Even as more and more airlines offer free inflight WiFi, a number of cruise lines are increasing the cost at sea.
Carnival Cruise Line, for instance, raised prices last month to as high as $25.50 per person per day for a single device and to $90 a day for a 4-device plan. Even the base plan, designed mainly for text and email, now costs over $20 per day. Disney’s basic package that includes web browsing, email and social media has gone from $26 to $30; a premium package that includes streaming apps is now $49 per day. MSC has also raised prices, with some 7-day packages over $30 per day.
Commenters on the Cruise Critic website who reported the increases have mixed opinions; some complain it is a money-grabbing move, while others assume it’s because of increased technology costs, including switches to satellite-based services such as Starlink. Ironically, the airlines such as United, Delta and American that have recently moved to free WiFi have increasingly shifted to Starlink as a lower cost than some other systems.
Free WiFi is offered on some cruise luxury lines including Viking, Regent Seven Seas and Seabourn. It is also ‘free’ as part of some paid amenity packages on mass-market lines such as Royal Caribbean and NCL.
