Wifi access

[torty]

Can anyone advise if WIFI access is available in the cabins on Caribbean Princess?

[Pam in CA]

Can anyone advise if WIFI access is available in the cabins on Caribbean Princess?

Yes. ALL Princess cabins have had WiFi capability for years. You'll need to purchase an Internet package in order to use the WiFi. It's not free.

[paul929207]

Wifi is available in all cabins for a price.

[Loucat]

I teach online and have to have fast Internet access. The closer you are to the centrum; the better the speed on a wireless system.

You do pay for the hookup and be careful to log out or your minutes are eaten up!

I have learned that by leaving the door slightly open, the connection improves greatly. This is on all ships we have sailed. Watch the bars on your computer and you will see the difference.

On my first (and only) Princess cruise, we were in a suite; DH out and about and I am working on grading papers. Internet access was free and no limit.

I think I had the door open too wide. A lady said from the doorway " Oh, how cute, a balcony cabin. Can I come in to see your room??":eek:

[caribill]

I teach online and have to have fast Internet access. The closer you are to the centrum; the better the speed on a wireless system.

 

At no place on a cruise ship can Internet access be considered "fast."

 

At best it is about the speed of a good phone dial-up Internet.

 

I also have not found that being close to the Internet room near the Piazza makes any difference in speed. The main factor that influences speed of the Internet is how many people on board are trying to use its limited capacity at the same time.

 

In the past, the only simultaneous users were 25 passengers in the Internet Cafe and ship's staff in their equivalent room.

 

Now there is the potential for every passenger to be trying to use it at the same time on their laptops, Kindles, iPads, smart phones, etc. Ditto for all of the off duty crew.

 

Admittedly not everyone will be trying to use it at once, but there is a big difference between the 25 possible Internet Cafe users in the past and the hundreds of passengers who will be trying to use it at the same time present day.

 

Also, there is no guarantee of Internet access at any speed. The location of the ship may be out of satellite range or onboard hardware may be malfunctioning.

 

In certain parts of the world (for example territorial waters of Japan) access to Internet from the ship is forbidden by local law.

[DugboatLarry]

The speed is slow and dependant on how many users are on at one time.. Late at night/off hours works best for us.

[paul929207]

I use the internet mostly early morning (6am to 7am) and before second seating dinner (6pm to 7:30pm) or so

[MicCanberra]

Great information, We have always used the PCs when they are available. We are now considering bringing a tablet onboard but it may work out to be no cheaper or quicker. :D

[Pam in CA]

Great information, We have always used the PCs when they are available. We are now considering bringing a tablet onboard but it may work out to be no cheaper or quicker. :D

It's quicker and more convenient using your own tablet because the ship's computers run a modified version of I.E. and sometimes, it's difficult for you to use your own service provider. Also, even on a tablet, you can write a blog or email off-line without using Internet time. You can't do that with the ship's computers. And, don't forget the convenience. I've found that early in the morning and at about 6:00-7:00pm are good times when people are either still in bed (in the morning) or eating dinner, having cocktails, or getting ready for dinner. Late at night is when the crew uses it so it probably isn't any faster after 10pm when many get off work.

[DugboatLarry]

Easy peasy.. the crew is always working.. technology has changed quickly since prior cruises. work off line/save no matter what time.. paste. post on your device.. easy peasy smart phones, apple ipads, droids, tablets, etc. still very very slow as opposed to on shore free places to send messages.

 

There are many web sites for international travel to be able to do this.

 

Happy Sailings

[CDay]

Your minutes will NOT be eaten up if you do not log off properly. You will automatically be logged off after 2 minutes of inactivity.

[caribill]

Your minutes will NOT be eaten up if you do not log off properly. You will automatically be logged off after 2 minutes of inactivity.

 

Depends on your definition of inactivity.

 

If I have the connection open and do something else for two minutes or lonegr it will still be counting minutes.

 

If I put my computer into sleep mode or turn it off, the two minute inactivity will have the charging of minutes ending.

[Pam in CA]

Depends on your definition of inactivity.

 

If I have the connection open and do something else for two minutes or lonegr it will still be counting minutes.

 

If I put my computer into sleep mode or turn it off, the two minute inactivity will have the charging of minutes ending.

Right. This is not something I'd want to test out or depend on. Much better to make it a practice to make sure you log out. It's so simple to do.

[LARGIN]

Very hard to get WiFi in Dolphin Deck Cabins in the 300 range on the Star. You have to stand near the cabin door..

[caribill]

Very hard to get WiFi in Dolphin Deck Cabins in the 300 range on the Star. You have to stand near the cabin door..

 

Or prop the door partially open. We have had to do that on several of the ships.

[MicCanberra]

Or prop the door partially open. We have had to do that on several of the ships.

 

That could be embarrassing !! :D

[nostalgiaguru]

That could be embarrassing !! :D

 

hmmm...I've never quite mastered doing something embarrassing while using ship wifi!

[CDay]

Depends on your definition of inactivity.

 

If I have the connection open and do something else for two minutes or lonegr it will still be counting minutes.

 

If I put my computer into sleep mode or turn it off, the two minute inactivity will have the charging of minutes ending.

 

Come on, lets not get ridiculous over the semantics of inactivity. I just want folks to realize that they are not going to wake up one morning and find out that all 250 minutes or whatever amount of time they had, has been eaten up while they slept because they did not log off using 1.1.1.1

 

The alarmists on this board make it sound like if you don't log off all your time will be eaten up, and that is just not the case.

[paul929207]

hmmm...I've never quite mastered doing something embarrassing while using ship wifi!

It is an acquired skill.

[trish1c]

It does exist. I wish I knew about the door open trick. I could never get a connection; I often gave up & used the ship's computers. DH had no problems, so it must have been me. :rolleyes:

[PescadoAmarillo]

Come on, lets not get ridiculous over the semantics of inactivity. I just want folks to realize that they are not going to wake up one morning and find out that all 250 minutes or whatever amount of time they had, has been eaten up while they slept because they did not log off using 1.1.1.1

 

The alarmists on this board make it sound like if you don't log off all your time will be eaten up, and that is just not the case.

 

Actually, as I posted last week, this is exactly what happened to DH using his iPhone. We think it was Google Maps that held the connection, but we're not sure. One of his applications continued to connect to WiFi long after he'd stopped using it. He blew through all his remaining internet minutes and racked up $200 of Internet charges. Luckily, they were all restored/erased by the Internet manager.

 

And I was under the impression that the crew had a different WiFi server (with considerably higher speeds). A headwaiter we spoke with used Skype to video call his wife every day. There is no way that we had that kind of speed. I got a Skype audio-only call out a few times, but only during times when most people were asleep or off the ship.

[Pam in CA]

The alarmists on this board make it sound like if you don't log off all your time will be eaten up, and that is just not the case.

I have seen that be the case many times over the years. The auto-logout on Princess must be something relatively new which is why I still always make sure I log out. HAL has had the auto-logout for a while and to be honest, you're the first person in my experience to say that Princess has it as well. Here's a screenshot from the Star in March. It says nothing about you being auto-logged out:

 

[kristacpa]

I was just on the CB in April...and while enjoying my window suite, I took advantage of the unlimited internet on my iPHONE. I had to log on/off a number of times due to dropped signal, but was very surprised one day while reviewing the prior day's log entries that I had a session that was clocked at over 90 minutes. I "know" I wasn't surfing cruise critic or playing words with friends for that long. So while there may be some session activity that would allow/permit for the automatic logoff, I agree with other users that it is quite possible to rack up some unexpected charges and/or minutes if you aren't careful. Since it was free...I didn't worry too much about it.

[RickEk]

Come on, lets not get ridiculous over the semantics of inactivity. I just want folks to realize that they are not going to wake up one morning and find out that all 250 minutes or whatever amount of time they had, has been eaten up while they slept because they did not log off using 1.1.1.1

 

The alarmists on this board make it sound like if you don't log off all your time will be eaten up, and that is just not the case.

 

Actually, as I posted last week, this is exactly what happened to DH using his iPhone. We think it was Google Maps that held the connection, but we're not sure. One of his applications continued to connect to WiFi long after he'd stopped using it. He blew through all his remaining internet minutes and racked up $200 of Internet charges. Luckily, they were all restored/erased by the Internet manager.

 

And I was under the impression that the crew had a different WiFi server (with considerably higher speeds). A headwaiter we spoke with used Skype to video call his wife every day. There is no way that we had that kind of speed. I got a Skype audio-only call out a few times, but only during times when most people were asleep or off the ship.

 

Yes, depending on the device, there may be a background app that is creating activity which would defeat the auto-logoff.

[caribill]

Yes, depending on the device, there may be a background app that is creating activity which would defeat the auto-logoff.

 

And a program such as Windows Live Mail or Outlook Express that checks for new mail once a minute is all it takes.