New innovations are changing the way we cruise

It may sound like a relatively minor First World issue, but crackly internet has been a bane for cruisers since it was introduced on ships in 1999. It was very expensive and often terribly slow. Not anymore.

Technology has improved and the COVID pandemic has encouraged remote working. If you’ve taken a cruise post-pandemic, you’ll have noticed that fast internet is the result. Cruise lines are now eyeing the remote work market, with Azamara, Virgin Voyages and AmaWaterways leading the way.

Another reason why cruise ships need good internet now? Life on board is becoming increasingly digital, especially on large, budget-end ships from Carnival, Norwegian, Princess and Royal Caribbean, among others.

Cruise apps came out just before the pandemic, but were embraced more enthusiastically afterward for their ability to reduce person-to-person contact. Now they’re on the rise, allowing guests to book dining tables and shore excursions, and access information right from their phones.

Virtual assistants and touchscreens have also appeared. And gadgets like Princess Cruises’ Medallion, a portable disk that follows you around the ship – handy for having those cocktails delivered – and can be used as a payment card or to open your cabin door.

Even before you board a ship, virtual reality tours give you a taste of what to expect. Virtual reality innovations are accelerating. Some cruise lines even have virtual windows in interior cabins that project the scenery via cameras.

Royal Caribbean’s new Royal Railway Utopia Station restaurant, located in the recently opened Utopia of the Seas, which resembles a dining car, takes guests on a “journey” as a virtual landscape unfolds behind the windows.

The restaurant isn’t actually moving, but in the future we may see more flexible spaces on cruise ships. Royal Caribbean’s Rising Tide Bar is already moving up and down the ship’s interior, while Celebrity’s newest ships are taking things even further with Magic Carpet, a cantilevered platform that can be used as a tender platform or an open-air restaurant/bar 13 decks above the ocean.

Magic Carpet brings a touch of asymmetry to Celebrity’s Edge-class ships, but innovative design on ships like TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff 7, which launched this year, departs from the traditional, symmetrical layout along a central axis.