The line's owner Carnival Corporation started rolling out the WiFi@Sea Internet across technology not exclusively to Carnival Cruise Lines ships, but to all its brand lines fleets. The new technology features a hybrid connectivity (satellite and land-based data) system. It combines bandwidth with several available for pre-purchasing Internet plans, different levels of pricing and also new Internet packages.
The process of implementing the new system started in 2014. Carnival Corp's largest brand - the Carnival cruise line - was the first that moved from the traditional pay-as-you-go Internet (USD 0,75 per minute, or discounted Internet packages) to pay-per-day packages. The cheapest is the "social" package priced US$5 per-day allowing access to popular websites and apps. Next is the "value" package US$16 per-day (with restrictions for some intensive websites). The third "premium" package cost US$25 per-day (with full web access and guaranteed fast speeds).
The new Carnival "cruise WiFi" system is first-of-its-kind in the passenger shipping industry It's an enhanced (high-speed) hybrid wireless network service to be rolled out to all ships in the fleets of all 9 Carnival brand lines. The new system is expected to encourage the interest in ship cruising among the new tech-savvy generation. The new plans already show better penetration and higher usage rates. The new system allows greater number of mobile devices, while the new Internet pricing is easier to understand.
This unique system integrates land-based, strategically located antennas (installed along the cruise itinerary routes), advanced satellites (over 31 satellite systems) and cruise port Wi-Fi connections, forming the Carnival's "smart hybrid" network. The system gives cruise passengers the highest possible strength of signal and bandwidth capacity. The new network provides Internet connectivity speeds 10 times faster than previously offered by Carnival.
All system upgrades, hardware changes and new Internet equipment installations are done during the Carnival cruise ships' dry-dock stays.
Carnival cruise Internet Cafe
The Internet Cafe is open 24-hours, as a venue it features private PC terminals (Windows XP) for web browsing, chat and e-mail services. For guests convenience, there is an Internet Cafe Manager for assistance. Here passengers can browse through the following "Carnival free of charge websites": Carnival. com and GoCCL. com. Funville (forum), JohnHealdsBlog. com. CellularAtSea. com and Barclay Carnival MasterCard.
All these websites can be accessed without purchasing an Internet plan. At the terminals, you can't edit or save MS Office documents, but most files can be viewed (in their "read only" mode).