Wi-Fi Aboard a Cruise Ship and How Much it Costs

Most of us are so connected to the internet that it’s hard to imagine going a week or more without it.  Even though you are going on a cruise and want to get away from it all, sometimes you just need to check your email, see a website, or download an important file.

Fortunately, using Wi-Fi with your laptop or tablet has never been easier on cruise ships.  Almost every cruise ship from a major cruise line like Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Lines, and Holland America has Wi-Fi and allows you to access the internet for a fee.

Wifi Fees

Wi-Fi is available on most cruise ships but it is not usually free.  But they make things simple for you and just charge all of your internet usage fees to your room card.  So how much does it cost you?

Well every cruise line charges different rates.  You can per per minute, but it is much cheaper just to buy a package of minutes and then use them wisely.    Keep in mind that you can use these minutes to surf the web on your own laptop or at the internet cafes on the ship.

Royal Caribbean Wi-Fi Rates:

$.65 per minute  or…

$35   for  60 minutes
$55   for  100 minutes
$75   for  150 minutes
$100 for  250 minutes
$150 for  500 minutes

Carnival Wi-Fi Rates:

$3.95 one-time connection fee for your first login.

Longer Cruises (6 days and longer)
• 250 minutes for $100.00
• 100 minutes for $55.00
• Pay As You Go: $0.75/min

Shorter Cruises (5 days and shorter)
• 60 minutes for $24.00
• 30 minutes for $16.50
• Pay As You Go: $0.75/min

*At the internet café on Carnival ships you can pay just $.50 per page viewed, which is only a good option if you need to read a long email or will not have to surf a lot of web pages.

Norwegian Cruise Line Rates:

$.75 per minute or…

Longer Cruise (6 days and longer) Time Package Plans:

• 250 minutes for $100 ($0.40 per minute)
• 100 minutes for $55 ($0.55 per minute)
• Pay as you go $0.75 per minute

Short Cruise (5 days and shorter) Time Package Plans:

• 60 minutes for $24 ($0.40 per minute)
• 30 minutes for $16.50 ($0.55 per minute)
• Pay as you go $0.75 per minute

*Activation Fee of $3.95 for initial log-in only.

Printing costs $.50 per page.

Norwegian sometimes has laptops you can rent as well, but these are not always available.

Internet Speed

Keep in mind that you are accessing the internet via satellite on these ships and it will not be the same speed you are used to at home.  Don’t expect to be able to download movies in the blink of an eye and use Skype with perfect clarity.  In fact, if you do decide to do some heavy internet downloading you will end up slowing down the connection for everyone.  This is why certain times of day are very slow for the internet because the more people that are using it the slower the connection speed will be.  Some of the newer cruise ships have better technology with their Wi-Fi, but don’t expect blazing fast speeds while you’re on the high seas.

Most cruise ships also have an internet café with a few desktops that you can use to access the internet as well, but the rates are the same for using Wi-Fi.  So if you bring your laptop you should be able to access the internet from your room.  But depending on where your room is in relation to where the router is will make a difference in your connection speed as well.