Internet Speed and Usage on Reflection

I am looking for information on the internet speed on board the Celebrity Reflection. My husband needs to stay connected at all times. Could someone tell me about the wifi speed and whether you can access with your own laptop throughout the ship?

Thank you in advance.

He may be in trouble, speed is slow, dial up speed more or less. Where are you cruising?

Cruising is not like being in a hotel on land, where you can stay connected at all times. You need to log on and log off. It's expensive and slow.

You can access from your own device throughout the ship. You sign up, choose a package, establish a login ID and password, and you can be connected to the wi-fi- on the ship.

Here is some information from the Celebrity Website FAQ

"Is there Wi-Fi onboard?

Most ships in our fleet offer Wi-Fi connectivity throughout, with the exception of Celebrity Century® and Celebrity Xpedition®, which offer Wi-Fi in public areas. Internet access is available in the Celebrity iLounge℠ 24 hours a day on all ships except Celebrity Century. Celebrity Century® features Online@Celebrity℠, an Internet lounge that provides e-mail services and Internet access 24 hours a day. You will be able to receive email, satellite conditions permitting. We also have an Internet Manager on board to assist you with questions or to set up an Internet Package at a nominal fee.

You can connect to the Internet on each ship, either by accessing a 24/7 wireless connection "hotspot" with your own laptop or tablet, or utilizing the resources of the Internet lounge and its computers on board. You will be able to receive email, via satellite link 24 hours a day, satellite conditions permitting.

Internet Packages

Minutes Included Price

90 $59

240 $109

600 $219

1680 $429

Per minute rate is $0.79. Captain's Club Premium Offers are distributed onboard may not apply to all packages. Internet rates and packages are subject to change without prior notice."

I am looking for information on the internet speed on board the Celebrity Reflection. My husband needs to stay connected at all times. Could someone tell me about the wifi speed and whether you can access with your own laptop throughout the ship?

 

Thank you in advance.

Yes, you can access the network from anywhere on the ship, including your cabin. Although speeds have increased a bit over the years (we've been using ship internet for around 15 years) it is still slow. Think dial-up speed plus a little and you will have a picture of the speed. Big files, big graphics, etc. take forever to download. Text emails much better. Get an offline mail program like Thunderbird that allows you to read and compose offline then upload/download and you will save a ton of money. Here are the prices:

Internet Packages

Minutes Price

90 $59

240 $109

600 $219

1680 $429

Per minute rate is $0.79.

Hi - I have a related question about Century, which we will be on for the Oct 30 South Pacific cruise out of Sydney. If we purchase an internet package, will we be able to use several devices on that package? and it seems that on Century, we will have to be in a public location in order to access the WiFi, correct? Thanks for any experience with internet access specifically on Century.

The internet speeds are slow, sometimes agonizingly slow. Occasionally they do not work at all. That is the nature of the ship's satellite connection.

Since they charge a high rate by the minuite you'll need to log on when you need access, and then log off when you are done. Composing emails is best done off line and then transmitted when online. It would not be practical to be connected at all times.

You can use your own laptop throughout the ship but you might find that in some areas the reception is much better than other areas. We've found on other ships (not sailed on Reflection) that some staterooms have good coverage and some do not).

Even when the satellite connection is functioning at its best, there is a limited amount of bandwidth shared by all passengers online at the same time. So it follows that your connection speed will be best at times when the fewest passengers are online such as very late at night or very early in the morning, and will be slowest at peak times such as mid afternoon on sea days.

Ship internet is recreational at best. Real time exchange is spotty and not reliable. Off hours local time usage is the best but it could be midnight back home!

IF you need serious connection, rent a Satellite phone. Prepaid plans are a few hundred dollars and you can text. Data is very expensive.

Checkout globalstar

We were on Reflection in May and both brought our laptops, had no issues getting a connection but as mentioned above, it is slow and expensive. However, if he really needs to stay in touch, he should be able to. We were in a cabin close to midship on deck 11, internet there worked fine for us. Also, you can generally find lower cost wifi in port, often the crew is a great research for where best to find this.

As elite, I get the 90 free minutes. I thought that Internet had been improving. On the Summit in May....good, but not great. It isn't as quick as my home FIOS. It is supposed to be getting quicker. Has it? I just saw a TV ad for Royal that boasts the best internet at sea. Having just disembarked from an Azamara cruise( same parent company) with horrible internet, I wonder if there really has been any improvement in using the internet on Celebrity.

We just booked an eight day cruise to Europe/Greek Isles on the Celebrity Constellation. My husband felt 10 days was going to be too long. We signed up for the middle of the ship right above the ilounge. Hopefully, it will help with internet connection. Thanks for your response.

Regarding the speed, on our last few cruises, both on RCCL and X, using an iPad or even an iPhone, things went much faster than in the computer center. This especially applies to emails, which should basically be text.

The cruises were on the Summit here and the Connie in Europe.

Of course, once you get off the ship, you can find what ever you want for cheap rates or even free in some places.

Jeff

Not sure when you are cruising but we just got back from the March 5 sailing on the Reflection. The internet was great as Reflection was one of the first ships in the Celebrity fleet to roll out the faster speed internet. We had absolutely no problem with it and everything loaded very quickly. I am hoping the Silhouette has been updated by the April 10 Transatlantic sailing. You can also use it all over the ship on your own device. Reflection also has a special where you can add a second device for your cabin mates only for 50% off the regular cost.

Not sure when you are cruising but we just got back from the March 5 sailing on the Reflection. The internet was great as Reflection was one of the first ships in the Celebrity fleet to roll out the faster speed internet. We had absolutely no problem with it and everything loaded very quickly. I am hoping the Silhouette has been updated by the April 10 Transatlantic sailing. You can also use it all over the ship on your own device. Reflection also has a special where you can add a second device for your cabin mates only for 50% off the regular cost.

It hadn't been updated last week. I found it almost useless on the balcony.

Since this thread is 2 years old, the posters who began it have probably sailed:)

Not sure when you are cruising but we just got back from the March 5 sailing on the Reflection. The internet was great as Reflection was one of the first ships in the Celebrity fleet to roll out the faster speed internet. We had absolutely no problem with it and everything loaded very quickly. I am hoping the Silhouette has been updated by the April 10 Transatlantic sailing. You can also use it all over the ship on your own device. Reflection also has a special where you can add a second device for your cabin mates only for 50% off the regular cost.

However, this won't work if one person wants to surf in the Library while the other does it by the pool.

No. You have a login code and can only login one device at a time. If you did find a way to login in two devices imagine the speed of about 100K divided into two parts. It would be slower than dialup!

No. You have a login code and can only login one device at a time. If you did find a way to login in two devices imagine the speed of about 100K divided into two parts. It would be slower than dialup!

Sorry but this isn't correct. First, Reflection has been upgraded to "Xcellerate" so the speed is faster.

Second, what a travel router does is essentially create a new network for multiple devices that connect to the original network as a single device. It worked perfectly for me.

Third, unless they partition network capacity by individual login - which is technically possible but I think unlikely - it's all just a shared resource handled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Lastly, short of streaming video or audio a network device spends most of its time generating close to zero traffic. A web page is loaded and then activity drops while the user views it. This is how a ship board internet system can share limited bandwidth with potentially hundreds (or thousands) of users.

Rather than add a second device for 50% of the cost, if it's being used only in the cabin you can use a WiFi travel router to share the connection across as many devices as you choose to connect (most handle 5 concurrent connections).

 

However, this won't work if one person wants to surf in the Library while the other does it by the pool.

Please tell me more about a WiFi travel router. Will these work if we only have iPads and iPhones....we don't travel with a laptop computer. It seems you are saying that you purchase a travel router, connect the router to the ship's wifi (that you purchase for one device) and then more than one person can share that single connection within a limited distance, such in the cabin? Any suggestions as to brand or specifications?

Thanks.

Please tell me more about a WiFi travel router. Will these work if we only have iPads and iPhones....we don't travel with a laptop computer. It seems you are saying that you purchase a travel router, connect the router to the ship's wifi (that you purchase for one device) and then more than one person can share that single connection within a limited distance, such in the cabin? Any suggestions as to brand or specifications?

Thanks.

There are plenty of options but this is what I used:

http://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-Performance-10400mAh-External/dp/B00RVIGY1I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458602735&sr=8-1&keywords=HooToo+Titan

It runs off of its own battery and can double as an iPhone/iPad charger on a shore excursion or away from power. Note that it is not designed to be plugged in and charging itself for days - this one is cheaper and should work as well, but must be plugged in to work.

http://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-Performance-TripMate-Hotspot/dp/B00HZWOQZ6/ref=pd_sim_147_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41MK7b%2BeiUL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0VQJRQ54D4XZ9DD9Q0CM

If you aren't technically inclined it can take a bit to figure out, but what I did was to set the address range and SSID (the device name that it broadcasts) as well as the encryption to be the same as my home network, so any device online would connect just like at home. In my case this was 2 iPads, 2 Nintendo DS, 2 iPhones and a Samsung Galaxy phone - not all at the same time of course.

There are plenty of options but this is what I used:

 

http://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-Performance-10400mAh-External/dp/B00RVIGY1I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458602735&sr=8-1&keywords=HooToo+Titan

 

It runs off of its own battery and can double as an iPhone/iPad charger on a shore excursion or away from power. Note that it is not designed to be plugged in and charging itself for days - this one is cheaper and should work as well, but must be plugged in to work.

 

http://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-Performance-TripMate-Hotspot/dp/B00HZWOQZ6/ref=pd_sim_147_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41MK7b%2BeiUL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0VQJRQ54D4XZ9DD9Q0CM

 

If you aren't technically inclined it can take a bit to figure out, but what I did was to set the address range and SSID (the device name that it broadcasts) as well as the encryption to be the same as my home network, so any device online would connect just like at home. In my case this was 2 iPads, 2 Nintendo DS, 2 iPhones and a Samsung Galaxy phone - not all at the same time of course.

Thanks...I think I should be able to figure this out. [emoji3]

To the last two posters; is such a device used on the ethernet port in room? Or does it use the wifi as source (settings via an app perhaps)? Thanks!

Figured I'd update for everyone.

On the reflection right now and internet has been "ok"

For what it's worth:

Used HooToo router and split the single connections - well worth it! I'll try and post a step by step once back home.

iPad and iPhone seem to get decent speeds, you can browse the web, iMessage, Snapchat and WhatsApp. That's about it, don't expect to use it for video/audio. Work laptop won't even hit websites. Outlook takes about 20 minutes to get emails.

And no more packages of minutes.

Main offering is unlimited usage for entire cruise.

Also available on board is 24 consecutive hours for $49 and 60 consecutive minutes for $19.99.