How to use internet on ship

[OctoP]

This will be our first cruise with NCL. Before this, we have only cruised with Princess. On Princess, getting internet to work is a bit tricky, so I want to make sure I understand how it works with NCL while I’m still at home. 
 

Questions:

1) Does each person need their own account with NCL, or can it be one account for the whole party?

2) Can multiple devices be used? That is, could I use both my phone and my laptop?

3) Do you need the NCL app to connect?

4) What are the mechanics of connecting?

 

Also, I heard it’s cheaper to upgrade the internet package once onboard. Is this right? As of now, we only have 150 minutes. We’d like the next package up, just in case of emergency. 

[ggTexasGal]

5 hours ago, OctoP said:

This will be our first cruise with NCL. Before this, we have only cruised with Princess. On Princess, getting internet to work is a bit tricky, so I want to make sure I understand how it works with NCL while I’m still at home. 
 

Questions:

1) Does each person need their own account with NCL, or can it be one account for the whole party?

2) Can multiple devices be used? That is, could I use both my phone and my laptop?

3) Do you need the NCL app to connect?

4) What are the mechanics of connecting?

 

Also, I heard it’s cheaper to upgrade the internet package once onboard. Is this right? As of now, we only have 150 minutes. We’d like the next package up, just in case of emergency. 

NCL internet can also be tricky sometimes.

Everyone can use the single account, however, you would need to log-out first device to log into a different device. You need the App on your phone and computer separately, but could switch between them after logging in and out.

Instructions for connecting are available in the Freestyle Daily, and on notifications in the staterooms.

If you can wait a day, or two, before connecting, the cost of a package does go down.

(Cost is based on length of cruise.)

[Two Wheels Only]

6 hours ago, OctoP said:

How to use internet on ship

 

 

Patiently? 

[BirdTravels]

11 hours ago, OctoP said:

This will be our first cruise with NCL. Before this, we have only cruised with Princess. On Princess, getting internet to work is a bit tricky, so I want to make sure I understand how it works with NCL while I’m still at home. 

1) Does each person need their own account with NCL, or can it be one account for the whole party?

You can share one account, one device online at a time. 

 

2) Can multiple devices be used? That is, could I use both my phone and my laptop?

You can share one account, one device online at a time. We share our one unlimited account between 4 phones (2 personal and 2 work), a laptop, and an iPad. 

 

3) Do you need the NCL app to connect?

No. But it is good to have the app to get to the daily program and make misc reservations.

 

4) What are the mechanics of connecting?

You can have your wifi on and connected to the ship's wifi all the time. That give you access to ship's information via the NCL app. When you want to take the internet you enter the URL "loginnow.com". The first time you log on, it will ask you for the last name and birth date of the account holder and you can tell the system to remember your device. After that, if you are sharing the account and someone else is logged on, you will be told that the account is in use and asked whether you want to bump the other user off the network. Say "yes". 

 

If you do not have an unlimited plan, you need to log out to prevent your minutes from ticking away. 

 

5) Also, I heard it’s cheaper to upgrade the internet package once onboard. Is this right? As of now, we only have 150 minutes. We’d like the next package up, just in case of emergency. 

The price of the upgrade is the same onboard. A very very very limited number of people will wait until Day 2 to purchase the upgrade to save a day's charges. If you accidentally touch your free minutes, you will pay full price for the unlimited package. If forget to do the upgrade on Day 2, you can not get an unlimited package. The vast majority of people will get the upgrade as soon as they get on board and they are done with it. 

[Asawi]

I'm beginning to wonder if it is ahip specific, but I've done two cruises on Star. Both times there has been a discounted upgrade offer all through the cruise. Even if I have used up some of my minutes. It startes out as the pre-cruise price and then went down approximately $30/day the next three days. On my 10 day very recent  cruise. Price went approximately 200-170-140-110. 

 

[SomewhereGirl]

Make sure your phone is in airplane mode.  My free package didn't show up initially on embarkation day because I was not in airplane mode.  Had to find the right person to point that out.

[Daruma]

150 minutes divided by 7, (I'll be on a 7 day cruise), is 21 minutes a day... just how much internet does someone use on vacation? 

 

I'll pre-download movies/shows before boarding, so I won't need to stream, every book I own is already downloaded to my Kindle/phone/tablet.

 

I'm not a social media person... I don't have an Instagram account, I only have Facebook because that's where my BiL posts pictures of my neices... am I missing something? I do surf the web like many people, but can probably get by on 20 minutes per day... and some of that would be checking emails... <sigh> yes... some work <shudder> emails too, lol.

 

Just curious because I don't want to be caught flat footed by not thinking of something. 

 

Thanks.

[cruiseny4life]

13 minutes ago, Daruma said:

150 minutes divided by 7, (I'll be on a 7 day cruise), is 21 minutes a day... just how much internet does someone use on vacation? 

 

I'll pre-download movies/shows before boarding, so I won't need to stream, every book I own is already downloaded to my Kindle/phone/tablet.

 

I'm not a social media person... I don't have an Instagram account, I only have Facebook because that's where my BiL posts pictures of my neices... am I missing something? I do surf the web like many people, but can probably get by on 20 minutes per day... and some of that would be checking emails... <sigh> yes... some work <shudder> emails too, lol.

 

Just curious because I don't want to be caught flat footed by not thinking of something. 

 

Thanks.

The internet is very slow so remember the clock is still counting down as you wait for the modem to buffer. 🏴‍☠️

Download your email. Logoff the internet. Write your replies. Logon the internet. Send your email. That'll save you some minutes. 

 

My husband is trying to insist we not get an unlimited package. I'm kind of anxious, because I want to go on my social and part of my joy in a day is reading the NY Times. Especially when I'm on vacation. Definitely no checking of work email for me. I am grateful I can sign off and not deal with work whatsoever. There used to be a world where I couldn't do that, so I know your pain! 

 

(and yes, I know the modem isn't buffering - if you can't read sarcasm, just blah)

[Asawi]

7 minutes ago, Daruma said:

Just curious because I don't want to be caught flat footed by not thinking of something. 

 

I "waste" a chunk of minutes on controling home automation/security/control. Not really necesary, but gives me peace of mind.

[Asawi]

2 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

The internet is very slow so remember the clock is still counting down as you wait for the modem to buffer. 🏴‍☠️

😄 Yeah, Internet onboard does give me flashbacks of days gone by... 
Sometimes I just give up, realizing it will take too many of my metered minutes just to load some pages. 
I do the load-log off-write reply-log on thing as well. But it IS a  bit of a hassle sometimes! Having unlimited is so much more convenient. Worth the price? Maybe... Maybe not... 

[RedRover96]

Quick question, we have FAS+ and it includes unlimited internet, my confirmation shows for "2".  Just to confirm does this mean we each have our own "account" and don't have to share, logging in and out?

 

Thanks,

RedRover

[cruiser2015]

46 minutes ago, Daruma said:

150 minutes divided by 7, (I'll be on a 7 day cruise), is 21 minutes a day... just how much internet does someone use on vacation? 

 

I'll pre-download movies/shows before boarding, so I won't need to stream, every book I own is already downloaded to my Kindle/phone/tablet.

 

I'm not a social media person... I don't have an Instagram account, I only have Facebook because that's where my BiL posts pictures of my neices... am I missing something? I do surf the web like many people, but can probably get by on 20 minutes per day... and some of that would be checking emails... <sigh> yes... some work <shudder> emails too, lol.

 

Just curious because I don't want to be caught flat footed by not thinking of something. 

 

Thanks.

You're not missing anything - as long as you do the activities that you want.

As cruiseny4life posted, what you do may eat more minutes than you are used to, so the time may go more quickly than expected.

 

As for the rest of the world, there are lots of things that folks do that you don't.

Such as, many post tons of info onto these boards during a cruise (or otherwise interact with CC members).

Personally, I like to read my hometown newspaper when I'm away from home. I don't do any social media at all; I don't plan on streaming anything. And I can't get by on 20 minutes a day, even if it doesn't run slowly.

[cruiser2015]

6 minutes ago, RedRover96 said:

Quick question, we have FAS+ and it includes unlimited internet, my confirmation shows for "2".  Just to confirm does this mean we each have our own "account" and don't have to share, logging in and out?

 

Thanks,

RedRover

That should be the case.

[OctoP]

10 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

1) Does each person need their own account with NCL, or can it be one account for the whole party?

You can share one account, one device online at a time. 

 

2) Can multiple devices be used? That is, could I use both my phone and my laptop?

You can share one account, one device online at a time. We share our one unlimited account between 4 phones (2 personal and 2 work), a laptop, and an iPad. 

 

3) Do you need the NCL app to connect?

No. But it is good to have the app to get to the daily program and make misc reservations.

 

4) What are the mechanics of connecting?

You can have your wifi on and connected to the ship's wifi all the time. That give you access to ship's information via the NCL app. When you want to take the internet you enter the URL "loginnow.com". The first time you log on, it will ask you for the last name and birth date of the account holder and you can tell the system to remember your device. After that, if you are sharing the account and someone else is logged on, you will be told that the account is in use and asked whether you want to bump the other user off the network. Say "yes". 

 

If you do not have an unlimited plan, you need to log out to prevent your minutes from ticking away. 

 

5) Also, I heard it’s cheaper to upgrade the internet package once onboard. Is this right? As of now, we only have 150 minutes. We’d like the next package up, just in case of emergency. 

The price of the upgrade is the same onboard. A very very very limited number of people will wait until Day 2 to purchase the upgrade to save a day's charges. If you accidentally touch your free minutes, you will pay full price for the unlimited package. If forget to do the upgrade on Day 2, you can not get an unlimited package. The vast majority of people will get the upgrade as soon as they get on board and they are done with it. 

Very helpful! Thank you! Do you know if our minutes are per person or per stateroom?

[OctoP]

55 minutes ago, Daruma said:

150 minutes divided by 7, (I'll be on a 7 day cruise), is 21 minutes a day... just how much internet does someone use on vacation? 

 

I'll pre-download movies/shows before boarding, so I won't need to stream, every book I own is already downloaded to my Kindle/phone/tablet.

 

I'm not a social media person... I don't have an Instagram account, I only have Facebook because that's where my BiL posts pictures of my neices... am I missing something? I do surf the web like many people, but can probably get by on 20 minutes per day... and some of that would be checking emails... <sigh> yes... some work <shudder> emails too, lol.

 

Just curious because I don't want to be caught flat footed by not thinking of something. 

 

Thanks.

My husband has some work stuff that he needs to stay in touch with periodically. Unfortunately he can’t completely disconnect. Also, we have 2 middle schoolers staying at home with their aunt that we want to stay in touch with. 

[RedRover96]

5 minutes ago, cruiser2015 said:

That should be the case.

Thanks!

 

RedRover

[SyberCat]

Tagging on here with a question… Does the NCL Internet support video uploads? My husband has a daily video blog that he does and he would like to continue it while on our 12-day cruise.

[Daruma]

34 minutes ago, SyberCat said:

Tagging on here with a question… Does the NCL Internet support video uploads? My husband has a daily video blog that he does and he would like to continue it while on our 12-day cruise.

 

Judging by vlogs I've seen on YouTube, and take this with a mountain of salt, you can do that but need to upgrade to the top tier internet package. 

[marysb]

Just wondering if the free iMessage still works with iPhones without the internet package.  It did on my March cruise, and it was very convenient for quick messages home and to my kids.  …and did not count for my package minutes.