Build your connection plan
Four quick questions. No sign-up, nothing stored.
We use the line to gauge whether your ship is likely to have Starlink. Two ships on the same line can differ, so check yours if you can.
Cruise WiFi, mobile data and roaming, made simple. Tell us your cruise and your phone, and we'll build a plan to keep you connected at sea — without the bill shock.
Four quick questions. No sign-up, nothing stored.
We use the line to gauge whether your ship is likely to have Starlink. Two ships on the same line can differ, so check yours if you can.
How Much Data?
Estimate what you'll get through, so you buy the right eSIM bundle.
Video streaming is by far the biggest drain. On an at-sea eSIM it's rarely worth it — download shows and playlists before you go and use ship WiFi for the rest.
At-Sea eSIMs Compared
| GigSkyWMS · Cellular at Sea | RedBull MobileTelenor Maritime | |
|---|---|---|
| Rough price | ~$20–$123 for 512MB–10GB | ~€15 per GB (+ free 1GB land) |
| Land data | Included — auto-switches to local 4G/5G in port | Free 1GB land bonus; separate land plans too |
| Ship coverage | 200+ ships across the major lines | Marella, many P&O, Cunard, Costa, Viking Ocean, Ambassador |
| Best for | Widest compatibility & an all-in-one sea + land plan | Cheaper light use, and UK-favourite lines |
| Setup | App-based — check your ship in the app | App-based — check your ship in the app |
They run on different maritime networks, so which one works depends on your ship — always check compatibility in the provider's app before buying. At-sea speeds are modest (roughly 1–4 Mbps): great for messaging, social and maps, not all-day streaming. Partner links — we may earn a small commission, at no cost to you.
The Essentials
On as you leave port; off only when you're in port and want local data. The moment your ship sails clear of land, your phone loses the local towers and starts hunting for the ship's satellite network — where the expensive charges live. Airplane mode stops that.
Turn Data Roaming off too, in your settings, as a backstop. Airplane mode can quietly switch itself back on as the ship moves between networks, and roaming-off is a second lock on the door.
Airplane mode doesn't cut you off — you can turn WiFi and Bluetooth back on with it engaged, so you still get the ship's WiFi, your camera, downloaded music and offline maps.
Once you're in international waters, your phone can latch onto the ship's own satellite cell network. It shows up as "Cellular at Sea", "Maritime" or "901" — and almost no home plan, "unlimited" ones included, covers it. Your carrier bills it as premium roaming at cruise-ship rates.
Background activity is the silent killer. You don't have to touch the phone — photo backup, app refresh and auto-updates rack up charges on their own. One family came home to a five-figure bill after a teenager streamed video on a Norway cruise. There's no such thing as a "quick check" at sea.
The fix is boring and total: airplane mode on, data roaming off, and stay online through ship WiFi or an eSIM built for sea instead.
Cruise WiFi used to be the punchline of every sea-day complaint. Starlink changed that. Its low-orbit satellites cut latency from seconds to milliseconds, and by 2026 most major lines have it fleet-wide — so on a Starlink ship the WiFi genuinely handles streaming and video calls.
Two things to know. First, lines used the upgrade to split their packages: the cheap tier is now a social-and-email floor, and the streaming/video-call/VPN capability sits behind a premium tier priced roughly 50–100% higher. Second, buy your package before you sail — pre-cruise pricing is usually 20–30% cheaper than buying it on board.
Pair a WiFi package with WiFi Calling (a toggle in your phone settings) and apps like WhatsApp or FaceTime, and you can call and text home over the internet with airplane mode still on.
Most travel eSIMs — Airalo, Holafly, Nomad and the like — connect to land networks. They're brilliant in port and near the coast, and stop the moment the ship heads out to open sea. So a normal eSIM is a port-day tool, not a whole-cruise fix.
The exceptions are two eSIMs built for ships, which connect straight to the ship's onboard cellular network:
GigSky (Cruise + Land) rides the WMS "Cellular at Sea" network used across 200+ ships and the major lines, and switches to local data in port. Broadest coverage and includes land — but pricier.
RedBull Mobile Maritime uses the Telenor Maritime network — around €15 per GB with a free 1GB land bonus, often cheaper, and strong on Marella, P&O, Cunard, Costa and Viking Ocean.
They run on different maritime networks, so which one works comes down to your ship — check compatibility in each provider's app before buying. Speeds at sea are modest (roughly 1–4 Mbps): fine for messaging, social, maps and the odd video call, not all-day streaming.
A VPN (virtual private network) encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through a server somewhere of your choosing. Two reasons it's worth having on a cruise:
1. Security on shared WiFi. Ship WiFi and port café networks are shared by strangers. A VPN scrambles your traffic so banking, logins and email stay private.
2. Your home content, abroad. Streaming services show you a different catalogue by location, and some block you entirely overseas. Set your VPN to your home country and you can watch your own services as if you were sitting at home — for UK cruisers, that means BBC iPlayer and ITVX while you're away.
The honest caveats: a VPN adds overhead, so on a slow or throttled connection it can make things worse — and some basic ship-WiFi tiers block or throttle VPNs, so it may only work reliably on the premium tier. Test yours before you sail.