Holland America Line guests and crew are now using SpaceX’s Starlink internet on its Pinnacle Class ship Koningsdam, now sailing in Alaska. Starlink was installed on the ship during an April drydock.
Starlink is Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology aimed at providing faster and more reliable Wi-Fi on a global scale. Internet access has traditionally been trick on ships in Alaska due to weather interference and blockage from structures and mountains.
“For our guests and our team members, maintaining the connectivity they are accustomed to at home is an important part of the cruise experience,” said Gus Antorcha, president of Holland America Line. “Added bandwidth means our guests can share the joys of exploring Alaska in real time and our team can stay in touch with their loved ones back home.”
Since receiving the new technology, Koningsdam has sailed an 18-day cruise roundtrip from Vancouver to Hawaii and has begun sailing its 7-day Alaska Inside Passage voyages from Vancouver, including Glacier Bay, Juneau, Ketchikan and Skagway.
“While it’s early in our usage, the feedback from guests and team members has been very positive so far,” said Kathleen Erickson, vice president of technology for Holland America Line. “We’re hearing from guests that emails and social media are performing well, and team members tell us that internet calls home to loved ones are much stronger. That’s a connection that means a lot.”
Koningsdam will sail with the Starlink internet capability this summer on more than 20 voyages from Vancouver to Alaska’s ports. Further ships will add the technology later this year with the goal of Starlink being available across the full Holland America Line fleet.
For more information about Holland America Line, visit hollandamerica.com.
Photo credit: Holland America.
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