When will WiFi be free on Celebrity?

[mfs2k]

Cruise ships (and airports) are some of the last places where customers get gouged for wifi access.

 

The cruise lines still treat internet access as a profit center, because they have a captive audience and cell service is unavailable. 

 

In 2019, Wifi  or cell service is a basic utility for most of us. Wifi is like electricity;  heat; air conditioning, or water. 

 

Imagine if your cruiseline charged you extra for the Kilowatt hours you used when you turned on a light in your cabin, or plugged in your phone to charge. Imagine if you got a water bill and it went higher each time you flushed a toilet or used the sink.

 

Imagine if one of the "Perk" options was choosing air conditioning on your Caribbean cruise vacation.   Ridiculous right?  But that's what they're doing with Wifi.   And we all suck it up and take it.  

 

Hotels used to do the same thing and charged guests $9.95 to $19.95 per day for lousy Wifi service. Eventually, some independents and chains started marketing FREE WiFi to attract guests.  Websites such as HotelChatter started an annual list of hotels who charged for Wifi and those who gave it for free.   When guests started looking at review sites such as Tripadvisor and saw they could go to hotels and not pay for internet, hotels started changing quickly and most have stopped charging for Wifi access.

 

Eventually, most hotels started treating WiFi as a necessary utility and included it in their room rates.  The exceptions are still the big convention hotels and those catering to mostly business clientele because guests submit wifi charges to their company for reimbursement and nobody makes a fuss. 

 

I predict this will all change soon.  Maybe Celebrity will be a leader in making the change. 

 

In 2019, Wifi is an essential utility. Once one or two major cruise lines start offering Wifi for free to all guests, the others will have no choice but go along to remain competitive.   They all have the Wifi infrastructure now, so all they'll have to do is increase bandwidth.  Maybe rates will go up slightly, but the competitive nature of the vacation business will keep rates reasonable. 

 

$200 to $300 or more per person for internet for a week on a cruise ship is ridiculous.  

 

Speak out if you want to see change.  The Cruise lines listen.  Hotels had no choice but to listen to the Tripadvisor reviews by leisure guests, calling out hotels with expensive wifi.

 

Change can happen.  You have a voice.  Make it heard. 

Edited March 4, 2019 by mfs2k

[BarbinMich]

Accessing internet on a ship depends on using satellites, I believe.  And I would think that's a lot more expensive than what we have thru cable access at home.  Also, wi-fi is free at the airports we've been to (DTW, LGA, FLL, etc.)

 

Edited March 4, 2019 by BarbinMich

[mfs2k]

Just now, BarbinMich said:

Accessing internet on a ship depends on using satellites, I believe.  And I would think that's a lot more expensive than what we have thru cable access at home.

 

Generators and Desalination plants are expensive too.  so what?  

[justcrusn]

The problem is, not everyone wants internet on a cruise ship. It cannot be “free” no matter what. You would simply include the cost in the cruise fare and then make passengers who do not use it subsidize those who do. I for one prefer the current “pay to play” system, and yes we usually purchase it.

[kathynorth]

mfs2k, I think you are correct. The cruiselines will eventually make internet access complimentary,  but one of the smaller cruiselines focused on increasing their passenger base will need to lead the way before the larger estabilished cruiselines follow the lead. I also agree that passengers should speak out about the crazy high rates the cruiselines charge for internet access, especially since most ports have free access at port stops. 

[Toftwood]

I am sorry but I do not concur that WiFi is an essential utility - yes, nice to have but not essential for everyone. There will of course be some passengers who need to be able to check in on a sick relative or something similar but I am not one of those who has to speak to my family every day.  Years ago that did not and could not happen.  I take my phone and iPad with me to take photos and maybe two or three times in a fortnight just see what has been coming in on the emails.  I am looking forward to my upcoming T/Atl trip with lots of sea days (six in one continuous stretch I think) so unless I want to purchase aWiFi package then I will be out of contact.  There are always methods of communication for emergencies but when on holiday/vacation I don’t need or want continuous contact. 

 

I was shocked on our last cruise to see so many people reading and sending emails at breakfast in the MDR. I am sure most of it was unnecessary.

[BarbinMich]

1 minute ago, justcrusn said:

The problem is, not everyone wants internet on a cruise ship. It cannot be “free” no matter what. You would simply include the cost in the cruise fare and then make passengers who do not use it subsidize those who do. I for one prefer the current “pay to play” system, and yes we usually purchase it.

You raise an important point re how many pax use the internet (or don't).  With the advent of smartphones that pax can use at sea, there is even more demand for those satellites.  Do such folks pay roaming fees and/or access fees from the ship?  Obviously I don't have one so have no idea.

[mfs2k]

 

I don't understand why any guest would take an opposing view on this and back the cruise line for charging exorbitant rates for wifi..  

 

This is like 15 years ago, someone agreeing with the phone company for charging $1.50 a minute to call from Los Angeles to NYC because the lines are costly.  Now it's free. Change happens. 

[mfs2k]

1 minute ago, BarbinMich said:

You raise an important point re how many pax use the internet (or don't).  With the advent of smartphones that pax can use at sea, there is even more demand for those satellites.  Do such folks pay roaming fees and/or access fees from the ship?  Obviously I don't have one so have no idea.

 

there's no cell service on a ship.  People make calls over wifi

[1025cruise]

I doubt it will ever happen.

Satellite internet is expensive.

Plus, not all hotels give free wifi.

 

[mfs2k]

7 minutes ago, Toftwood said:

I was shocked on our last cruise to see so many people reading and sending emails at breakfast in the MDR. I am sure most of it was unnecessary.

 

Change is hard, but inevitable. 

 

If SO many people were reading and sending emails at breakfast, then that's the way it is in 2019. 

 

You want to keep your electronics put away and enjoy your vacation without it, that's certainly your prerogative

 

I believe if cruise lines want to attract the next generation of millenials and the generations after that, they better get "on board" with free wifi because anyone under 30 isn't going to be without their phones, no matter how much that may annoy you. 

[MizDemeanor]

13 minutes ago, justcrusn said:

The problem is, not everyone wants internet on a cruise ship. It cannot be “free” no matter what. You would simply include the cost in the cruise fare and then make passengers who do not use it subsidize those who do. I for one prefer the current “pay to play” system, and yes we usually purchase it.

 

I think those are the daily resort fees in the hotels for the use of the Wi-Fi and the fitness center. Use or loose. 

[mfs2k]

1 minute ago, 1025cruise said:

I doubt it will ever happen.

Satellite internet is expensive.

Plus, not all hotels give free wifi.

 

 

AS I said in my original post: "The exceptions are still the big convention hotels and those catering to mostly business clientele because guests submit wifi charges to their company for reimbursement and nobody makes a fuss. "

 

I don't know anyone submitting their cruise vacation bill to their boss for reimbursement, unless they are working on board. 

[BarbinMich]

1 minute ago, mfs2k said:

 

there's no cell service on a ship.  People make calls over wifi

Ok, so I assume they pay the ship to use wifi to use their phones.  Admittedly we haven't cruised for almost 2 years (after doing 50+), but we paid $100 for 250 min of internet usage, which I thought was reasonable (or at least part of the cost of cruising).

[mfs2k]

1 minute ago, BarbinMich said:

Ok, so I assume they pay the ship to use wifi to use their phones.  Admittedly we haven't cruised for almost 2 years (after doing 50+), but we paid $100 for 250 min of internet usage, which I thought was reasonable (or at least part of the cost of cruising).

 

They have you conned to believe $100 for 250 min of usage is reasonable.  That's outrageously expensive.  

[kathynorth]

3 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

 

I don't understand why any guest would take an opposing view on this and back the cruise line for charging exorbitant rates for wifi..  

 

This is like 15 years ago, someone agreeing with the phone company for charging $1.50 a minute to call from Los Angeles to NYC because the lines are costly.  Now it's free. Change happens. 

 

Some people don't like any kind of change and see the down side as losing the ability to totally disconnect. We've had the best promo on our last 2 cruises, with open internet (notice I didn't say free). We found that having easy internet access enhanced our trips. We view cruising as a time to relax and enjoy our time away from work demands, but being able to discreetly monitor what was happening at work helped me to not worry about what I would return to. I was able to upload and edit photos as we hopped from port to port. I maintained contact with our DD and received my daily photo of our first grandson. I was able to draft a cruise review as our trip progressed. My DH was able to play an online game that he rarely has enough spare time for as he works well past 40hrs/week. We were even able to FaceTime to check in with my MIL who stayed at home while we cruised. 

 

I remember the day my DH came home with a car phone for me. I thought it was silly and a waste of money. That same day I was able to use my phone to call 911 to assist a woman in need. These days we view the internet as technology to support work tools and toys, but it won't be that long before the internet becomes a "basic utility" for all of us. 

[MizDemeanor]

I just paid $39 a day fees at a Vegas hotel that I don’t need due to cellular. The $100.00 for the 250 minutes, or let’s say a week on board, is a better deal than the resort fees for Wi-Fi and gym. 

 

Nothing about cruising is cheap. It’s great value but it still costs. 

[Baron Barracuda]

Very few airlines offer free internet and there's a lot more competition in that industry. 

 

Also, have seen what happens to network response time  on sea days when everyone is online.  It's as bad as dial-up.  Give everyone free access and it will be even worse.

[NLH Arizona]

I wonder what the cruise lines pays to get the internet on the ship today?  I remember reading an article in 2012 that back then they paid $80,000 per ship to get the internet on this ships.

 

I've never been on an airline that has free wifi.

 

Edited March 4, 2019 by NLH Arizona

[MizDemeanor]

2 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

 

 

I've never been on an airline that has free wifi.

 

 

Jet Blue. Love them! 

[NLH Arizona]

5 minutes ago, MizDemeanor said:

 

Jet Blue. Love them! 

Not an airline I would ever use.

[MizDemeanor]

No Free WiFi for you! 

[TickledBlue]

Virgin cruises will be offering "free" wifi on their cruises: https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/3725/

 

I prefer that they don't bake wifi in the price of the cruise.   Same way I prefer they don't bake the price of drink packages or specialty dining into the price of the cruise.

 

While I'll enjoy wifi, a drink package, or specialty dining, I don't value them enough for the price offered.   This is one of the reasons I don't cruise on luxury, all-inclusive cruise lines.

[mnocket]

I guess the question is Why would they?

 

Unless there is competitive pressure (i.e. competing cruise lines start offering free wifi), I wouldn't expect Celebrity to break rank and start offering it for free.  Will the industry move in this direction?  Probably not in the near future.  The industry trend seems to be increasing charges, not eliminating them.  I expect we'll see Celebrity charging for room service before we see them offering free wifi.

[mfs2k]

1 minute ago, mnocket said:

I guess the question is Why would they?

 

Unless there is competitive pressure (i.e. competing cruise lines start offering free wifi), I wouldn't expect Celebrity to break rank and start offering it for free.  Will the industry move in this direction?  Probably not in the near future.  The industry trend seems to be increasing charges, not eliminating them.  I expect we'll see Celebrity charging for room service before we see them offering free wifi.

 

See the comment above yours. Virgin is already doing it. 

 

If cruiselines want to attract the millennial market they’re going to have to pay more attention to what people under 30 want and less what seniors want. Eventually we’ll be dead. Casinos are facing the same problem. Apparently Virgin gets it and agrees with what I posted.