Royal Caribbean has announced that it’ll be outfitting its fleet of ships with SpaceX’s Starlink internet service for use on its cruises. The company states the speed and reliability of the internet connection as the main reasons for its change in providers. It trailed the service on one of its ships over the last several months, and will be offering it to cruise customers from September 2022.
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Royal Caribbean expects to have the service fully deployed across its fleet by the first quarter of 2023. It hasn’t stated how much bandwidth will be available to every customer on board one of its ships, but it has promised potential customers that they will be able to use streaming services and make video calls.
The new SpaceX service is called Starlink Maritime and only recently launched. At the moment, it only covers coastal waters in parts of North and South America (including the Caribbean), Europe, and around Australia and New Zealand, but SpaceX says it plans on covering most of the world’s oceans by Q1 2023.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission in June authorized Elon Musk’s SpaceX to use its Starlink satellite internet network with moving vehicles, green-lighting the company’s plan to expand broadband offerings to commercial airlines, shipping vessels and trucks.
“Royal Caribbean Group selecting Starlink to provide high-speed, low-latency internet across their fleet will make their passengers’ getaways even more luxurious,” said SpaceX Vice President of Starlink Sales Jonathan Hofeller. “We couldn’t be more excited to work with Royal Caribbean Group to ensure travelers at sea can stay connected with a great internet experience.”
“Our purpose as a company is to deliver the best vacation experiences to our guests responsibly, and this new offering, which is the biggest public deployment of Starlink’s high-speed internet in the travel industry so far, demonstrates our commitment to that purpose,” said Jason Liberty, president and chief executive officer of Royal Caribbean Group. “This technology will provide game-changing internet connectivity onboard our ships, enhancing the cruise experience for guests and crew alike. It will improve and enable more high-bandwidth activities like video streaming as well as activities like video calls. Using Starlink is one more example of our continued focus on innovation and excellence for our guests, our crew, the communities we visit and our shareholders.”
