WiFI in Cabins

[happiness is cruising]

Can anyone tell me if I can use my new I Pad 2 to send e-mails from my

cabin??

or do I still need to use the ships internet to send messages

 

Thanks so much

Ann

[Roses2]

You can use your IPad or any computer or tablet that will connect to the ship's WiFi providing you purchase access or are Platinum or Elite with minutes furnished by Princess

[Pam in CA]

Can anyone tell me if I can use my new I Pad 2 to send e-mails from my

cabin??

or do I still need to use the ships internet to send messages

All Princess ships have WiFi throughout the ship, even in cabins, and have had for years. You need to sign up for an Internet package in order to use it as it's satellite-based and not free. Princess pays for the services of MTN which provides the satellite and communications. If you are Platinum or Elite, one of the perks is a very nice free Internet package that's usually more than enough for most people. I had 150 minutes on my recent 4-day cruise and will have 250 minutes on my March cruise.

[themob]

Can anyone tell me if I can use my new I Pad 2 to send e-mails from my

cabin??

or do I still need to use the ships internet to send messages

 

Thanks so much

Ann

 

Be sure you are in airplane mode while you are not using Princess WiFI as you may incur high charges with email and phone if your iPad is set up that way

[SuitCaseBears]

Can anyone tell me if I can use my new I Pad 2 to send e-mails from my

cabin??

 

As has been said, yes.

 

or do I still need to use the ships internet to send messages

 

In your room you would still be using the ship's internet (unless, see below) so this isn't clear.

 

If you have a myfi or your own wifi hotspot AND you can pick up a signal (occasionally when you're doing a coastal cruise and often in port) you can get a signal. BUT the cost may be more than the ship's wifi... or not.

 

The best thing to do is contact your cellular provider and ask them.

 

Verizon has a great cruise page on their website or you can call up and tell them were you're going and they will tell you what's available. I've signed up for data service in the Caribbean in the past (depending on the ports) and it was much cheaper (and faster) than the ship's wifi on days when I could get it at all.

 

Since I need to keep in touch with work when I travel, it's worth my while to do the arithmetic and figure out what's going to work best on various days of the cruise. I also spend less time being frustrated trying to do my 30-60 minutes of work a day.

 

 

 

Thanks so much

Ann

[paul929207]

When at sea you will need to use the ships wifi to connect. In port, you can usually find networks that are either free or much cheaper than the ship.

[tarps]

We just got off the Caribbean Princess. Out on the balcony, the signal kept getting dropped and not all that good in the cabin. We were told by the internet manager to either keep our cabin door open, or come down to the internet room with our computer or iPad. We did this and it was better. We also sat in the Vines bar to use the wifi. Still very slow....hard to adapt after we are all so used to high speed internet. But at least we could still communicate with family briefly. Amazing how 2 hours time can get eaten up so quickly with the slow connection.

[Roses2]

You can save a lot of internet time by writing your messages before you log on to the Princess connection. Once you send and download your messages, log off and read them off line.

 

The same holds true for reading the latest news. log on, download, log off -- then read.

 

We send and receive quite a few messages and read the news every day and do not come close to using all of our allotted time.

 

P&J

[happiness is cruising]

Thank you ALL for answering

Ann

[Steviewonder1]

Here is some more info on WiFi that most do not know and it isn't in your operating manuals. The small Smart Phones have the smallest Wifi Radio's and antennas. The Tablets have bigger of both. The laptop computer has the biggest Wifi Radio (more power) and more antennas (likely 4-6). In this world More is better. I have run calls and surfed on Princess Crown and Ruby (twins). My iPhone has the worst coverage, even with your door open as some say, and my MacBook Pro has the best and will do Video with no issues. The calls were done from the aft Penthouse Suites on both ships. There is more than 1 data stream from the satellite to the ship so Hogging data comments are not really true. Best times to use are just before bed time or just before dawn. Also remember the time difference between where you are and back at home. Also the best signal into the ship's WiFi system will get the best thru-put, ie. faster data rates. YMMV.

[Pam in CA]

Keep in mind that if someone is surfing a very graphic-intensive website or using Skype or FaceTime, then few others will be able to have an Internet connection as those are big bandwidth hogs, costing everyone else time and money as they try to connect and/or lose a connection while their minutes are being used up. :(

[Duane T]

You can save a lot of internet time by writing your messages before you log on to the Princess connection. Once you send and download your messages, log off and read them off line.

 

The same holds true for reading the latest news. log on, download, log off -- then read.

 

We send and receive quite a few messages and read the news every day and do not come close to using all of our allotted time.

 

P&J

 

I agree! Doing your emails offline and then logging on and doing a send/receive each day or twice a day is a great way to keep in touch. I was on the Golden Princess earlier and I used this process and spent anywhere from 3 to 8 minutes per session. I usually got faster session speeds late at night or early in the morning. I used up the bulk of my minutes the first day trying to learn the system (about 45 minutes) and browsing Cruise Critic. After that, I did all my emails offline and drafted any comments in the word processor before going online.

[FritzG]

The signal in the cabin was very good on the Emerald and Ruby this month. I used my iPad exclusively including signing on for my free minutes. I composed my emails in Notes, and then I just pasted them into the email.

 

Just to be sure I was signed out after the screen said I was signed out, I went to Settings and turned wifi off.

 

In Barbados there was free wifi in the port shopping area so I was able to catch up on my email, send some photos, and check weather.com for the rest of the ports for free. Pretty much anywhere you see a lot of crew standing around on their phones is a good hint that there is free wifi.

[riclop]

Wifi reports have not been good.

[caribill]

Just to be sure I was signed out after the screen said I was signed out, I went to Settings and turned wifi off.

 

 

If the signoff had been unsuccessful, turning WIFI off would not have stopped your WIFI minutes from counting down.

 

In some cases inactivity would cause the ship's system to figure you should have signed off, but lack of connectivity is not an automatic signoff.

[pcorbridge]

Apologies but this is only useful for UK travellers. If you have a contract with Three then as part of their 'Feel At Home' you can use your call, text & data allowance in the USA for no additional charge.

 

We go on the Royal in April on the East Caribbean cruise so am hoping to utilise this perk.

 

If you are a UK non Three customer then it might be still better value to purchase a Three PAYG and load it up.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[Redwing55]

We'll be getting minutes on our next cruise. I noticed that some have posted that stopping wifi won't necessarily stop the clock. So, how does one sign off? Is there a web page that is a sign in/sign off?

 

And on a bit of a related note, I wonder when/if the cruise lines start going by data used as opposed to time signed on. In the states it's the amount of data that is the issue, not the time connected. If one isn't sending/receiving data, I wouldn't think it would affect capacity.

[caribill]

We'll be getting minutes on our next cruise. I noticed that some have posted that stopping wifi won't necessarily stop the clock. So, how does one sign off? Is there a web page that is a sign in/sign off?

 

 

There are two ways to sign off if using your own device.

 

One is to type 1.1.1.1 as the web address.

 

The other is to use the address of logout.com (which then goes to 1.1.1.1)

 

When you do this, you will see confirmation of the signoff and then a few moments later get a summary of minutes used.

[Pam in CA]

And on a bit of a related note, I wonder when/if the cruise lines start going by data used as opposed to time signed on. In the states it's the amount of data that is the issue, not the time connected. If one isn't sending/receiving data, I wouldn't think it would affect capacity.

With an international clientele with limited English and many technologically-challenged passengers, I think this would be an extremely difficult concept to explain if there were issues or someone used more MB than expected. Just check all the threads asking about how to use WiFi onboard or how to use their cell phone! :) If it makes you feel any better, every time you sign off, it'll give you a summary per session of minutes and data used.

[Hlitner]

One needs to be extremely careful with iPads (and many Smart Phones) when using WiFi. In some cases those devices will not properly disconnect and you can keep racking up minutes (and charges). With an iPad it is always wise to go into the settings and manually turn off WiFi after you have done the normal logout procedure from WiFi. We learned this the hard way on a recent Celebrity cruise where our logoff did not actually register on the server. After I later noticed several hundred extra minutes used by my account (at about 50 cents per minute) we paid a visit to the friendly internet room where they credited back the minutes (and money). It can be even worse with iPhones (or other Smart phones) that will often do digital updates in the background. One needs to turn off the digital options or just put the phones into airplane mode.

 

Hank

[FritzG]

If the signoff had been unsuccessful, turning WIFI off would not have stopped your WIFI minutes from counting down.

 

In some cases inactivity would cause the ship's system to figure you should have signed off, but lack of connectivity is not an automatic signoff.

 

I did say that I turned wifi off after I saw the successful sign off screen.

[Norcalcouple]

You can save a lot of internet time by writing your messages before you log on to the Princess connection. Once you send and download your messages, log off and read them off line.

 

The same holds true for reading the latest news. log on, download, log off -- then read.

 

We send and receive quite a few messages and read the news every day and do not come close to using all of our allotted time.

 

P&J

 

I second your comments. You can save a lot of money by doing as much as possible before you connect to the Wi-Fi. Another hint- If you want to send digital photos with your E-Mails, first reduce the files to 640X480.

[Susie51]

Thank you for the helpful info. I don't think I'll try to use my tablet on board.

[Norcalcouple]

One tip that I picked up on the Star Princess last year was that the quickest way to find free Wi-Fi when in a U.S. port is to follow the crew when they go ashore!

[WAVTAM]

In room wifi is much improved if an Ethernet hook up is provided. I know of other lines that offer this........does Princess???????