Carnival ships wifi.. any better than earlier this year

[CLS/KAS]

Hello All... Sailing on the Carnival Horizon shortly

every ship I have been on in the past, wifi has been a struggle

with the packages they have.. Have they finally worked out the problems..

is it finally usable/ tks in advance..  

[glrounds]

Interested in answers to this question myself.

 

I've cruised several times with a friend who absolutely positively has to be in touch with his stock portfolio. The last cruise on the SPLENDOR he was constantly frustrated with Carnival's "WiFi" to the point of saying he'll never cruise Carnival again. I'm booked on the PANORAMA in 2 months and asked him if he was going to book this. He just laughed which I know meant "NO WAY, JOSE".

[CLS/KAS]

was on the Magic  earlier this year..everyone was in line to get refunds on the third day..

but yet I saw others on their phone, talking away...what service is this?

I must have..I have Verizon.. is there not some type of Satellite signal I can get?

someone pls help!

[zorky12]

I  cruised vista in 2018 and had the middle package and I had no issues. We could even use wi-fi calling and FaceTime. My wife made calls every day to our daughters and it worked great. Phone was on airplane mode with data off the entire week.

[groundloop]

5 hours ago, glrounds said:

Interested in answers to this question myself.

 

I've cruised several times with a friend who absolutely positively has to be in touch with his stock portfolio.........

 

Hmmmmmm..... I always thought the point of cruising was to relax.  Someone please throw me overboard if I can't go a week without checking my investments.

 

Anyway, each time I've cruised internet service has been mediocre at best, even with the most expensive plan.  

[Saint Greg]

If you’re on Horizon don’t listen to anyone who hasn’t sailed on a Vista class ship in the past year and a half. They have an upgraded internet the other ships don’t have. I was on vista earlier this year and it was by far the best internet I’ve had on a cruise. It worked everywhere. I could stream live TV. Upload pictures. Upload videos. It was great. I had the premium package.

Edited November 20, 2019 by Saint Greg

[Organized Chaos]

7 hours ago, CLS/KAS said:

Hello All... Sailing on the Carnival Horizon shortly

every ship I have been on in the past, wifi has been a struggle

with the packages they have.. Have they finally worked out the problems..

is it finally usable/ tks in advance..  

 

Like Saint Greg said, you shouldn't have a problem on the Horizon. The Vista, Horizon, & Sunrise (so far) all have the best internet service. Not only do they have upgraded speeds, but also have more access points throughout the ships, unlike others. That means less dead zones and fewer devices being forced to connect to a single access point, which will improve service wherever you are.

[Organized Chaos]

4 hours ago, CLS/KAS said:

was on the Magic  earlier this year..everyone was in line to get refunds on the third day..

but yet I saw others on their phone, talking away...what service is this?

I must have..I have Verizon.. is there not some type of Satellite signal I can get?

someone pls help!

 

Once they're out in international waters, they'll activate the "Cellular at Sea" network, which is a satellite-based cellular network. You can connect to this, but unless you have a deal worked out with your carrier, it can be very expensive. So you don't want to do it under normal circumstances. Some carriers, like Verizon, do offer temporary cruise packages that allow you to connect to the Cellular at Sea service for a fee.

 

Other people you see might be using some form of wifi calling. If the wifi is good enough on that particular ship, and the device supports it, some people have had luck using wifi calling. That goes through your cellular carrier, but over wifi instead of their cellular network. Using it would require, at least, the Value internet plan, but maybe even the Premium plan. Not sure if the Value plan is enough. Other people might be using one of the messaging apps, like facebook messenger, that supports voice calls. Again, all this depends on the quality of the internet service and the plan you purchase.

[glrounds]

2 hours ago, groundloop said:

 

Hmmmmmm..... I always thought the point of cruising was to relax.  Someone please throw me overboard if I can't go a week without checking my investments.

 

Anyway, each time I've cruised internet service has been mediocre at best, even with the most expensive plan.  

 

This is relaxation to my friend. Couple hours a day. And he's good at it, too. We always enjoyed MAKING MONEY while we were cruising while our businesses were running themselves in that week we could be away. Now that's relaxation.:-)

Edited November 20, 2019 by glrounds

[stobe1]

I cruise to disconnect from the world and reality. As soon as I step on board, my phone gets turned OFF and goes in the safe until disembarkation day.

 

I realize some people have issues at home or have to work while on vacation so wifi is a must, but for me being 100% disconnected is part of the mental break of my vacation.

[CLS/KAS]

thank you all for up to date info about the Vista class ship wifi..

will help

[Joebucks]

Honestly, the internet has been better for me since they raised the price. I assume that will put less people on the network, and clog it up less. I'm fairly certain the Horizon has the upgraded service on top of that.

 

Didn't take long for all of the righteous disconnectors to show up.

[ricew001]

Just got off Valor on Monday. It was pretty much ok. I was frustrated because in years past they gave you explicit instructions when you purchased a plan. Not this time. Ugh.

And for those of you screaming you unplug for vacation, that's wonderful if you can but some of us have obligations on land still. Sadly my husband had to sell his family home for his mom who is in a nursing home. Right as we were about to pull out of port the realtor texted us and wanted our electronic signature on the document. Thankfully we did it with no issues.

[Organized Chaos]

4 hours ago, ricew001 said:

Just got off Valor on Monday. It was pretty much ok. I was frustrated because in years past they gave you explicit instructions when you purchased a plan. Not this time. Ugh.

And for those of you screaming you unplug for vacation, that's wonderful if you can but some of us have obligations on land still. Sadly my husband had to sell his family home for his mom who is in a nursing home. Right as we were about to pull out of port the realtor texted us and wanted our electronic signature on the document. Thankfully we did it with no issues.

 

Thanks for the Valor report. We'll be on it next month. We weren't sure what it would be like since our internet experience on Conquest class ships has been good & bad. On Conquest a few years ago, it wasn't bad, but we only did the Social plan. On the Glory last year, we bought the Value plan, but service was absolutely atrocious. About all we could do was communicate with one another via iMessage, but anything else was next to impossible.

 

Did you happen to have Your Time Dining? I'm wondering if the service is available on Valor to check in for YTD using the Carnival Hub app.

 

I know people love to "disconnect," and many of those love to tell everyone about it, but they should concentrate more on themselves and not others so much. We don't need internet for work, we like to use it to communicate with one another on board and family at home. To each their own.

[Cyn874]

On 11/19/2019 at 8:07 PM, Saint Greg said:

If you’re on Horizon don’t listen to anyone who hasn’t sailed on a Vista class ship in the past year and a half. They have an upgraded internet the other ships don’t have. I was on vista earlier this year and it was by far the best internet I’ve had on a cruise. It worked everywhere. I could stream live TV. Upload pictures. Upload videos. It was great. I had the premium package.

How do you stream tv? I'm confused by the internet packages because even the premium package specifies that it doesn't allow streaming  services like netflix or hulu.

[stobe1]

17 hours ago, Joebucks said:

Honestly, the internet has been better for me since they raised the price. I assume that will put less people on the network, and clog it up less. I'm fairly certain the Horizon has the upgraded service on top of that.

 

Didn't take long for all of the righteous disconnectors to show up.

 

 

 

Swing...and a miss.

[CoasterGuy]

39 minutes ago, stobe1 said:

 

 

 

Swing...and a miss.

 

How about to each their own. What are you the life police?

[Organized Chaos]

4 hours ago, Cyn874 said:

How do you stream tv? I'm confused by the internet packages because even the premium package specifies that it doesn't allow streaming  services like netflix or hulu.

 

The Vista, Horizon, & Sunrise officially support Netflix streaming (on the Premium plan). That’s from Carnival themselves. The Panorama and Radiance, as well as Mardi Gras and other future ships, will most likely do the same, I’m assuming.

 

Since internet speeds and wifi quality on those ships are capable of streaming Netflix, many have discovered that they can stream from other sources too. I’ve seen people say they’ve successfully streamed using YouTube, the ESPN app, HBOGo, & others. Again, using the Premium plan.

 

I suspect that Carnival doesn’t officially support other streaming services as a way to cover their rears. Massive amounts of streaming would bog down the service, for one. If people had trouble streaming from their favorite sources, there’d be endless complaints, so it’s probably easier for Carnival to say they aren’t supported, even though they do work on a few ships that have the most updated internet service. 

[ricew001]

16 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

Did you happen to have Your Time Dining? I'm wondering if the service is available on Valor to check in for YTD using the Carnival Hub app.

 

I know people love to "disconnect," and many of those love to tell everyone about it, but they should concentrate more on themselves and not others so much. We don't need internet for work, we like to use it to communicate with one another on board and family at home. To each their own.

 

Yes we had Anytime Dining but I did not even think about usng it to check in for it! We were in the Lincoln Dining Room which we couldn't find all 3 nights we ate there! 

 

What I did like about the hub app was ordering pizza from it and having it brought to you where ever you were on the ship! We were at the casino bar listening to a duo and they brought the pizza to me right there!!

[Saint Greg]

8 hours ago, Cyn874 said:

How do you stream tv? I'm confused by the internet packages because even the premium package specifies that it doesn't allow streaming  services like netflix or hulu.

 

I can't speak on netflix or hulu. I have youtube tv and it worked the entire cruise all over the ship on vista with the premium package. Keep in mind there are packages that specify they don't include iMessage even though many people say iMessage works on those packages.

 

 

Edited November 22, 2019 by Saint Greg

[Joebucks]

6 hours ago, stobe1 said:

 

 

 

Swing...and a miss.

 

Nice try, but understand that everyone is different. Some people do like to disconnect. Some people like to constantly stay in contact with their world. Some people just want to have the option to keep in contact. For me, my other half doesn't always come with me. When that is the case, I like to have a few occasions per day when I can keep in contact.

 

Throwing my phone in the safe and telling everyone about it doesn't make my vacation any better. If anything, I miss out on photo opportunities.

[stobe1]

3 hours ago, Joebucks said:

 

Nice try, but understand that everyone is different. Some people do like to disconnect. Some people like to constantly stay in contact with their world. Some people just want to have the option to keep in contact. For me, my other half doesn't always come with me. When that is the case, I like to have a few occasions per day when I can keep in contact.

 

Throwing my phone in the safe and telling everyone about it doesn't make my vacation any better. If anything, I miss out on photo opportunities.

 

If you read my entire comment you will see I pretty much said that. There was no "righteousness" stated or implied. You must have read that "righteousness" into it.

[lab_love123]

On the Dream earlier this month, I was pleasantly surprised with how well the internet worked for me. I only had the social media plan, and Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat worked really well. 

[Cyn874]

17 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

The Vista, Horizon, & Sunrise officially support Netflix streaming (on the Premium plan). That’s from Carnival themselves. The Panorama and Radiance, as well as Mardi Gras and other future ships, will most likely do the same, I’m assuming.

 

 

 

12 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

 

I can't speak on netflix or hulu. I have youtube tv and it worked the entire cruise all over the ship on vista with the premium package. 

 

 

 

Thanks. I'll be sailing on the Panorama in May. I'm not actually interested in streaming any tv, but the reason I ask is because I have an usual job in the video game industry, and my job involves being logged in to the actual game. When I sailed on Ruby Princess earlier this year, I had the premium package and was able to get in an hour or two of work in the early mornings- sitting out by the pool on the lido deck with coffee and my laptop. Nice way to kill a few hours before the day really starts, and get paid for it to boot. 😉 

 

I also enjoyed doing a lot of Facebook Live videos from the ship. I'm hoping the premium package on Panorama will allow me to do the same.

[Saint Greg]

6 hours ago, Cyn874 said:

 

 

Thanks. I'll be sailing on the Panorama in May. I'm not actually interested in streaming any tv, but the reason I ask is because I have an usual job in the video game industry, and my job involves being logged in to the actual game. When I sailed on Ruby Princess earlier this year, I had the premium package and was able to get in an hour or two of work in the early mornings- sitting out by the pool on the lido deck with coffee and my laptop. Nice way to kill a few hours before the day really starts, and get paid for it to boot. 😉 

 

I also enjoyed doing a lot of Facebook Live videos from the ship. I'm hoping the premium package on Panorama will allow me to do the same.

I’m getting on Panorama on leap day. Look for my live review on this page. I usually do internet tests. I’d be happy to test Facebook live or whatever for you.