When you use your soda sticker, are they nice to you?

[uneamie]

If I may ask.....how much is the "soda card" for a 10 day cruise? Don't want to start a whole new thread for this. Thanks

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

If I may ask.....how much is the "soda card" for a 10 day cruise? Don't want to start a whole new thread for this. Thanks

 

This is from NCL

 

Unlimited Fountain Soda

Includes: Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Mt. Dew, Ginger Ale, Tonic water, Club Soda.

The entire cruise must be purchased. Non-Refundable.

Prepaid @ $6.25 per person per day x Cruise days plus 15% gratuity

and applicable taxes

Souvenir Thermal mug included in the purchase of the program

[derf5585]

This is from NCL

and applicable taxes

 

How much is the applicable tax?

[derf5585]

Adult and Teen Soda Program (ages 13 and older)

Unlimited Fountain Soda

Includes: Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Mt. Dew, Ginger Ale, Tonic water, Club Soda.

The entire cruise must be purchased. Non-Refundable.

Prepaid @ $6.25 per person per day x Cruise days plus 15% gratuity

and applicable taxes

Souvenir Thermal mug included in the purchase of the program

[uneamie]

This is from NCL

 

Unlimited Fountain Soda

Includes: Pepsi' date=' Diet Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Mt. Dew, Ginger Ale, Tonic water, Club Soda.

The entire cruise must be purchased. Non-Refundable.

Prepaid @ $6.25 per person per day x Cruise days plus 15% gratuity

and applicable taxes

Souvenir Thermal mug included in the purchase of the program[/quote']

 

Thanks Sharon.....that sounds like a good deal if you tend to drink more than a few a day which I do. I think they charge like $3 per soda otherwise. No wonder people bring it on board.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

How much is the applicable tax?

 

The last time we purchased the stickers the price worked out exactly to what the daily charge was (I think the price has changed since then). I remember thinking the tax must have been included in the price. We were in Barcelona when we purchased them, would that make a difference, tax wise? Good question!

[sparks1093]

On the Sky out of Miami we paid the $6.25 a day plus the gratuity with no tax.

[LoisGriffin1]

Thanks everyone for your input. Seems to be more people have a good experience than a bad one using the stickers.

We have never tried to use the soda card other than walking up to the bar and asking for a soda. That's where we get the attitude. We are extremely pleased with all of the service that we have recieved on our cruises' date=' EXCEPT for the soda card service (however, it would never spoil our cruise :D). Maybe I could understand if we just sat back and asked them to bring it to us. But that's not the case.[/quote']

 

I had exactly the same issue. Every single bartender we came across gave attitude about it.

 

More than once we ordered drinks and got the alcoholic drinks but they just ignored our request for soda. It was very frustrating.

 

I wouldn't order the soda card again because its just not fun being made to feel like you are causing great hassle by ordering a drink.

[jollycruise]

Our son did the soda sticker and unfortunately a couple of times when he got a refill he was treated with less service than I would have expected. It's a shame it's that way with some of the staff. But who knows, maybe they were just having a bad day. After seeing the way some people behave on a ship I feel for the staff.

[STARFISH*4]

never had this prob and have used on a few cruises...last year on the spirit there even was this bartender who seem to remember i liked orange slice in my sprite... i thought that was kinda COOL:)

[fitch7107]

I purchased a soda card on my cruise last month and didn't have this problem at all.

[crew mom]

I have not experienced poor service using the soda program and I have gotten it on every cruise since it's been available. Maybe I've been lucky but I always seem to get the server that's trying to fill it up for me on every trip by when I'm out poolside.

[derf5585]

All of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea -- whether it is to sail or to watch it -- we are going back from whence we came.

 

Nice quote

This is why we gain weigh on a cruise. The salt mixes with the air witch is breathed into out body. So weight gain is not our fault. It is caused by water retention.:D

[Zimomiller]

I have spent a few hours hanging around the bars on NCL ships for some reason.

 

My observations are that the answer to this question is : It Depends

 

If you are a child, your chance of getting a coke at a bar is somewhat dependent on how busy they are and your heighth. People can be pushy as well and frequently ignore queing protocols with kids that they would never ignore with adults.

 

It is clearly an annoying function at times for the bar tenders to have to continuously fill glasses of pop for what can be an endless line (they tend to come in groups) of children. (and grown ups/children who exhibit that sense of entitlement that clearly says - HEY, get over here and fill my pop glass now- I paid for it and I am the MOST important person on the ship)

 

Adults do get treated differently at times. Usually met with courtesy and a smile. Kids, it is hit or miss. Many bar tenders pay special attention to the youngest children that are clearly struggling (and probably being observed by Mom or Dad from the side) to get a refill.

 

If it is a hot day by the pool and extremely busy, people get tired and their reactions can be curt. If it is at a less busy location and the temps are moderate, you get a very different reaction.

[pratzert]

WE did an Alaska cruise on the Spirit a few years ago and bought the Soda cards for your kids. We had ordered them when we booked the cruise and paid for them in advance along with the cruise.

 

When we got to our cabin there was "one" of those Insulated Coke cups on the table and it took them 3 days to finally give us the second cup we ordered AND Paid for in advance.

 

It was a hassle and ended up having to pay for soda for the one child for three days for which we had already paid.

 

At the time, the Spirit did not have draft soda machines... it was all cans. The bartender would not give you the entire can, but would only pour it into your cup. I think they finally did install soda dispensers on the Spirit.

 

I suggest that if you want the soda card, that you buy it when you board as there is a person who sells the sticker/cups right there.

 

It's funny that the OP mentions the attitude of the bartenders as I had that same feeling too.... we always got the soda, but it was like pulling teeth to get it for the kids. It was especially hard during dinner if they wanted a refill, it almost never happened. We always sort felt like "WE" were doing something wrong asking for a soda.

[sparks1093]

We didn't get any cups when we bought the stickers on the ship. I didn't know about the cups (or had forgotten about them) so I didn't ask about them.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

I have spent a few hours hanging around the bars on NCL ships for some reason.

 

My observations are that the answer to this question is : It Depends

 

If you are a child, your chance of getting a coke at a bar is somewhat dependent on how busy they are and your heighth. People can be pushy as well and frequently ignore queing protocols with kids that they would never ignore with adults.

 

It is clearly an annoying function at times for the bar tenders to have to continuously fill glasses of pop for what can be an endless line (they tend to come in groups) of children. (and grown ups/children who exhibit that sense of entitlement that clearly says - HEY, get over here and fill my pop glass now- I paid for it and I am the MOST important person on the ship)

 

Adults do get treated differently at times. Usually met with courtesy and a smile. Kids, it is hit or miss. Many bar tenders pay special attention to the youngest children that are clearly struggling (and probably being observed by Mom or Dad from the side) to get a refill.

 

If it is a hot day by the pool and extremely busy, people get tired and their reactions can be curt. If it is at a less busy location and the temps are moderate, you get a very different reaction.

 

 

We are 2 adults that happen to like soda, we have never been ignored or felt like we were asking for something for free as we have with the soda sticker. And as I said before, we go up to the bar for th soda, so there is no reason for the attitude. It's not an isolated incident, I would say it is about 95% of the time to where we are actually apprehensive to go get a soda.

[k4btzs]

I agree with the part about attitude. We encountered this a couple of times on our cruise with bartenders, not all but some. After having my kids stand at the bar for 10-15 minutes or more and being ignored or having the bartender just grab the cup and say "what kind" fill it and hand it back without even looking at the kids (ages 9 and 10) I took to going up to the bar with the kids in order for them to get soda. It definitely didn't ruin our cruise but I would say that it was a less than pleasant task to go get a soda. I don't know if we would do it again just because of the attitudes we encountered. Who wants to spend vacation feeling guilty about getting something you have already paid for and that the cruiseline offers? Hopefully this is something they will work on with customer service in mind.

[Ontheotherhand]

Feeling guilty? why? As you say, you paid for it already through a program promoted by the cruise line. I wouldn't feel guilty, I'd feel more angry.

[flattop223]

Feeling guilty? why? As you say, you paid for it already through a program promoted by the cruise line. I wouldn't feel guilty, I'd feel more angry.

 

I agree... if it happened once no big deal but if it was a regular thing, I would mental note it for the first day or 2 then I would go to the hotel manager and let them know of the problem. If I got the answer that someone else listed "We are aware of the problem and working to solve it" I would ask for an OBC or something because if it is a known problem here and they have been giving that answer for sometime then they are not really trying to solve it.

[LoisGriffin1]

Feeling guilty? why? As you say, you paid for it already through a program promoted by the cruise line. I wouldn't feel guilty, I'd feel more angry.

 

For us it was like we were made to feel guilty for asking for a drink. Nearly every time the bars were quiet as well :(.

 

Its good to see not many others have experienced this but still there is no way I am going to do the drinks package on my future cruises.

 

Oh well it was my only major complaint about the cruise and has not put us off.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

For us it was like we were made to feel guilty for asking for a drink. Nearly every time the bars were quiet as well :(.

 

Its good to see not many others have experienced this but still there is no way I am going to do the drinks package on my future cruises.

 

Oh well it was my only major complaint about the cruise and has not put us off.

 

Exactly, that's why we are debating about get the soda sticker again.

[sparks1093]

If you drink enough soda to warrant the soda card then you should get it, otherwise you're just shooting yourself in the foot by paying more for soda. Get the soda card and if you receive less than expected service let shipboard management know about it early on so they can address it.

[Jrabbit128]

I bought my 9-yr old niece a soda card on our last cruise and by the end of our 4 day cruise, she knew where all the bars were (yes, we told that to her mother and I had to explain) and some of the bartenders knew her. Maybe they are nice to kids. I do not drink soda so I wouldn't know how they would react to me.

[TrentS]

For us it was like we were made to feel guilty for asking for a drink. Nearly every time the bars were quiet as well :(.

 

Its good to see not many others have experienced this but still there is no way I am going to do the drinks package on my future cruises.

 

Oh well it was my only major complaint about the cruise and has not put us off.

 

How were you made to feel guilty? I don't understand that. You ask for a drink using a program that the ship promotes and sells, who cares what the bartender or server thinks?

 

Personally I have never gotten any attitude using it, and couldn't care less what a bartender or server thinks of me, but if I ever did get attitude for using a program that the ship sells then we'd have a serious problem!

 

If you drink enough to justify the price then why wouldn't you get the card? Why give them more of your money? Get the card and if anyone gives you any attitude or guilt for using it COMPLAIN, and complain LOUDLY! That is simply unacceptable, anyone who gets any crap for using it should never sit by quietly and take it!!!