TV and how good's the internet?

[jules815]

Fresh off of a 2-week cruise with another line. Included internet wasn't great, so I paid extra for a browse and stream option. Mostly to be able to FaceTime with family. We have internet included with our package (Have it All is the package, I think). Is there an option for upgrading, or is the included package pretty good? Also, do they happen to have TCM (Turner Classic Movies)? Kind of a cruise ritual for us to watch an old movie before bed. 

 

Thanks.

 

 

[crystalspin]

35 minutes ago, jules815 said:

Fresh off of a 2-week cruise with another line. Included internet wasn't great, so I paid extra for a browse and stream option. Mostly to be able to FaceTime with family. We have internet included with our package (Have it All is the package, I think). Is there an option for upgrading, or is the included package pretty good? Also, do they happen to have TCM (Turner Classic Movies)? Kind of a cruise ritual for us to watch an old movie before bed. 

The levels of internet and what is possible with them are here:

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/onboard-packages/cruise-ship-wifi.html

 

The $30 & $35 daily rate are only if you pay for one day (!), read the footnote to find examples of total price for a 7-day cruise. If you have Surf via HIA, you can upgrade to Premium when you are logged on on the ship. I think you will need Premium for FaceTime. (It's like a video call, right?)

 

Can't answer about the TV, never turn it on after watching the muster drill video.

[CruiserBruce]

No, they don't have TCM. They do have a lot of movies available on board for viewing in your cabin. The best part if you fall asleep, or otherwise turn the TV during the movie, the program saves where you were in the movie, so you can resume later.

 

The Premium internet package is the only one that will allow you to FaceTime or stream. 

[HermmyGranger]

We had the premium package on our most recent trip and it was hit and miss all the time.

 

The movies available are okay, but not great and there are really no tv options at all. HGTV and the Food Channel. Don't count on the in-room entertainment for a quiet evening in.

[jules815]

16 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

they don't have TCM

 

Wow. We're kinda surprised that HAL doesn't have that channel. Not the end or the world. Funny though, on our cruise last week, they had a very limited channel selection (unless you spoke Italian), but did have TCM. Not like we spend a lot of time holed up in our room watching tv, but this is going to be an April crossing, so we'll have more time than usual.

 

[VMax1700]

4 minutes ago, jules815 said:

We're kinda surprised that HAL doesn't have that channel

There is a great sports channel though!

[VMax1700]

Currently to upgrade from the included HIA package internet (Surf) to the Premium cost us $50 per person for a 14 day cruise.

Have been hitting 55~78 mpbs download speed.

[Mosaic]

Often the speeds are horrible.  Difficult to send a single email.....no joke.

[Haljo1935]

On 9/29/2023 at 3:04 PM, jules815 said:

 

Wow. We're kinda surprised that HAL doesn't have that channel. Not the end or the world. Funny though, on our cruise last week, they had a very limited channel selection (unless you spoke Italian), but did have TCM. Not like we spend a lot of time holed up in our room watching tv, but this is going to be an April crossing, so we'll have more time than usual.

 

There are a lot of movie options. 

[WriterOnDeck]

On 9/29/2023 at 4:20 PM, Mosaic said:

Often the speeds are horrible.  Difficult to send a single email.....no joke.

I've not found this to be the case, but it can depend on a number of factors, such as where in the world you are and whether your ship has upgraded yet to Starlink.

 

I spent 200 days on the Zuiderdam so far this year, circling the globe, and we never couldn't send an email message. Not always fast if you had big attachments. I frequently made phone calls over the wifi, streamed Netflix and even attended zoom meetings with video.

[firsttimer1971]

The Koningsdam, Oosterdam, Volendam, Westerdam, Zaandam and the Zuiderdam all have Starlink now. The rest is scheduled to have Starlink-internet installed by mid-december. 

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, firsttimer1971 said:

The Koningsdam, Oosterdam, Volendam, Westerdam, Zaandam and the Zuiderdam all have Starlink now. The rest is scheduled to have Starlink-internet installed by mid-december. 

 

Thanks for this information.

 

There was someone here on CC insisting that the Rotterdam had starlink a year ago.

 

Is there an official place/link that shows which ships have starlink and/or the schedule to install starlink? That would help clear up these misconceptions. 

[Mikeyto]

13 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

Thanks for this information.

 

There was someone here on CC insisting that the Rotterdam had starlink a year ago.

 

Is there an official place/link that shows which ships have starlink and/or the schedule to install starlink? That would help clear up these misconceptions. 

Here is a link to the article from today indicating which ships have Starlink.  It seems the rest of the fleet will be done by the end of the year.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/holland-america-line-successfully-installs-spacexs-starlink-internet-aboard-more-than-half-its-fleet-301944407.html#:~:text=internet on board.-,Holland America Line is more than halfway through updating internet,high-speed internet on board.

[firsttimer1971]

21 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

Thanks for this information.

 

There was someone here on CC insisting that the Rotterdam had starlink a year ago.

 

Is there an official place/link that shows which ships have starlink and/or the schedule to install starlink? That would help clear up these misconceptions. 

I think they issued a press release, multiple sources (like the one from @Mikeyto) share the same story. Did try to find the press release on the HAL website but it isn't there (yet).

But this page says that HAL is one of the sources: https://isp.page/news/holland-america-line-expands-starlink-internet-service-on-six-ships/

Edited October 2, 2023 by firsttimer1971

[POA1]

Can you download the movies before you leave home? That's what we do and then it's never an issue.

[sandiego1]

Internet speed varies greatly depending on the ship’s location and how many people are using it. I haven’t been on a ship with Starlink yet. However on both the 2019 and 2023 WC, there were times when it didn’t work at all and I couldn’t send email or upload photos. Other times, it was super fast.

[Reagan0712]

On 9/29/2023 at 3:01 PM, jules815 said:

Fresh off of a 2-week cruise with another line. Included internet wasn't great, so I paid extra for a browse and stream option. Mostly to be able to FaceTime with family. We have internet included with our package (Have it All is the package, I think). Is there an option for upgrading, or is the included package pretty good? Also, do they happen to have TCM (Turner Classic Movies)? Kind of a cruise ritual for us to watch an old movie before bed. 

 

Thanks.

 

 

Besides not having TCM, the television selections in general are a “D”. 
As far as TCM, the only time was ever able to get it was in June when our ship came within Canadian borders. I had to upgrade to premium internet and watch it on the TCM app on my iPad. And, believe me, I gave it a workout.

I agree that HAL should definitely start including it as part of their channel selections. I understand from a friend that Carnival has it, and Pepsi. If HAL got those two things I think it would be just about perfect.

[REOVA]

17 hours ago, POA1 said:

Can you download the movies before you leave home? That's what we do and then it's never an issue.

You can download movies to your laptop and caste to the TV depending on your system. Same if you subscribe to a cable service or streaming you can watch and caste to the TV. There is no cable connection available to the TV as the inputs are disabled. You may have buffering in some areas on the itinerary and depending on the ship internet. 

[jules815]

41 minutes ago, Reagan0712 said:

I had to upgrade to premium internet and watch it on the TCM app on my iPad. And, believe me, I gave it a workout.

It sounds like Nieuw Statendam should have Starlink by the time we sail in April. Never even dawned on me that I can log into our Hulu live (which is how we stream tv here at home) and watch it there if we wanted to. Doh! 

We were really surprised that MSC had it because otherwise their tv selections were some of the worst we've seen.

[firsttimer1971]

16 minutes ago, jules815 said:

Never even dawned on me that I can log into our Hulu live (which is how we stream tv here at home) and watch it there if we wanted to. Doh! 

HAL states explicitly on their site that Netflix, Prime Video & Hulu is not supported on any plan. Maybe that is outdated information but it is currently listed on their WiFi Page:
https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/onboard-packages/cruise-ship-wifi.html

[Reagan0712]

@jules815 If you are going to try the app outside of Canada or the U.S. it won’t work. Maybe if you use a VPN and show the VPN as in the U.S. it might work.  But, when I tried using a VPN with my computer at home to get BBC1 it recognized I was using a VPN and wouldn’t let me watch.

[IPB4IGO]

On 10/3/2023 at 6:18 AM, REOVA said:

You can download movies to your laptop and caste to the TV depending on your system. Same if you subscribe to a cable service or streaming you can watch and caste to the TV. There is no cable connection available to the TV as the inputs are disabled. You may have buffering in some areas on the itinerary and depending on the ship internet. 

How do you cast to the cabin TV? I thought it was hard-wired to the ship's network, not connected via WiFi to the network we access.

[REOVA]

23 minutes ago, IPB4IGO said:

How do you cast to the cabin TV? I thought it was hard-wired to the ship's network, not connected via WiFi to the network we access.

I will try it again at end of month when on board. Is Bluetooth still available or is that deactivated also?