In theory, vacation is time to unwind and unplug, and a chance to forget about the outside world.
In practice, the outside world has an annoying tendency to not leave you alone.
While it would be nice if we could all ignore our phones all the time, that’s very often just not possible, especially for parents. And as much as we all need a break from our jobs, sometimes things just come up whether you like it or not.
Perhaps more than any other vacation option, cruise ships offer you a chance to leave everything behind and lose yourself on the high seas. But you still sometimes need to check in on family members, and sometimes you just need to post a photo of your meal or a thirst trap of you at the pool.
It’s also the case that even if you are trying to just focus on your vacation and not your company’s quarterly goals, phones do come in handy if you are in a large group, as The Street’s cruise expert Daniel Kline recently explained.
“Families and people traveling together have tried to fix that problem with everything from walkie-talkies to magnetic dry-erase boards that can be mounted on cabin doors. The problem with the former is that they don't work that well and are a bit obnoxious when they do. For the second, an old-school message board works, but by the time you walk to your room to see a note and then head to where your family or friends are, they may have moved.”
Fortunately (or unfortunately, if you’re really committed to being a phone scold), cruise ships have been making an effort to up their Wi-Fi game as of late. And now one of the biggest names in the cruise ship industry has made a surprising partnership to set themselves ahead of the competition.
Image source: Shutterstock
Carnival Has an Unexpected Wi-Fi Partner
In an effort to make sure you are never unable to post to Instagram, Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL) has teamed up with Elon Musk’s SpaceX's Starlink to expand the ship’s Wi-Fi connectivity with faster service and increased capacity. This is all to say that guests will be able to share photos and videos, stream movies and live sporting events at something closer to the speeds most people are used to (i.e., instantly) without having to worry about your connection being dropped.
The rollout began last December, with Carnival Cruise Line and the related AIDA Cruises ships, and plans are afoot to extend the service to other lines in the Carnival umbrella, including Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, and Seabourn.
"For many of our guests, it has become more and more important to maintain the type of connectivity at sea that they've become accustomed to at home, and of course to share the unforgettable experiences of their cruise with friends and family," said Carnival CEO Josh Weinstein. "We are in the business of delivering happiness, and Starlink makes it as easy as possible for our guests to share all their great moments and memories, giving them even more joy out of their cruise vacation.
"The added bandwidth will give the brands the capabilities and flexibility to introduce new guest services and features, as well as help boost operational functions like onboard equipment monitoring and real-time communications between ship and shore teams,” added Weinstein. “And importantly, adding Starlink's innovative technology to the company's existing connectivity platform will also help our amazing crew stay in touch with friends and loved ones."
Any attempt to improve Wi-Fi will be welcome news to dedicated cruise fans.
“To say that internet-on-ship is a mixed experience is putting it nicely. Prices vary by each sailing, and performance varies a lot based on how many people onboard are using the internet as well as other factors. Even the top package can be nearly useless on sea days when a lot of people are trying to access it,” Kline recently reported.
More Ships Are Boarding the Wi-Fi Wave
While Carnival may be improving its Wi-Fi, don’t think that means you’re getting anything for free with this deal. As we previously outlined, it offers three internet plans at the moment:
- Social: $8.50 per person per day, which enables you to text and check social media,
- Value: $11.05 per person per day offers access to social media, email, and the web, but not streaming sites.
- Premium: $14.45 per person per day in theory gives passengers access to the full internet including streaming.
Royal Caribbean (RCL) has also teamed up with SpaceX Starlink internet, to improve its internet experience. And if you don’t want to pay for onboard Wi-Fi service, Royal Caribbean does offer a chat option through its app that was recently made free of charge (it used to cost $1.99 per person).
