Our Global + Cruise plan is the eSIM for cruise ships: it covers 20+ cruise lines and runs on the eSIM you install once before you board. That eSIM stays on your phone, so the next trip needs only a new plan.
The enemy is a ship Wi-Fi bill and a phone gone quiet once the coast slips away.
Does a Maya eSIM work on a cruise ship?
Yes, our Global + Cruise plan, a separate purchase from the Global plan, covers 20+ cruise lines and runs on the eSIM you install once before you board.
Edith G. gave Maya Mobile five stars on Trustpilot in January 2026: “The immediate service and support from Angie helped me a LOT during my stay in Latin America. Its been 2 times already that I use Maya Mobile in different continents and work perfectly! Thank you so much Maya Mobile!”
Pick the cruise plan, board, and spend the sea days on deck.
How does a cruise eSIM get a signal at sea and in port?
Once the ship is more than 12 nautical miles from land, a cruise eSIM connects through maritime networks over satellite. In port it drops that signal and latches onto local land towers automatically.
The maritime networks go by names like Cellular at Sea or WMS. You don’t pick between sea and shore. The eSIM handles the handover while you walk down the gangway.
We built the Global + Cruise plan around that: one eSIM permanently installed on your phone, 165+ countries and 20+ cruise lines. Sail out, dock, sail out again. Your phone follows along.
Does a standard travel eSIM work on a cruise ship?
No, a standard country or regional eSIM generally works only when the ship is docked or close enough to pick up a local land tower. Airalo, Holafly and Nomad eSIMs fall in that group, and out at sea they generally go quiet.
Holafly says as much on its own page: on a Caribbean cruise you’ll only have coverage on land, and a connection is not guaranteed while sailing. A one-star Trustpilot review of GigSky from October 8, 2026 shows what a dead connection feels like on board: “I am on NCL Dawn The connection was ok the first day , but the ret of my cruise no internet. No help from gigsky no help from the ship. Never more gigsky”
Atlas has watched continents drift apart, so a ship out of range doesn’t rattle him. Check the plan covers cruise lines before you buy. Then board.
How do you get texts and login codes on a cruise eSIM?
A cruise eSIM is data-only, so it carries no phone number or standard SMS. Login codes sent by SMS may not arrive over it.
Maya Mobile eSIM plans don’t include a local phone number, because they are data plans only. They don’t provide a number for calling or SMS. The plan doesn’t support voice or SMS, so don’t enable it for iMessage.
Your eSIM’s internet connection can send and receive calls and SMS, but your carrier has to support that. Use messaging apps over data for chat. You get the whole ship’s worth of chat without a number attached.
How do you set up a cruise eSIM before you board?
Install it on home Wi-Fi or at the airport, before the ship leaves. Start by logging in to the Maya Mobile app.
On iOS, the QR code method is marked Recommended. Choose it in the app, scan the QR code with the device you’re installing on, tap Add eSIM or Add Cellular Plan when notified, and follow the prompts. Prefer the automatic method? In the app go to Home, select the eSIM, choose Installation Instructions, tap Install eSIM Now, and follow the prompts.
Need a manual code? Log in to your Maya Mobile account, click My eSIMs, click Install eSIM under the plan, then click Manual Activation Code on the pop-up. Copy the code and enter it on the device when prompted.
Your plan clock starts when you enable the Maya eSIM in phone settings. The full list of compatible devices is at maya.net/esim-compatible-devices.
How do you keep a good signal on a cruise ship?
A steel hull blocks signal, so you get much better reception on the open deck, near a window or on your balcony. Walk outside and your bars come back.
After installing an eSIM, you may see no signal bars, the phone searching for signal, or a signal status of “No connection”. The most common reason is that you’re not located in the eSIM’s service area.
Toggle Airplane Mode, then wait up to 15 minutes for the eSIM to re-authenticate on the network and begin receiving data. If that doesn’t fix it, you may be in an area without service, or there may be a network issue outside our control. The best move is to wait and check later. Sea days are good for that.
How much data does a cruise eSIM give you each day?
Maritime data is slower and costlier than home broadband, so spend it on messaging, email and light maps, not video streaming. Our plans carry unlimited data with a daily high-speed allowance, stated in our terms.
All plans include that daily high-speed allowance (the Daily Quota), at up to 4G LTE or 5G where available on local networks. It resets every 24 hours. After you use it, data continues at standard speed for the rest of the day. No speed is guaranteed.
We offer four core plan types, each giving unlimited global data across 165+ countries as a prepaid, time-based data pass. Save the movie night for the cabin TV.
Which travel eSIM should you buy for your cruise?
The table lists, in each company’s own published words, how Airalo, Holafly, Saily and GigSky sell their plans and what their unlimited data allows. Read the plan structure and the daily allowance against your cruise line, your length of trip and your ports.
| Travel eSIM | How plans are sold | Unlimited plan allowance, as published | Cruise plans, as published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maya Mobile | One Global eSIM for 165+ countries, unlimited data at a flat price by trip length: USD 9.99 for 3 days, USD 19.99 for 7 days, USD 27.99 for 14 days, USD 49.99 for 30 days | A daily high-speed data allowance (the Daily Quota) at up to 4G LTE or 5G where local networks offer it, reset every 24 hours; unlimited data at standard speed once the Daily Quota is used | Global + Cruise plan for 20+ cruise lines, priced on its own: USD 49.99 for 3 days, USD 109.99 for 7 days, USD 299.99 for 30 days |
| Airalo | Per country, per region, or one global plan; priced in USD | Our unlimited data packages don’t have a fixed total data cap. However, to keep the network running fairly for everyone, when you use more than 3GB in a day, we’ll slow down (or “throttle”) your internet speed to 1 Mbps for the rest of that day. | No cruise plan published |
| Holafly | Per country, per region (Europe, Latin America, Cruise plans), and monthly global plans: Light, 25GB of data, $ 49.90USD/month; Unlimited, $ 64.90USD/month; Ultra, $ 90.95USD/month | Unlimited data means there is no fixed limit on the amount of data you can use. However, some network operators may temporarily reduce your speed after a certain amount of high-speed data usage. | If you buy an eSIM for travel on a Caribbean cruise, you’ll only have coverage on land, and a connection is not guaranteed while sailing. In the Bahamas, please note that service is unavailable in Freeport, CocoCay, and Ocean Cay, although it remains available at the other ports. |
| Saily | Per country and per region, plus one global plan; by the gigabyte, unlimited, or both | The Unlimited plan gives you 5 GB per day at full 4G/5G speed, then keeps you online at 1 Mbps for the rest of the day — fast enough for navigation, messaging, and standard browsing. | No cruise plan published |
| GigSky | Per country, per region, and cruise plans; by day, unlimited data with 3.5GB daily high-speed allowance | Get up to 3.5GB/day at our fastest speeds: Video calls, uploads, streaming and more. | You can use GigSky on 200+ cruise ships (Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian, etc.) and in 200+ countries on land. |
In the table, the Airalo, Holafly, Saily and GigSky cells quote or briefly summarize what each company states, and the Maya Mobile cells give our own plan terms.
Your home carrier is the other route. According to its website, AT&T charges $20 per day when the phone is used at sea (AT&T, 2026). Thirty days of that is 30 × $20 = $600.
How Maya keeps one eSIM on your phone for every cruise
A storefront wants a plan per country, a dead phone at sea and a ship Wi-Fi bill. We hand you one switch instead. Maya Mobile is a travel eSIM that installs once and stays on the phone, with unlimited data across 165+ countries and coverage on 20+ cruise lines.
Pick a 3-day, 7-day, 14-day or 30-day plan, all with unlimited data across 165+ countries and one flat price by length. Maya stays on your phone for good, and each trip only needs a new plan, with no reinstalling. Need more days? Buy another plan from the Maya app.
Cruise coverage is the Global + Cruise plan, priced on its own. Land, flip the switch, go.
FAQ
What is the refund policy for a plan bought for a cruise with Maya?
Complete refund terms are in the Terms of Service. Under the Money Back Guarantee, you can get a refund for a cancelled trip, a phone that is not compatible with eSIMs, an extra or unneeded data plan, or an eSIM that is unused or consumed no data. Consumers can legally withdraw within 14 days of buying, or up to the point the eSIM is activated if that comes sooner. A full refund is available if an activated plan is completely unusable due to a Maya error that is not fixed within 10 days of the refund request, and a trip cancelled after activation and data consumption gets no refund.
Can you use the same eSIM on your next cruise?
Yes. The eSIM stays on your device after the plan expires, with no need to delete or reinstall it between trips. Buy a plan for the next trip, and for a cruise that’s the Global + Cruise plan.
What happens if your plan ends before your cruise does?
It stops. With Auto Top-Up off, the plan runs until it expires and ends with no further charge; turn Auto Top-Up on and it buys the next plan. If a plan shows as expired, you can buy a new plan in the Maya app in under a minute.
Which phones can use a cruise eSIM?
Most modern smartphones are supported, including iPhone 11 and newer and Android devices running Android 10 or later. The compatible list includes iPhones from the iPhone XR/XS series through the iPhone 17 series, including iPhone Air, SE 2 (2020) and SE 3 (2022). Check your exact model on the list at maya.net/esim-compatible-devices.
Why does your cruise eSIM show no signal?
If there is no data on arrival, check that the Maya eSIM is switched on and selected for Cellular Data in phone settings. To reset the data connection, enable Airplane Mode, wait 30 seconds, then switch it off again. Still stuck on iOS? Open Settings > Cellular (may be called Mobile or Mobile Service), tap the eSIM plan, tap Cellular Data Network, and enter the APN name in the APN fields.
What does the Global eSIM cover on a cruise’s port days?
The Global plan supports 165+ countries on the same eSIM, with no additional purchase per country. Cruise coverage is the Global + Cruise plan, bought separately, and it covers 165+ countries as well.
What does ship Wi-Fi cost compared with a cruise eSIM?
Carnival Cruise Line’s published starting price for its Value Wi-Fi Plan, bought before sailing for the full cruise, is $23.80 per person per day (Carnival Cruise Line). Our Global + Cruise plan is USD 49.99 for 3 days, USD 109.99 for 7 days and USD 299.99 for 30 days, per phone.
How do you turn Auto Top-Up on or off before a cruise?
Auto Top-Up is opt-in and off by default (June 2026 app). Turn it on at checkout or in the app. You can turn it off at any time from My eSIM in the app or at maya.net, with immediate effect.
Maya gives your phone one eSIM that stays installed, with the Global + Cruise plan covering 20+ cruise lines.
