WiFi options

[michelle-nh]

No judgement please.I have an online business and am able to travel a lot because I am okay with spending an hour or two working in the early morning or while my husband naps in the afternoon. I usually just upgrade to unlimited when cruising and do it ahead of time, but we are going on a 10-day Mediterranean cruise this summer and I’m maxing out my budget on excursions and a few days in Rome ahead, so I’m looking for other ways to cut back.

 

We have a lot of onboard credit thanks to a TA promotion, so I was thinking of using up the free time, however long it lasts me, and then upgrading once it runs out, using the onboard credit. I’ve never done this before. I am assuming they charge more once onboard. Is it a lot more than I’d pay if I upgraded now? How much is it discounted if we are 2 or 3 days into the cruise already?

 

Second question: is the regular WiFi adequate for a short Zoom meeting if I’m not overly concerned about quality? Or would I need the streaming package? We’ll be on the Epic, which I believe has Starlink now, if that makes a difference.

[beastlet]

I just got off the Joy a few weeks ago, and the premium, unlimited streaming package wasn't enough to stream. At best I got speeds of 3MB/second and more commonly the speed was <1MB/second. Perhaps it is different on other ships, but I was pretty peeved about it. I went to talk to the internet guy about it 4 times, and each time there was a huge line, and clearly >1 hour wait to talk to the single guy. I finally got to him at the end of the cruise, armed with my numerous screen captures of how slow the internet was, and got my money refunded.

I'm not sure if you can count on speeds fast enough to stream. That being said, they do pro-rate the internet if you buy it later in the cruise. So if you can ration your minutes the first days to make them last as long as possible, you might be able to save some money. Just make sure to log off as soon as you're done using the internet. 

I'm also not sure what package you have, but the one we had gave both of us 150 minutes. So you are traveling with someone willing to give you their minutes, that's double the free time before you run out.

[Distinctive-Destinations]

I didn’t use Zoom, but I did use FaceTime this past Thanksgiving on the Epic and it barely worked, and that was on the unlimited package. 
 

So my guess is that Zoom wouldn’t work adequately on the standard plan, especially for business purposes.

[Rick&Jeannie]

If you *need* Zoom...I would not count on the standard plan being adequate!  Go for the streaming package.

[bkrickles1]

This past July we sailed Joy with the standard unlimited wifi and my wife did a job interview from our cabin on zoom.

It worked for the entirety of the 20 minute interview.

We also used factime a few times without issue.

ymmv

[julig22]

12 hours ago, michelle-nh said:

We have a lot of onboard credit thanks to a TA promotion, so I was thinking of using up the free time, however long it lasts me, and then upgrading once it runs out, using the onboard credit. I’ve never done this before. I am assuming they charge more once onboard. Is it a lot more than I’d pay if I upgraded now? How much is it discounted if we are 2 or 3 days into the cruise already?

Cheaper to wait until onboard to upgrade to unlimited because they rebate some from the FAS. On a 7-day cruise, I upgraded on day 2 for $79 - they gave me a $100 credit for the FAS. I hadn't used any of my minutes yet but others have posted that it doesn't matter, and that you can also upgrade on day 3 for an even better discount. No more discount offers after day 3.

[cruiseny4life]

If Zoom matters, my husband was able to use Zoom fine when working on Getaway when traveling between NYC/Bermuda and then down to the Bahamas on a separate trip. Not sure how it will work in the Med, but I imagine you would have no issues with the basic unlimited package. 

 

Julig gave the best answer on the upgrade options. 

[cruiser2015]

On 3/30/2024 at 12:31 AM, michelle-nh said:

No judgement please.I have an online business and am able to travel a lot because I am okay with spending an hour or two working in the early morning or while my husband naps in the afternoon. I usually just upgrade to unlimited when cruising and do it ahead of time, but we are going on a 10-day Mediterranean cruise this summer and I’m maxing out my budget on excursions and a few days in Rome ahead, so I’m looking for other ways to cut back.

 

We have a lot of onboard credit thanks to a TA promotion, so I was thinking of using up the free time, however long it lasts me, and then upgrading once it runs out, using the onboard credit. I’ve never done this before. I am assuming they charge more once onboard. Is it a lot more than I’d pay if I upgraded now? How much is it discounted if we are 2 or 3 days into the cruise already?

 

Second question: is the regular WiFi adequate for a short Zoom meeting if I’m not overly concerned about quality? Or would I need the streaming package? We’ll be on the Epic, which I believe has Starlink now, if that makes a difference.

They offer the same upgrade in exchange for your FAS minutes either before the cruise or after boarding. To use your credits, just wait until you board and upgrade on day one.

Yes, it's a bit less for the next few days - because you have fewer days to use that unlimited status. I don't recall the savings amount, but its been posted on this board previously.

When I sailed last January, I upgraded mine and my DW immediately - using my OBC's.

[kd1044]

5 hours ago, cruiser2015 said:

They offer the same upgrade in exchange for your FAS minutes either before the cruise or after boarding. To use your credits, just wait until you board and upgrade on day one.

Yes, it's a bit less for the next few days - because you have fewer days to use that unlimited status. I don't recall the savings amount, but its been posted on this board previously.

When I sailed last January, I upgraded mine and my DW immediately - using my OBC's.

 

That's true there are often some better deals once you get on the ship. 

 

[pghflyer]

Just off Star....definitely no video meetings will work on the regular FAS minutes.....I did notice discount offers almost every day but didn't pay attention to how they changed.

 

Don't forget if you are Platinum or higher, you get 15%+ discount on Unlimited Internet Package (not sure if that works on Premium though).

[zqvol]

3 hours ago, pghflyer said:

Just off Star....definitely no video meetings will work on the regular FAS minutes.....I did notice discount offers almost every day but didn't pay attention to how they changed.

 

Don't forget if you are Platinum or higher, you get 15%+ discount on Unlimited Internet Package (not sure if that works on Premium though).

But not on an upgrade from your free minutes so if you have FAS the discount is worthless.