# Carnival HUB vs CruiseMapper

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Carnival HUB at 82% against CruiseMapper's 37%. Carnival HUB also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.6) and ads (none vs shown). CruiseMapper's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Carnival HUB holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Carnival HUB has 459K ratings behind it against 123, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Carnival HUB's written reviews are positive against 37% of CruiseMapper's.

Carnival HUB ships an update monthly, CruiseMapper every 5 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Carnival HUB | CruiseMapper |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (459K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carnival-hub/id925117977/reviews)** | [3.6 (123 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cruisemapper/id1032294427/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **459K** | 123 |
| Positive reviews | **82.0% of reviews** | 36.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Monthly** | Every 5 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Ad-supported |
| Best chart rank | **#57** | — |
| Size | 252 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Carnival Cruise Lines](https://appshunter.io/developer/589068566) | [AstraPaging Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/438160792) |

## What reviewers say

### Carnival HUB

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carnival-hub/id925117977)

**Currently charting:** #57 Top Free · Travel (US App Store)

Plan your cruise vacation by booking excursions, spa treatments, and drink packages before you sail. Once onboard, access daily schedules, dining menus, ship maps, and real-time account balances. Stay connected with friends and family and receive event reminders.

**Highlights:** Book excursions, spa, and drink packages, Digital boarding documents, Onboard event schedules and reminders, Dining menus and venue hours, Ship maps and deck plans, Real-time account balance, Onboard chat with friends and family

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Convenient app for cruise
- 📋 Helpful for planning activities
- 💳 Useful for tracking account
- 💬 Chat feature for group communication
- 🗺️ Provides ship maps and navigation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Chat feature unreliable/glitchy
- 🔍 Lack of search functionality
- 🔌 Connectivity issues with WiFi
- 💰 Paid chat feature considered overpriced
- 🕰️ Notifications not always timely

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes and freezes
- Account information not always accurate
- Inconsistent performance across devices
- Difficulty maintaining chat connections

**Requested features**

- Ability to add personal events to schedule
- Integration with ship's medical/safety systems
- Offline access to account and folio information
- Enhanced dining reservation and management
- Improved group coordination and location sharing


### CruiseMapper

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cruisemapper/id1032294427)

Discover and plan your next vacation with a comprehensive database of cruises. Explore detailed itineraries, port schedules, ship reviews, and real-time ship locations. Find your ideal cruise from thousands of options across numerous cruise lines and ships.

**Highlights:** Detailed itineraries and port schedules, Cruise ship reviews and videos, Current position of cruise ships, Special features and technical details, Database of cruise lines, ships, and cruises

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🗺️ Accurate real-time ship tracking
- 📍 Comprehensive ship location information
- 📋 Detailed itineraries and port schedules
- 🚢 Extensive database of cruise ships
- 🎨 Clean and intuitive interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezes
- 📍 Inaccurate ship location tracking
- 🔄 Slow or delayed location updates
- 🎯 Ships disappearing from map display
- 🔍 Difficulty zooming in/out on map

**Reported bugs**

- Ships disappear after a few seconds on map
- Cannot see ships unless searched individually
- Zoom functionality inverts (zooms out when trying to zoom in)
- App freezes when switching between ships
- Cannot tap on another ship while viewing one

**Requested features**

- Favorites section for frequently tracked ships
- Deck plans for all ship versions (iOS parity with Android)
- Show route feature on app (currently on website only)
- Filter options to hide river boats and ferries
- Ability to save/lock multi-segment cruise itineraries


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Carnival HUB free?

Carnival HUB is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is CruiseMapper free?

CruiseMapper is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Carnival HUB or CruiseMapper?

Carnival HUB is rated higher. Carnival HUB averages 4.7 out of 5 from 459K ratings, while CruiseMapper averages 3.6 from 123 ratings.

### Do Carnival HUB or CruiseMapper have ads?

CruiseMapper shows ads; Carnival HUB does not.

### Which is updated more often, Carnival HUB or CruiseMapper?

Carnival HUB ships an update monthly, and CruiseMapper every 5 months. Most recently, Carnival HUB was updated on November 1, 2026 and CruiseMapper on November 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*