Cruise line Royal Caribbean has built an iPhone app to allow passengers on its flagship Oasis of the Seas vessel to manage their entire trip (and family) from a handset.
The system was developed by technology company and network services provider DeFi and works by tapping into around a 1,000 wireless spots around the ship.
Royal Connect provides a range of passenger services including itinerary planning, cabin and wireless point call-SMS facilities and information about ship events.
A rather unique feature for a travel app is the ability to track members of a family under-12 by way of an electronic wristband device which automatically pinpoints their location anywhere on the ship.
The system also allows users to locate other passengers that have the function switched on.
But the app comes at a price, and with the seemingly unusual idea of not allowing passengers to use their own iPhones to run the service.
The app is installed only on Royal Caribbean-owned devices. These are then rented out to passengers on a first-come-first-served basis for $17.50 per person for the duration of the journey onboard.
In some respects the market could be quite big (and lucrative) as personal smartphone handsets are usually subject to the hefty roaming fees on ships.