If you have booked a cruise, you may find that the cruise line you are sailing with encourages you to use their app.
You may be asked to download it pre-cruise or it may only be available onboard.
Cruise lines do this because they can easily share information with you and it saves them time and money on printing and paper costs.
It helps guests too, as they can find the information they need quickly and conveniently and it may save them from having to go to the reception onboard ship to ask a question.
Do You Need to Pay for Wi-Fi on a Cruise to Use Their App?
You don’t have to pay for the cruise ship Wi-Fi package to use the cruise lines App.
You need to connect to the cruise ship’s Wi-Fi to get to the app and download the information, but this is free.
You will not be able to use their Wi-Fi as normal – look at other web pages, emails, social media etc. If you want to do that, you will have to pay for a Wi-Fi package.
How do Cruise Ship Apps work?
Some Apps can be downloaded from your phone’s App store in the normal way.
Others, like P&O and Marella, are just websites you visit when you are onboard ship.
Top Tip: If your cruise line has a downloadable App, download it from the App Store to your phone prior to boarding! Otherwise, you may be reliant on mobile data to download it, and if you are on a ship you may not have signal.
Mobile data may also cost you money, depending on where you are from in the world and what your Mobile/Cell phone package allows for.
I remember my Mum desperately trying to download the Disney Cruise ship App with mobile data by holding her phone out over the edge of the top deck – totally unsuccessfully! (Luckily I had managed to download the App myself and was able to tick/check that box to say she had watched the muster video. Plan ahead and save yourself the stress!)
We Were only in Tilbury. She should have had a good data signal…
What Information Will You Find on The Cruise Lines App?
The apps vary greatly from one cruise line to another, and some are far better than others!
Most apps will allow you to:
- Keep up to date with what is going on onboard.
- Instead of having a daily paper schedule, you can find activities, times, and locations on the app.
- Purchase things.
- Internet packages, speciality meals, and spa treatments.
- Complete your “virtual” Muster Drill*.
- Rather than going to your muster station in person and listening to a crew member telling you all about safety procedures.
- Standing out on a promenade deck in a lifejacket can be tiring and unpleasant in hot or cold weather!
- Reserve a table in one of the restaurants.
- This can be far more convenient if the ship doesn’t have fixed dining times.
- It can save you from arriving at a restaurant and then having to hang about until they have a free table for you.
- Keep an eye on your onboard account.
- Best to keep an eye on it as you go along, and check the final bill at the end before you leave the ship.
- Some cruise lines have a free onboard chat feature.
- This helps you communicate with other members of your party onboard.
- It’s handy for meeting up and making arrangements!
Princess’s App even allows you to order drinks or snacks directly to where you are onboard!
*Find out everything you need to know about Muster Drills here:
What do You Need to Pay For – And What is Free?
| Free to Use | Extra Charge |
| Social media, webpages, sending emails, etc. | Social media, webpages, sending emails etc. |
To do the things marked extra charge above you will need to purchase a WiFi package.
There will be different packages available, and the cost of these varies greatly from one cruise line to another.
Sample WiFi packages would be:
- A cheap ‘messaging only’ package that only allows access to websites like WhatsApp
- A mid-tier ‘social and email’ package that allows access to certain websites but not general internet browsing.
- A higher tier that allows access to. all websites, including streaming videos.
Some cruise lines have chargeable chat features in their Apps, others are free.
Royal Caribbean, MSC, and Costa have just made their chat feature free, but at the time of writing, others, like Carnival, still charge.
| App or Webpage | Chat App | |
| Royal Caribbean | App | Yes (Free) |
| Norwegian Cruise Line | App | Yes (Paid $10 per user) |
| Costa Cruises | App | Yes (Free) |
| Princess Cruises | App | Yes (Free) |
| Carnival Cruises | App | Yes (Paid $5 per user) |
| P&O (UK) | Webpage | No |
| Disney Cruise Line | App | Yes (Free) |
| Cunard | Webpage | No |
| MSC | App | Yes (Free) |
| Marella | Webpage | No |
| Celebrity Cruises | App | Yes (Free) |
There Are Other Ways to Communicate with Your Group Whilst Cruising
If you don’t wish to use the cruise ship App or they charge for onboard messaging, there are plenty of other ways to keep in touch with other members of your party.
Check out the article below to see other ideas and options available:
Top Tip! You will probably need to turn off mobile data on your Mobile/Cell phone to load the cruise lines App. If you have the data on, your phone will try to load the page using that, and won’t be able to…
It is a bit annoying to constantly switch between Mobile Data and the ship’s Wi-Fi when in port, but on most phones, it’s the only way to make the cruise line’s app work.
Is a Ship’s Wi-Fi Any Good?
People often ask me, “Is a ship’s Wi-Fi any good? Will I be able to work from the ship?” This question is difficult to answer because cruise ship Wi-Fi is never dependable.
I have been on some ships where it is great, and I’ve even been able to watch YouTube videos and hold livestreams without a problem. Some others are worse than useless!
Watch my live stream from Norwegian Aqua and see the WiFi quality here. Tony from La Lido Loca and Sheri from Cruise Tips TV gatecrashed in the middle of it! (18 minutes in.)
There are lots of factors that go into whether the WiFi is good on a ship. The location of the ship matters, as does how many other people on the ship are trying to use the WiFi.
Starlink internet has significantly improved cruise ship Wi-Fi, offering faster speeds and more reliable connectivity compared to previous onboard internet systems.
Cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean and Holland America, have invested in Starlink technology to improve guest and crew connectivity at sea.
WiFi is usually good enough for me to work from ship – but I work for myself, so if I can’t, it isn’t a big deal. If I were trying to hold down a conventional job, working from a ship, I think it would be really stressful!
Before You Go
Find out more about cruise ship WiFi here:
Cruise Ship Wi-Fi: Is It Worth It or Should You Disconnect?
Find out what cruisers wish they had known before their first cruise – including additional charges, such as WiFi, here:
15 Common Mistakes – Things Cruisers Wish They Knew About Before Their First Cruise
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