Best way to connect to Internet a couple of hours a day?

[Deb T.]

We have some longer cruises booked that will each have a lot of sea days. We'll need to connect to the Internet a couple of hours a day for things like Skyping with family/grandkids, emails, etc. In the past, we've relied on wifi in ports, but that won't work as well for us this time. We've used "Connect at Sea" during past cruises, but find the connection spotty at best, as well as expensive. Are there other/better options out there for connecting? TIA

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Nope. You really have the on board Wi-Fi, or nothing. Other cell service may be available but it won't support high-bandwidth applications.

It will be expensive and the connection won't be great for things like Skype.

 

[Deb T.]

Thanks for the info. I sure was hoping that we might be able to find another option.

 

[OrcaPotter]

I spent an absolute fortune just to check my email a few times a day. Unless absolutely vital, best to just keep disconnected.

 

[Shanti]

Disconnecting is one of the joys of cruising. Embrace it!

 

[MichelleCanada]

You could consider renting a personal wifi device called a mifi. I have done this when I travelled to Brazil and Japan. It is a small device that is a wifi hotspot - it needs to be charged each day and is the size of a small camera. It can be delivered to your home and you mail it back. Here’s one company but there are many: https://www.tepwireless.com/wifi/caribbean-islands/

 

[PurplePencil]

You could consider renting a personal wifi device called a mifi. I have done this when I travelled to Brazil and Japan. It is a small device that is a wifi hotspot - it needs to be charged each day and is the size of a small camera. It can be delivered to your home and you mail it back. Here’s one company but there are many: https://www.tepwireless.com/wifi/caribbean-islands/

Some libraries even have these (or other hotspots) available for check-out, so be sure to check with your local library

 

[gotomu212]

You could consider renting a personal wifi device called a mifi. I have done this when I travelled to Brazil and Japan. It is a small device that is a wifi hotspot - it needs to be charged each day and is the size of a small camera. It can be delivered to your home and you mail it back. Here’s one company but there are many: https://www.tepwireless.com/wifi/caribbean-islands/

Just to clarify, these work over cellular service so you need to be close enough to shore to grab service from towers. They won’t work on most sea days unless you’re hugging the coast.

 

[Jestocost]

Just to clarify, these work over cellular service so you need to be close enough to shore to grab service from towers. They won’t work on most sea days unless you’re hugging the coast.

Well, they also might work if you connect them to the Cellular at Sea service but that's going to be ridiculously expensive even relative to the ship's WiFi.

The long and short of it is that outside of free WiFi in the ports or free/paid cellular service in the ports (depending on the port and your plan), options are limited to the ship's paid WiFi or data roaming through Cellular at Sea. Both of the on-ship options are fairly costly and rely on satellite connections that have reasonable download speeds but inherently high latency, and can be inaccessible if the ship is out of position for a satellite connection.

 

[Deb T.]

Thanks, everyone. We really appreciate all the feedback!