When a cruise line changes what it charges, or the rules around it, we log it here: the old figure, the new one, the date we read it on the line's own site, and what it means for a real booking. Newest first.
Announced
Carnival will move drink packages and Wi-Fi to dynamic pricing on December 1, 2026
Carnival announced on October 14, 2026 that, beginning December 1, drink package and Wi-Fi prices will vary by sailing length, itinerary and season. It has not published the new prices. Today its published rates are unchanged: Cheers! is $83.94 per person per day bought before the cruise and $89.94 on board, both including the 20% service charge, and its Wi-Fi plans run $20.40 to $25.50 per day before the cruise.
Carnival also launched limited-time FunPack bundles on October 14, bookable through October 30, 2026 for sailings from October 31, 2026 to December 31, 2027. We have not added them to the guides because the offer closes in days.
Source: Carnival’s newsroom release of October 14, 2026, and its help pages, read October 21, 2026. Updated: the Carnival pricing guide, the Wi-Fi guide and the onboard cost reference.
Price change
Princess’s Wi-Fi: one device is $27.99 a day, a new two-device plan is $39.99, and four devices are Premier-only
From October 13, 2026, Princess sells its standalone MedallionNet Wi-Fi for one device at US$27.99 per day and for two devices at US$39.99 per day, bought before the cruise. On board, for the full voyage, the prices are US$33.99 and US$47.99. The standalone four-device plan has been discontinued and is now available only with Princess Premier.
On a 7-night sailing the one-device plan costs US$21 more per person than before. Princess’s own MedallionNet page now shows the one-device and two-device plans but no prices; these figures come from Princess’s letter to travel advisors dated September 28, 2026.
Source: Princess’s letter to travel advisors, September 28, 2026, and Princess’s MedallionNet page, read October 18, 2026. Updated: the Wi-Fi guide, the Princess Plus guide, the onboard cost reference, the Cost Index and the open dataset.
Price change
Cunard’s Wi-Fi: Essential is $24 a day and Premium $33, up from $22 and $30
Cunard now lists its Essential internet plan at US$24 per day and its Premium plan at US$33 per day when bought for the whole voyage. Day passes bought on board are US$30 and US$50 per 24 hours, up from US$28 and US$44.
On a 7-night voyage that is US$14 more per plan for Essential and US$21 more for Premium. A plan is priced per connection, not per guest: two people who are never online at the same moment need one plan between them. Cunard states no effective date for the new prices.
Source: Cunard’s own “Staying connected” page, read October 18, 2026. Updated: the onboard cost reference, the Cost Index and the open dataset.
Price change
Holland America’s Wi-Fi: Premium is $26 a day and Stream $38, and Surf has no price of its own
Holland America now lists its Premium Wi-Fi plan at US$26 per day and Stream at US$38 per day, priced on a 7-day package. Premium was US$24 and Stream US$36 when we last read the page in June. Surf is no longer shown with a price: it comes with Have It All or is sold on board.
On a 7-night sailing Premium costs US$14 more per person, US$28 for two. Because Surf has no published price, the Have It All saving on our guide now counts only the drinks package and a specialty dinner. Holland America states no effective date for the new prices.
Source: Holland America’s Wi-Fi page, read October 18, 2026. Updated: the Have It All guide, the Wi-Fi guide, the onboard cost reference, the Cost Index and the open dataset.
Price change
Princess raises Plus and Premier by $5 per person per day
Princess’s own packages page now shows Plus at $70 and Premier at $105 per person per day when booked ahead of the cruise, up from $65 and $100. Booked onboard, or within four days of sailing, they are $75 and $110. On Sun Princess and Star Princess each price is another $5: Plus $75 ($80 onboard) and Premier $110 ($115 onboard).
On a 7-night cruise the rise is $35 per person, and $70 for two. Princess says a Plus or Premier package bought before October 13, 2026 is honored as purchased. Princess also changed its standalone Wi-Fi plans on the same date: its page now lists one-device and two-device plans and no four-device plan for guests without Premier.
Source: Princess Cruises, Plus & Premier packages page (US edition), read October 14, 2026.
Rule change
Royal Caribbean has a new cancellation schedule for bookings made on or after October 11, 2026
Royal Caribbean’s US cruise ticket contract sets new cancellation charges, per guest, for every booking made on or after October 11, 2026, and for 2028 Alaska, Hawaii, Pacific Coastal, Panama Canal and Transpacific voyages bought on or after September 29, 2026. Bookings made before October 11 keep the schedule printed in their booking confirmation.
1 to 4 nights: no charge until 75 days before sailing, then 50% of the total price (74–61 days), 75% (60–31) and 100% (30 days or less). 5 to 9 nights: no charge until 90 days out, then 50% (89–61), 75% (60–31) and 100% (30 or less). 10 nights or longer: no charge until 120 days out, then 50% (119–61), 75% (60–31) and 100% (30 or less). Non-refundable deposit amounts are excepted from the “no charge” periods.
The new table has no 25% band. For bookings made outside the US, the contract says a different cancellation policy may apply.
Source: Royal Caribbean’s US cruise ticket contract, read October 10, 2026 and confirmed again on October 11, 2026, the day the schedule took effect.
Rule change
Celebrity has a new cancellation schedule for bookings made on or after October 11, 2026
For North American residents, Celebrity now publishes two cancellation schedules: the old one for bookings made before October 11, 2026, and a new one for bookings made on or after that date. Royal Caribbean, its sister line, changed its own schedule the same day, with different bands.
6 nights or longer: no charge until 120 days before sailing, then 25% of the total price (119–90 days), 50% (89–61), 75% (60–31), and no refund except taxes and fees (30 days or less). 1 to 5 nights: no charge until 75 days out, then 50% (74–61), 75% (60–31) and no refund except taxes and fees (30 or less). Non-refundable deposit amounts are excepted from the “no charge” periods.
What moves: on a cruise of 6 to 14 nights the first charge now comes at 119 days before sailing, 30 days earlier than the old 89. A 5-night cruise moves the other way, with no charge until 75 days out instead of 90. The last band changes from “100% of total price” to “no refund, except taxes and fees”.
Source: Celebrity’s US “Managing Your Cruise” FAQ, read October 10, 2026 and confirmed again on October 11, 2026, the day the schedule took effect.
Rule change
Princess now wants final payment 120 days before sailing on every cruise booked since September 2, 2026
Princess used to want the balance 90 days before a cruise of 1–13 days and 120 days before anything longer. That still applies to bookings made before September 2, 2026. For any booking made on or after that date, Princess’s passage contract sets 120 days on every cruise, however short.
On a one-week cruise that moves the due date about a month earlier, and a booking that misses it can be cancelled. Princess’s cancellation-policy page still shows the older schedule; the passage contract is the document that governs.
Source: Princess’s passage contract, US and international editions, read September 28, 2026. Updated: the card holds and final payment guide.
Rule change
MSC’s Easy drinks package can now be bought only on board
MSC has stopped selling Easy before the cruise. Its UK site now says Easy is “available to purchase onboard only”, and it isn’t sold at all on Caribbean, North America or Alaska cruises. Premium Extra, the Alcohol-Free package and the Minors package can still be bought ahead.
The price is unchanged. What changes is when a guest outside North America can buy Easy: once aboard, not while planning the trip.
Source: MSC’s own UK drinks-package page, read September 28, 2026. Updated: the MSC pricing guide.
New prices
Carnival Australia’s two other drink packages: Zero Proof at A$39.99 and Bottomless Bubbles at A$15.99 a day
Alongside CHEERS!, Carnival sells two more drink packages on its Australian sailings, and both are now priced in its Australian shop: Cheers! Zero Proof at A$39.99 per person, per day, and Bottomless Bubbles at A$15.99 per adult and A$10.95 per child, per day.
CHEERS! itself is unchanged at A$111 per person, per day, with the A$25 per-drink ceiling and the 15-drink daily limit.
Source: Carnival’s Australian drink-packages shop, read September 7, 2026. Updated: the Carnival pricing guide and the open dataset.
Price change
Holland America’s Signature drinks package is $55.95 a day, up from $50.95
Holland America has raised the pre-cruise price of its Signature Beverage Package. With the 20% service charge that is added automatically, it now costs US$67.14 per person, per day, up from US$61.14.
Over a 7-night sailing that is US$42 more per person, or US$84 for two. It also makes the Have It All bundle, which includes the package, a better deal than before. Holland America states no effective date for the rise.
Source: Holland America’s beverage-packages page, read September 5, 2026. Updated: the Have It All guide, the onboard cost reference, the Cost Index and the open dataset.
New detail
Oceania’s Wi-Fi is in the fare, and streaming costs $19.99 a day on top
Oceania has fitted Starlink across its fleet. Basic access comes with the fare; streaming is a paid upgrade at $19.99 per day. Our Wi-Fi figures for Oceania now show both what the free tier covers and what the upgrade costs.
Source: two of Oceania’s own pages, read September 5, 2026. Updated: the onboard cost reference, the Cost Index and the open dataset.
Price change
MSC charges European children less, and in Europe you are not an adult until 18
For bookings confirmed from July 2, 2026, MSC’s European service charge has a child rate and a new age line. Children aged 2 to 17 pay €10 per night, or €13 in the Yacht Club. Adults — now meaning 18 and over, where the adult band used to start at 2 — pay the unchanged €12, or €16 in the Yacht Club. Under-2s are still free. Bookings confirmed before July 2 are not affected.
A 17-year-old on a 7-night Mediterranean sailing now pays €70 instead of €84. The age line is worth knowing: a 16-year-old counts as a child in Europe and as an adult in the Caribbean, where MSC’s adult band still starts at 2.
Source: MSC’s own service-charges page, read September 4, 2026. Updated: the calculator and the open dataset.
Price change
Carnival’s Wi-Fi prices moved, some up and some down
Pre-cruise prices, per device, per day: Social from $20.00 to $20.40, Value from $24.00 to $23.80, Premium from $26.00 to $25.50.
Bought on board, the same plans cost $25.00, $32.00 and $35.00 a day, so buying before the cruise saves on every tier. Carnival also sells a Premium Multi-Device plan at $90.00 per day, per booking.
Source: Carnival’s Wi-Fi help page, read August 4, 2026. Updated: the Wi-Fi guide and the calculator.
Price change
Celebrity Cruises raised daily gratuities by $1.50 on every tier
Inside, Oceanview and Veranda staterooms went from $18.00 to $19.50 per guest per day. Concierge and AquaClass went from $19.00 to $20.50, and The Retreat from $23.00 to $24.50. On a 7-night sailing in a standard stateroom that is $10.50 more per person, or $21 for two.
Celebrity published no effective date on its own page; July 29 comes from the letter Celebrity sent guests. Celebrity has not said whether gratuities already prepaid are held at the old rate. Royal Caribbean, in the same group, did not change its rates.
Source: Celebrity's gratuity program page, read July 30, 2026. Updated: the Celebrity All Included guide, the gratuities guide, the seven-charges guide, the Cunard rates page and the onboard cost reference.
