Jacqui

[JKNR]

Hi, I was on the Balmoral World cruise this year, had a great time.
The one disappointment and everyone said this,the wifi was either non existent or very expensive , when you are away for four months ,keeping in touch with family is very important . I think for customers traveling for that length of time why is it not free like in hotels? Even if we were only given one hour a week!

[colinwb22]

Jacqui,
I fully support your complaint about the Internet Access/ WiFi cost- many cruise lines are cheaper but costly Fred Olsen rubs salt in the would by charging time from when you access the on board network, not from the time you access the internet. When I challenged this the you man told me all cruise lines were the same, this is untrue.
As a retired IT person I held my tongue, and now take my own tablet to use free WiFi on offer ashore.

Colin
Colin

[Mark_T]

Perhaps it would be possible to add 'free internet' to Gold level Oceans benefits?

[Nathan Philpot]

Thanks for your feedback. Whilst we appreciate your comments, we should stress that the cost of operating this service via third party satellite providers in a remote maritime environment is very different to the equivalent service in a static, land-based hotel. We incur very high costs and Fred. Olsen do not profit from its Wi-fi service.

Our rates are very competitive with other cruise lines and The Telegraph named Fred. Olsen as ‘the cheapest pay-as-you-go access’ in a 2012 Wi-Fi survey, as you can see at [url]http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/cruise-news/9259555/Cruise-lines-under-fire-for-high-internet-fees.html[/url] A list of the Wi-Fi ‘hotspots’ on board each ship, which are located in the public areas, is available from Reception.

Wi-Fi access on Fred. Olsen ships is provided on a 'pay as you go' basis, and guests can purchase tokens and bundle packages for Wi-Fi internet minutes from Reception, and these charges will be applied to their onboard accounts:

£5 – 25 mins (20p per minute)
£10 – 55 mins (18p per minute)
£25 – 145mins (17.2p per minute)
£50 – 300mins (16.6p per minute)

Guests wanting Internet access, without using the Wi-Fi service, can make use of the Internet Centres to connect on board all four ships. Internet charges are applied to guests’ onboard accounts.

Also, even if you do not go ashore, please check the Cruise Terminals where you dock, as often they have free Wi-Fi access on the quayside and we would encourage our guests to use these free services.