Wine Package - how does it work?

[imwmn913]

We will be on the Mariner of the Seas in April.

 

To be honest, I have not been on RCCL in many many years,( but my daughter and I are having a 'mother/daughter vacation'), so please excuse what might be deemed silly questions.

 

The wine package - once we choose the type of package we want, where are we allowed to use it? Is it only for the dining room? Are we able to take the unused bottle to the cabin? to the deck ? to the lounges ?

 

Can we mix red and white in any of the packages as long as we stay within the price specifics?

 

How much of a savings is the package vs regular bottle as you go or even glass as you go? I would normally have a couple glasses of wine at a meal, my 'drink of choice' is scotch in a lounge, etc. My daughter will have maybe a couple glasses a wine a night (she hasn't turned into the drinker her Mom is - Just kidding people!:D). So is the wine package worth it?

 

When I called the RCCL customer service line, the agent seemed confused at best, so that is why I turn to you guys.

 

Thanks

 

Carolynn

[cgags47]

I believe that, depending on the package of course, you can pick any combination of wines from the list that you purchased from, at any time. I.E., if you purchased 5 bottles from the "Platinum" package, then you can choose any 5 of those wines, at any time. So you can have one each night for dinner, or 2 at once, etc. Basically, you have pre-paid for 5 bottles from that select list. How you choose to use them is up to you. As for a discount, it does work out in your favor, as compared to purchasing wines separately, or even by the glass. If the two of you are going to have roughly 4 glasses each night for dinner, then you are doing yourself a favor by purchasing a package. And, any unfinished bottles will be recorked for you to use the next night. I do not believe that they allow to take the bottles out of the dining room, but I am not positive about that. After all, you did already pay for it so, technically, it is yours aboard the ship. Hope this helped!!

[don don]

I beleive the wine package works well as my husband likes to drink wine at dinner therefore he can choose which bottle he likes white or red from whatever package we purchase and whatever he does not drink is then corked and brought to the table the following evening.

Given that you both drink wine I would recommend it, there is at least a 10-20% saving.

[tgjr]

what is the most exclusive wine pacage ? And can you order it from home ?

 

We drink a lot of wine, and wold love to save a little. ( a lot )

 

We find the good wines on the vessels a bit expencive compare to what we get in Europe - A good saving will be of good help - we will be cruising a 10 nighter ?

[cgags47]

what is the most exclusive wine pacage ? And can you order it from home ?

 

We drink a lot of wine, and wold love to save a little. ( a lot )

 

We find the good wines on the vessels a bit expencive compare to what we get in Europe - A good saving will be of good help - we will be cruising a 10 nighter ?

 

Exclusivity isn't really part of the plan. There are three packages, Gold, Platinum and Diamond, that each have more available wines, respectively. The cost also increases, respectively.

[robtulipe]

I would suggest that you review all the W&D packages as the same wines sometimes are offered on all three levels as is the case with the Danzante Italian Pinot Grigio, one of our favourites. Why play for the Diamond package when you can get the wines you like on the less expensive Gold pkg.

[mamawolf]

I have gotten the wine package on 2 cruises. We were able to combine red and white as long as it was from the specified list for the plan we purchased. We had it in the MDR as well as in Chops (they brought our unfinished bottle from Chops to the MDR the next night). There was at least one night that we did take the unfinished bottle back to our room. At the end of the cruise, I still had one bottle due to me, which I brought home.

[Kellie Poodle]

We have taken several cruises on RCCL and purchased the wine package. We always buy the Platinum one because we prefer those varieties.

 

Yes, one does save money over ordering individual bottles.

 

Yes, one can have an open bottle of red and an open bottle of white in the dining room at the same time. When DH was eating beef and I was eating seafood, he was able to get a glass of red and I got a glass of white.

 

If we wanted, we could take the opened bottle with us from the dining room and enjoy it in our cabin.

 

We could also take a bottle that we ordered from room service or in the specialty restaurant to the dining room. In the case of the specialty restaurant, they will forward it to your table in the main dining room for you.

 

Unless you are heavy drinkers, I would recommend the wine and dine package for 7 night or longer cruises. We are doing a 5 night Bermuda in April and there is no way we can consume one bottle per night so we will order probably 2 bottles, one red and one wihte, from the menu and that will be cheaper.

[imwmn913]

Thanks to all of you....

 

I did read on the RCCL website regarding the wine package that it is available in the main dining room, speciality resturants, and the Windjammer....

But, obviously, they do allow you to take the unused bottle back to your room and even home! For those of you who did - was it offered to you to do that, or did you have to 'politely insist'? I guess I am just trying to get Plan B working in case we will have 'leftovers' and I do want to get what I paid for.

What about if you go to the lounges/bars - and want wine - can we utilize the wine package - and any wine left over from dinner? Somehow I just cannot imagine them letting us stroll around the ship with a bottle under our arm!!!

Thanks!

Carolynn

[Katiejayne]

Is there a corking fee? I think that is the correct term. When you purchase the wine package, is that the total and final cost?

[dixie54]

Thanks

[Kellie Poodle]

Is there a corking fee? I think that is the correct term. When you purchase the wine package, is that the total and final cost?

 

The term is corkage and, no, there is no corkage fee if you are buying the wine and dine package or a bottle off of the wine list in the MDR.

 

Since RCI doesn't allow its guests to bring wine from other sources on board, I don't imagine there would be a corkage fee at any time.

[arb711]

How does it work to get your wine in Windjammer? I.e. who do you ask, how easy is it for them to get, etc.?

[woof22]

But, obviously, they do allow you to take the unused bottle back to your room and even home! For those of you who did - was it offered to you to do that, or did you have to 'politely insist'? I guess I am just trying to get Plan B working in case we will have 'leftovers' and I do want to get what I paid for.

 

We've never had a problem leaving the table with a partial bottle in hand. The waiter asked if we wanted it saved for the next night, we said we'd like to bring it with us. He got a cork and stuffed it in the bottle for us. We walked out with the bottle and wine glasses in hand.

 

I wouldn't say that it was offered but we didn't need to politely insist either. It was easy.