Carnival Quietly Raises Pre-Purchase Wi-Fi Rates for Cruises

Carnival Cruise Line’s pre-purchase Wi-Fi packages are showing higher prices across its main plans, with the updated rates appearing in online booking tools without a broad, official guest notification.

The increases affect the Social, Value, Premium, and Premium Multi-Device options, and some guests looking at 2026 sailings are already seeing even higher per-day pricing than the current published starting rates.

New pre-purchase rates appearing in Carnival’s booking tools

Carnival’s website is currently displaying updated pre-purchase Wi-Fi pricing on a per-person, per-day basis for its standard plans, while the Premium Multi-Device plan is sold as a single package. Based on comparisons shared in recent reports, each plan is now more expensive than pricing that was visible roughly a month earlier.

As shown in the online listings, the current pre-purchase rates are:

• Social Plan: $18.70 per person per day, based on the current pricing displayed in Carnival’s pre-purchase tools.
• Value Plan: $22.10 per person per day, according to the updated rates now shown online.
• Premium Plan: $23.80 per person per day, as listed in the current pre-purchase options.
• Premium Multi-Device Plan: $84.00 per package, positioned as a bundled option for multiple devices under one purchase.

About a month earlier, the same plans were listed at $15.30 (Social), $19.55 (Value), $21.25 (Premium), and $75.00 (Premium Multi-Device). Using those figures, the reported increases work out to 22% for Social, 13% for Value, and 12% for both Premium and Premium Multi-Device.

Story reports describing the change did not include an official statement from Carnival Cruise Line. Story accounts also noted that Carnival has not formally announced the updated Wi-Fi pricing, and no broad notification to booked guests was included in the information cited.

What Carnival’s Wi-Fi tiers are designed to do

Carnival structures its internet packages around usage and speed, with the entry-level option focused on limited access and higher tiers adding broader internet functions and higher-bandwidth use cases.

• Social Plan: Designed for social media access and limited uses such as airline websites, without general web browsing, email, video, or streaming.
• Value Plan: Includes web browsing and email, with a modest speed increase compared with the Social tier.
• Premium Plan: Marketed as significantly faster than the lower tiers and intended to support higher-bandwidth activities such as video chats and streaming.
• Premium Multi-Device Plan: Provides Premium-level service that can be used across up to four devices, and is positioned for families or groups traveling together.

Some 2026 sailings already show higher pricing than today’s “starting at” rates

In addition to the higher “current” rates now visible online, guests shopping for future cruises have reported seeing Wi-Fi prices above those published starting points. Carnival’s website notes that prices “start at” the listed rates, indicating they can vary by sailing.

One example cited was a Carnival Freedom five-night cruise in March 2026, which showed the following per-person, per-day pre-purchase pricing for three of the tiers:

• Social Plan: $20.40 per person per day on that sailing, which is higher than the currently published $18.70 starting point.
• Value Plan: $23.80 per person per day on that sailing, above the current $22.10 rate shown in today’s listings.
• Premium Plan: $25.50 per person per day on that sailing, above the current $23.80 rate shown as the starting price.
• Premium Multi-Device Plan: $84.00 per package in the cited example, matching the current level shown in the updated listings.

In that specific case, the Social, Value, and Premium plans were higher than the current published rates, while the Multi-Device plan matched the $84.00 level. Separately, Cruise Passenger described a booking screenshot shared by an Australian traveler that showed increases across the Social, Value, and Premium plans for a future sailing, while the multi-device premium plan was unchanged in that example.

Reports also noted that variation may be influenced by factors such as sailing date, ship size, and demand. Some travelers pointed to Spring Break travel periods in March and April as a time when higher-demand sailings may be more susceptible to elevated pricing.

How the increases fit into a longer trend

The latest adjustments also follow earlier pricing changes noted in reports from October 2025, as cruise lines continue to refine onboard internet pricing and offerings amid rising demand for connectivity at sea.

Over a longer window, Carnival’s internet pricing has climbed sharply compared with rates from five years earlier. Published pricing from October 2020 listed $6.80 for the Social Plan, $10.20 for the Value Plan, and $13.60 for the Premium Plan. Using today’s displayed rates, that translates to a roughly 175% increase for Social, 117% for Value, and 75% for Premium over that five-year period.

The product has also evolved in that time. Carnival completed a two-year rollout of Starlink connectivity across its fleet in May 2024, a move intended to improve onboard internet speed and reliability across most cruising regions. Carnival also introduced its multi-device plan in 2024, starting at $75.00 at launch, adding a bundled option for guests who want to connect multiple devices under one purchase.

How Carnival’s Wi-Fi pricing and packaging compare with other lines

Across the cruise industry, Wi-Fi pricing can vary widely by itinerary, ship, and sailing date. Cruise Passenger characterized Carnival’s base Wi-Fi pricing as broadly in line with some competitors, and Story reporting also pointed to comparable pricing with internet offerings from Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises.

One recurring point of comparison is how onboard extras are packaged. Reports highlighted that Carnival and Royal Caribbean do not typically offer a single combined package that bundles drinks and Wi-Fi together under one consolidated price. By contrast, other brands sell bundles that combine Wi-Fi and beverages, and sometimes additional inclusions. Examples cited included Princess Cruises’ Plus Package and bundled options offered by Norwegian Cruise Line, which some travelers view as a simpler way to manage total onboard costs.

What travelers can do if they want to manage Wi-Fi costs

Because Wi-Fi is sold as a pre-purchase add-on and pricing can change by sailing, guests who already know they want internet access may consider checking the cruise planner early in the booking cycle and purchasing when the displayed pricing meets their budget. Buying earlier can also be a way to secure the rate shown at the time of purchase in the cruise planner.

Story reporting also noted that pre-purchasing can be meaningfully cheaper than buying onboard, with savings cited as up to 20% compared with onboard pricing. For travelers building a cruise budget, Wi-Fi is one of several add-ons that can materially affect the final cost, and recent reporting suggested keeping an eye on pricing trends across onboard purchases more broadly.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are Carnival’s current pre-purchase Wi-Fi prices?

Carnival’s online listings show pre-purchase prices of $18.70 per person per day for Social, $22.10 for Value, and $23.80 for Premium, plus a Premium Multi-Device package priced at $84.00.

Do Carnival Wi-Fi prices vary by ship or sailing date?

Yes. Carnival notes that prices “start at” the published rates, and at least one March 2026 example on Carnival Freedom showed higher per-day pricing for the Social, Value, and Premium tiers than the current starting prices.

How much have Carnival’s Wi-Fi prices increased compared with five years ago?

Using published rates from October 2020 and today’s displayed pricing, the Social Plan rose from $6.80 to $18.70 (about 175%), the Value Plan from $10.20 to $22.10 (about 117%), and the Premium Plan from $13.60 to $23.80 (about 75%).

Did Carnival officially announce the latest Wi-Fi price increase to booked guests?

The reports describing the higher rates said the updated pricing appeared in Carnival’s online booking tools without a broad, official guest notification, and no official statement from Carnival Cruise Line was included in the information cited.

Can pre-purchasing Wi-Fi help travelers save money?

Yes. Reporting cited pre-purchasing as the most effective way to manage Wi-Fi costs, noting it can be up to 20% cheaper than onboard pricing and can help travelers lock in the price shown in the cruise planner at the time they buy.

With the updated rates already visible in Carnival’s pre-purchase listings, and with some future sailings displaying even higher amounts, travelers planning 2026 cruises may want to monitor pricing inside their cruise planner for their specific ship and departure date.