Carnival to go cellular (phones, that is)

Carnival Cruise Lines, in a joint venture with Wireless Maritime Services, will outfit its fleet of 22 ships with technology that will enable guests with any cell phone service to make or receive calls as they normally do on land, no matter how far out to sea they are.

The Carnival Triumph already has the service installed, and Carnival’s remaining 21 vessels will be fitted with the technology by the first quarter of 2007.

“Consumers view cell phones as a necessity in today’s world,” said Carnival CEO Bob Dickinson. “We’ve been exploring cellular phone service for some time.”

Calls will be charged at international roaming rates as determined by the carrier, and will be billed directly to the passenger’s normal cell phone bill. The technology also will enable people to send and receive text messages on their phone and hand-held wireless devices like Blackberry’s.

The technology already is available fleet wide all of Norwegian Cruise Line, on most of the ships for both Royal Caribbean Cruises brands (Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity) and three of Regent Seven Seas’ ships.