Dream Internet Issues

[Jason Martin]

Warning and or Questions. Second day in a row with poor or non functioning internet. It has been completely out except for web access for several spans of hours at a time. Worst coverage I've had in 20 cruises with DCL. Guest services says the satellite has been really poor. Anyone else have issues on their sailings? And I purchased the highest speed package for multiple devices for LOC. already in discussions about refund

 

[adamreisinger]

I’m on the Dream now and bought the middle package for the day at sea yesterday. I had a solid four hours of decent access right after buying it, but absolutely nothing the rest of the day.

 

[Geomom]

That's not good to hear. We're on the Dream in 2+ weeks, planning to just buy the internet for second day at sea so we can do airline check-in 24 hrs before the flight home.

Hopefully they'll give you a refund of some sort.

 

[RedHead0186]

Unfortunately, they do say internet access at sea is subject to how well the satellite can get a signal. Where the Dream currently is may not be able to get a good signal. I would never assume/count on having steady, reliable internet access for the entirety of a cruise. Yes, it's frustrating, but I'm not sure how much DCL can do here.

I do think it's worth asking for a partial refund, it never hurts to ask. DCL may say you purchased at your own risk, but then at least you know.

 

[insureman]

Warning and or Questions. Second day in a row with poor or non functioning internet. It has been completely out except for web access for several spans of hours at a time. Worst coverage I've had in 20 cruises with DCL. Guest services says the satellite has been really poor. Anyone else have issues on their sailings? And I purchased the highest speed package for multiple devices for LOC. already in discussions about refund

Make sure you log a complaint with guest services on board so you can ask for a refund later. I did that on a transatlantic and received a full refund after I emailed shore side. This is not a satellite issue but a dcl /vendor transmitter/receiver/wifi equipment issue and if enough people complain maybe they will fix it.

 

[insureman]

They should scrap what they have now and invest in SpaceX 's Starlink service.

 

[tlovesdis]

I think it's a satellite issue, not DCL. I bought the internet for my 5 night cruise to Grand Cayman and CC and it worked great the whole time. I never had an issue.

 

[insureman]

I think it's a satellite issue, not DCL. I bought the internet for my 5 night cruise to Grand Cayman and CC and it worked great the whole time. I never had an issue.

As I said it was either a dcl or vendor issue. Extremely unlikely that the actual satellite would malfunction also they use multiple satellites so it would have to be a ground station issue (satelite/internet vendor) or equipment on the ships (dcl problem). Either way it's DCLs responsibility to fix it.

 

[DCLMP]

I’ve never had a problem with internet on any cruiseline other than Disney. It’s not a satellite issue it’s a DCL issue.

 

[Jason Martin]

It was a satellite issue with being in the Baltics. They refunded the two days where internet was basically non existent and then credited back for the rest of the cruise and advised me to buy back when coverage is back which it is

 

[insureman]

It was a satellite issue with being in the Baltics. They refunded the two days where internet was basically non existent and then credited back for the rest of the cruise and advised me to buy back when coverage is back which it is

Did they say the actual satellite was down or there was no coverage in that area because that's two different issues. The latter being an issue with the company that supplies the service.

 

[hmsTigger]

Is there wifi access at most ports?

 

[CarolynFH]

Did they say the actual satellite was down or there was no coverage in that area because that's two different issues. The latter being an issue with the company that supplies the service.

I’m thinking the satellite might have been shut down due to political issues around the Baltics.

 

[JM_97]

I’ve never had a problem with internet on any cruiseline other than Disney. It’s not a satellite issue it’s a DCL issue.

I was about to say this. It's 2023 and truly insane how behind Disney is with internet on their cruise ships.

 

[tvguy]

I was about to say this. It's 2023 and truly insane how behind Disney is with internet on their cruise ships.

Judging from the cruisevloggers, even ships on other lines with Starlink are pretty hit and miss. And more expensive to boot. So we aren't "there" yet when it comes to internet on a moving cruise ship.

 

[Sykes]

They don't need Starlink, they just need a remotely reliable provider (and they need to invest in the staff and equipment to go with it—I’d bet good money that the vast majority of DCL’s problems are with the onboard equipment). Royal Caribbean launched their VOOM service more than a decade ago and it's been fleetwide since 2016--DCL is basically a decade behind here. My experience with VOOM has been excellent--an outage for a few minutes here and there, but nothing like the terrible service that DCL provides. Same with the Internet on Princess and NCL. You can really see the difference in how the cruise lines market their Internet service--DCL barely mentions it at all, while most of the rest make it a key part of their offerings.

 

[tvguy]

They don't need Starlink, they just need a remotely reliable provider (and they need to invest in the staff and equipment to go with it—I’d bet good money that the vast majority of DCL’s problems are with the onboard equipment). Royal Caribbean launched their VOOM service more than a decade ago and it's been fleetwide since 2016--DCL is basically a decade behind here. My experience with VOOM has been excellent--an outage for a few minutes here and there, but nothing like the terrible service that DCL provides. Same with the Internet on Princess and NCL. You can really see the difference in how the cruise lines market their Internet service--DCL barely mentions it at all, while most of the rest make it a key part of their offerings.

Princess in recent months has really gotten flamed this year for issues with their onboard internet.

 

[tlprice]

If you look at any satellite map (including starlink), you will see that there are far fewer satellites at the top and bottom of the earth. That is why some cruises have worse connectivity because of where they are sailing. Launching into a polar orbit is more difficult than launching into an equatorial orbit, due to the motion of the Earth.