In the not-so-distant past, travelers would embark on cruise vacations to truly escape the world back home. In the rare case of an emergency, corded phones were available on cruise ships to make a call for several dollars a minute. How quickly things change! Now, most people can’t go a day without their smartphones — never mind a week-long cruise. The days of the “unconnected cruise” are officially over. So, we’re going over what you need to know about cruise ship internet and WiFi, as well as the costs and plans available for each cruise line.

A Guide to Cruise Ship Internet and WiFi (2024)

Using Your Smartphone at Sea

One of the most important things you should know about using your smartphone at sea is to turn on airplane mode as soon as your ship sets sail. If you don’t do this, you will rack up massive charges from your cell phone carrier while out at sea, because your phone is attempting to find a signal and essentially ends up using international roaming through a “cellular at sea” network. The fee for cellular at sea is much higher than standard roaming fees on land. Some carriers do offer specific cruise ship packages, but general international plans do not apply to cruises.

However, the good news is that you can still get connected during a cruise through the ship’s wireless internet network. After turning on airplane mode, which should turn off both cellular and wifi on your phone, manually turn wifi back on. That way your phone’s cellular capability will stay turned off, but wifi capability will be back on.

Nearly all cruise lines offer internet packages, though the types of plans and connection speeds do vary. You should be able to use these packages to access the cruise ship internet for basic tasks like checking email, browsing the web, and posting on social media. However, completing tasks like WiFi calling, FaceTime, and streaming movies and music while out to sea are not a guarantee. Some cruise lines allow for these if you pay extra for a more comprehensive plan while others may not allow for them at all.

The good news is, most major cruise lines have now outfitted their ships with Starlink satellite internet, which is much faster and more reliable than most cruise ship internet service in the past. With that being said, cruise ship internet will still probably never be as reliable as your internet back home for a number of reasons. Cruise ship internet depends on satellite connections and geographical location. The ship’s distance offshore as well as interference from landscapes and weather can all cause variable cruise ship internet speeds.

Cruise Ship Internet and WiFi Options

As mentioned previously, WiFi on cruise ships does come at a cost on most major cruise lines. The price varies by the type of plan and the cruise line. Most cruise lines offer internet packages at per-day prices that allow for unlimited use over the duration of your cruise. You can also often buy internet access on a single-day basis, so if you just want to get connected for one day in the middle of your sailing you can do so.

Many cruise lines also offer their own smartphone apps. These apps can be used without purchasing an internet package. Common features of a cruise line app include being able to reserve dining and activities, viewing restaurant menus, checking the daily schedule, and viewing deck plans.

Of note, cruisers should keep an eye out for promotions. Cruise lines will often run sales, and travel agents will often offer perks that may include free WiFi for booking a cruise or discounted rates for packages when purchased pre-cruise. Other perks may include onboard credit, free daily gratuities, free drink packages, free specialty dining, and so on.

For more info on the quality of cruise ship wifi, whether it’s worth the cost, and how to get free or upgraded wifi, check out our article Do Cruise Ships Have WiFi? A Guide to Internet at Sea.

Cruise Ship Internet Packages by Cruise Line

Here’s a list of the internet packages available by cruise line as of December 2024. For the most up-to-date information, check your online cruise planner for the exact pricing of internet packages on your cruise.

Royal Caribbean

Royal Caribbean proclaims that its VOOM internet is the fastest internet at sea, and it’s been made even faster recently by the addition of Starlink internet service. The line offers one internet package, called VOOM Surf + Stream. This package allows for all your basic surfing, social media, and email needs in addition to streaming movies and music. This packages works onboard the ship as well as on Royal’s private island Perfect Day at CocoCay. Guests receive a discount when booking the internet package pre-cruise.

Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Cruise Line offers two cruise ship internet packages: the Voyage Pass and the Streaming Voyage Pass. The Voyage Pass includes social media apps (not including streaming like TikTok or Instagram reels), messaging and calling on apps such as Facebook Messenger or FaceTime, web browsing, email, and file-sharing such as Dropbox or Google Drive, and app stores.

The Streaming Voyage Pass includes everything the Voyage Pass does, plus the ability to watch videos on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, VPNs, and audio and video streaming for things like Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Spotify, and Pandora. This package also allows guests to stream their home security camera feeds.

Only one device at a time can be used for each of these packages. The Voyage Pass costs $30 per day, while the Streaming Voyage Pass costs $40 per day. However NCL’s More at Sea package, which is included on nearly every cruise booking, includes a limited amount of internet. This means that some guests are fine just using their included internet minutes and don’t need to purchase an extra package on top of it.

Carnival Cruise Line

Carnival Cruise Line offers three different internet plans: Social, Value, and Premium. The Social plan includes access to social media and airline apps. The Value plan adds on email and internet browsing. The Premium plan promises the fastest possible connection at speeds up to three times faster than the Value Plan, and supports video streaming and calling. The Social plan starts at $18.70 per day. The Value plan starts at $22.10 per day. The Premium plan starts at $23.80 per day.

Carnival also offers a four-device Premium plan for $84 per day.

Celebrity Cruises

Celebrity Cruises offers two internet packages, Basic and Premium. The Basic package includes basic browsing, email, and messaging. The Premium package adds on the ability to share photos and videos on social media, video chat, and stream videos and music.

If you book your Celebrity cruise through the line’s All Included pricing option, the Basic wifi package is included in that cruise fare. If a guest books a cruise with the All Included pricing, they can upgrade their wifi package to Premium for $10 per person, per day.

Princess Cruises

There are two internet plans available on Princess Cruises: MedallionNet and MedallionNet Max. MedallionNet, which costs $25 per day for one device, includes messaging, social media, browsing, streaming, and video chatting. Basically, it’s an all-inclusive wifi package.

MedallionNet Max includes the same things, but features higher-performing wifi service with prioritized bandwidth access. Only guests who purchase Princess’ Plus or Premier bundles have access to MedallionNet Max.

Holland America Line

Holland America has three internet packages to choose from. The first is Surf – Have It All, which is only available through the line’s Have It All upgrade package. This package allows guests to surf the web, email, catch up on sports and news apps, and use messaging apps like iMessage or Facebook Messenger.

The Premium and Stream packages are available to everyone. The Premium package costs $35 per day. It includes what the Basic package does, plus the ability to make audio and video calls. The Stream package costs $45 per day and adds on the ability to use streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Max.

A discount for these packages applies for voyages that are seven nights or longer. For example, on a seven-night cruise, the Premium package starts at $22.86 per day. The Stream package starts at $35 per day.

MSC Cruises

MSC Cruises offers two wifi packages: Browse and Browse and Stream. Browse allows guests to browse the web, send and receive emails and images, and chat on messaging apps such as WhatsApp or iMessage. The Browse and Stream package adds on the ability to video chat, stream music and videos, and post videos and live streams on social media.

If you purchase an internet package prior to your cruise, you will receive a 20 percent discount vs. the onboard price. There is a discount on multiple-device packages.

Disney Cruise Line

Disney Cruise Line offers three internet packages: the Stay Connected plan, the Basic Surf plan, and the Premium Surf plan. Stay Connected allows for social media use, while Basic Surf adds email, web browsing, and voice calling. The Premium Surf package includes a faster connection speed along with the addition of streaming short videos and music, plus video calling. Longer-form video streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu are not supported on any Disney Cruise Line wifi plan.

The Stay Connected package starts at $16 per day, the Basic Surf starts at $24 per day, and the Premium Surf starts at $34 per day.

Virgin Voyages

Virgin Voyages includes basic wifi in the cruise fare for all guests. Basic browsing, email, messaging, and social media are all included. An upgraded Premium internet package is available for an extra cost, which offers the fastest speeds to support audio and video streaming.

Viking Cruises

Like many other luxury cruise lines, WiFi is included in the cruise fare on all Viking cruises. In order to ensure fair usage for all, the cruise line states they reserve the right to limit heavy-bandwidth applications, downloads, or software upgrades. Viking suggests that guests limit large uploads/downloads and live streaming.

Should I Buy Cruise Ship Internet?

Now that you know the various internet packages and prices offered by the cruise lines, it’s up to you to decide whether you purchase one of these plans. While some cruisers still disconnect while on vacation, many of us cannot do without this modern convenience.

Whether it’s to check in on family back home, post on social media, or reply to some work emails, most cruisers do purchase some form of a WiFi package on a cruise. Luckily, cruise lines offer various plans to accommodate various needs.

If you are looking to save money, perhaps you forego the cruise ship internet completely and wait until you go ashore. Depending on your cell phone carrier and plan, international coverage may be included or plans may be available for purchase to use when going ashore. Often times, these rates will be cheaper than cruise internet packages.

You can also look for local restaurants or facilities with free WiFi hotspots in your ports of call. But we recommend doing your research to find reputable businesses with wifi in a given destination. Not all connections are safe and secure.

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