellite connections, which means stepping on board doesn’t cut you off from the rest of the world—but it does come with a unique set of pros and cons. Q - How much will I be charged when I use my cell phone onboard?

On the expedition ships, the level of internet access is also determined by the suite category, except for Silver Origin, which has complimentary standard Wi-Fi for all guests. For guests on Silversea's full world cruises or Grand Voyages, all passengers receive complimentary premium internet access for the sailing. Guests can choose from one-device to four-device packages starting at $24.99 per day that you can purchase through the MedallionClass app pre-cruise. Platinum and Elite members of Princess Cruises' loyalty program receive a 50% discount on plans that will appear as an onboard credit on the ship.

For example, Carnival Cruise Line has completed the rollout of Starlink across all Carnival ships, as has Royal Caribbean. Internet access quality can fluctuate based on your location at sea, the weather conditions, and even the time of day, as onboard networks can get congested during peak usage hours. Celebrity’s websiteclaims that VPN’s may not work on their ships, saying that any applications that use a lot of bandwidth or require a dedicated connection may not be supported. Wi-Fi on a Princess ship will cost $15 per day for one device and $40 per day for a 4-device plan. As you add on more devices you will save some money so let’s list all the packages and prices here. For those just wanting to check something online and get right back off there is a Quick Check plan as well, in which you pay by the minute.

Carnival has rolled out Starlink across its entire fleet. You may have heard about Starlink Internet, a game-changer that has transformed how we browse the internet onboard many ships. Created by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Starlink uses a network of low-Earth orbit satellites, aiming to deliver high-speed internet across the globe, even on the open ocean.

A slightly more expensive Value Wi-Fi plan, at $19.55 per day when bought in advance ($23 per day when bought on board), adds access to email and most websites. Yes, all cruise ships today offer an internet connection, but it might not be the seamless experience you've come to expect on land. Additionally, cruise ships may also experience congestion due to multiple people attempting to access the same network simultaneously, leading to slower speeds. Other factors such as weather conditions and technical issues can also contribute to slower internet speeds. Even mountain ranges can limit the line of site needed for reliable internet connectivity. Share a ConnectionInternet plans on cruise ships charge per device.

All internet access charges will be billed directly to your onboard account. We used the service extensively during our cruise, morning, day and night and across different devices and around different spots on the ship. The speed was solidly in the Mbps range and doing everything from checking email to streaming video was solid.

While you can use as many devices as you want on a single plan, all of the data accumulates and is charged against your account. Whether you sign up for the paid Wi-Fi or not, you should still connect your phone or tablet to the ship’s Wi-Fi. This will allow you to see all of the relevant information about your cruise the the cruise line’s app. You will be able to see the program for the day, the shows and events scheduled, and even the menu for the restaurants on board.

Here are five things to know about onboard internet before you set sail. Like MSC, Norwegian Cruise Line offers two “unlimited Internet” packages, one for basic Internet and their Unlimited Premium Wi-Fi package for streaming. They also include 150 minutes of complimentary Internet with their “Free At Sea” package, although this is on their basic unlimited wi-fi package. They also offer a 15% discount for purchasing the package prior to boarding, as well as the option to purchase services by the day rather than the whole cruise.