After SpaceX announced the Starlink launch last month, it was only a matter of time before some household names in the boating world got on board with the satellite service. Sure enough, today Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines announced that it will be adding the service to its entire fleet, after the pilot service on one of its ships received rave reviews.
It should come as no surprise that such commercial maritime endeavors have embraced Starlink. The trial on Freedom of the Seas has “received excellent feedback” and if you’ve ever been aboard one of these boats, you can imagine why. Current satellite over sea options are not good: expensive and slow, enjoying little competition or innovation in the market for the past two decades.
Starlink Maritime will be a real kick in the pants for existing suppliers given how quickly a major customer like Royal Caribbean decides to buy into the new satellite on the block. Although the coverage is currently limited to coastal areas, the speed is much better and will probably pay for itself in the first month with “Premium Wi-Fi” costs.
The service costs the company approximately $5,000 per month and has an upfront hardware fee of at least $10,000 for the specific terminals you want to use. That’s a rounding error in the running costs of running large ships, like modern cruise ships. (The image provided by Celebrity Cruises indicates that additional meals are used – I have requested more information.)
How much is too much? Starlink meals online on popular cruise ships.
Although the Starlink constellation does not yet operate in mid-ocean (such as container ships), the plan is to provide the capability in the Northern Hemisphere by the end of the year and in the Southern Hemisphere by early 2023. Central and South America, although not all of Indonesia and Malaysia and the southern half of Africa are on the cover map, which seems like leaving money on the table.
If you are planning a trip, the meals are included on all ships in Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises. There’s no specific date yet, but the company says they should have the service on all ships by the end of Q1 2023.
