$48.50 for a 7 day soda card? No thanks.

[BehrHunter]

I had my first cruise on RCCL last week. 7 Days on Mariner. Overall a great experience (well, maybe not the food - but I can write about that some other time). One thing that did surprise me however, was the cost of the soda card. $48.50. That seemed excessive to me, considering the same thing on Princess last March was $25 plus tip.

 

Im not sure if Princess raised their prices recently, but has RCCL always charged that much? I know multiple people probably use one card but not in my group of two. We ended up just buying what we needed which wasn't much.

[Captain Jake]

We just drink them in port and bring a 12 pack on board with us.BTW some ports have cokes made with real sugar like it was made way back when

:cj

[bluegirlum]

I had my first cruise on RCCL last week. 7 Days on Mariner. Overall a great experience (well, maybe not the food - but I can write about that some other time). One thing that did surprise me however, was the cost of the soda card. $48.50. That seemed excessive to me, considering the same thing on Princess last March was $25 plus tip.

 

Im not sure if Princess raised their prices recently, but has RCCL always charged that much? I know multiple people probably use one card but not in my group of two. We ended up just buying what we needed which wasn't much.

 

This is oft-discussed on CC. For me, it's worth it. For others, it's not. It's something you can research in advance and decide if you want.

[Jiffymom]

How much did the sodas cost if you bought them by the pool?

[fiasco]

You have to drink 24 sodas over the course of the week to break even. Not counting the last day (debarkation), that's about 3.5 sodas a day!

 

Yikes! That's a lot of soda!

[BehrHunter]

We just drink them in port and bring a 12 pack on board with us.BTW some ports have cokes made with real sugar like it was made way back when

:cj

 

Funny, we went on an excursion in Mazatlan and coke & diet coke were provided. The two topics of conversation: The coke tasted like people remember it used to taste like and the diet coke was called coke light.

 

I personally stopped consuming HFCS a while ago. You would be amazed how many things it is in. It was even in the granola (Kellogs) and yogurt on the boat.

[BehrHunter]

How much did the sodas cost if you bought them by the pool?

 

To be honest it was on my cruise partners account and I think he purchased 3 for the entire week but by Fiascos account, it works out at $2 approx each.

[DGNY]

The soda card is $6/day (plus tip). From what I've read a can is $2 (plus tip). So, if you would tend to drink at least 3 cans a day then the card would make sense for you.

 

For me, I tend to drink the equivalent of 2 cans with meals at lunch and dinner. Plus, I may have the occasional soft drink at the pool (or upon boarding the ship after a long/hot port day). So, the soda card makes sense for me.

[amybeth4]

You have to drink 24 sodas over the course of the week to break even. Not counting the last day (debarkation), that's about 3.5 sodas a day!

 

Yikes! That's a lot of soda!

 

That's an amazingly small amount of soda if you really think about it. There's nothing crazy about having one can of soda with lunch and one can with dinner. Then over the course of the entire day and night you just need to have one random soda...

[Deckhawk]

3+ cans of soda per day is a good bit to drink. I think it also works if you brought alcohol and are using the soda to mix. The cheapest way is just to bring it on with you but sometimes convenience wins out over price....the American way. :)

[BehrHunter]

3+ cans of soda per day is a good bit to drink. I think it also works if you brought alcohol and are using the soda to mix. The cheapest way is just to bring it on with you but sometimes convenience wins out over price....the American way. :)

 

We got talking to a group who had purchased a soda card. They used the Coca Cola cup you get with the card to carry their own booze around in. They would just order the soda then openly pour their alcohol into each drink. I guess that $48:50 comes with one good benefit.

[DGNY]

That seemed excessive to me, considering the same thing on Princess last March was $25 plus tip.

 

BTW...the soda card on Princess is $4.25/day.

 

So, Princess is less expensive than RCI. But not quite as bad as you stated. Based on a 7 day cruise:

 

Princess: $29.75 + tip

RCI: $42 + tip

[Deckhawk]

We got talking to a group who had purchased a soda card. They used the Coca Cola cup you get with the card to carry their own booze around in. They would just order the soda then openly pour their alcohol into each drink. I guess that $48:50 comes with one good benefit.

 

The other way to get your money's worth is to share the card. You're not supposed to do this, but if you have two people who will always be close to one another you can share it between the two and just go to different bartenders...etc.

[VernRDH]

Three in our group used it on our recent Freedom cruise. Everyone got their moneys worth, as none of us drink alcohol. So we had soda instead of beer or other mixed drinks.

 

What is worth it to one person may not be to another, but we all felt it was worth the money spent. YMMV.

[Cruisin' Spartan]

On both of the cruises we've been on together, my wife and I just purchased 1 soda package and then shared each drink we ordered. We kiss each other so it's not really a big deal. I'm pretty sure at least once, we convinced a pool bartender to throw some rum in with the Coke in the cup that you get with the package. It was pretty strong and when we checked the receipt, they just charged us for a double shot or something like that.

[SamFritz]

You have to drink 24 sodas over the course of the week to break even. Not counting the last day (debarkation), that's about 3.5 sodas a day!

 

Yikes! That's a lot of soda!

 

With all the ice they put in the glass and the size of the glasses, it doesn't seem like that much to me. there's probably only 6-8 oz. of soda per glass. If I'm not having wine with dinner, I could easily have three sodas just there, two or three more at lunch. So the soda card is cheaper than buying individual drinks. We brought a few 12 can cases of soda on our last cruise. That's certainly much less expensive, but there is the hastle of carrying a can or two of soda with you to meals.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Ultimately, like almost everything in life, what you are willing to pay for a product or service determines whether the asking price is "fair" or not. Each person is different and retailers, restaurants, hotels and cruise ships will only charge as much as the market will bear. If they institute a price hike and sales plummet then they will lower the price, until that point they will gently nudge it higher if they can.

 

Recently I went out to lunch at a national chain restaurant in the Chicago suburbs and was shocked to be charged $3.50(+tax+tip) for a glass of unsweet icedtea. Here in Atlanta the same drink would be $1.75-2.50 max. Admittedly there were unlimited refills, but that seems excessive! However the market there sustains that level of pricing and so it sticks.

 

btw - most, if not all, soft drinks made outside the US use real sugar. It is only the US market where so many products are amde w/ high fructose corn syrup!

[caribbeanboy]

Besides that most soft drinks made in USA tastes like pool water.

[GXmanDC]

I have always purchased the soda package on RCI. I drink a lot of soda so I feel it is worth it. If you don't think it is worth it, don't buy it.

[lcguy]

At least RCI hasn't "banned" soda from being brought on board. I don't understand what the problem is... bring on your own.

[matj2000]

I have a soda card from 5 years ago. I am going to try to re-use it again on my next cruise...

[bluegirlum]

I have a soda card from 5 years ago. I am going to try to re-use it again on my next cruise...

 

Do they actually still have "cards"? I've only seen stickers.

[negc]

You have to drink 24 sodas over the course of the week to break even. Not counting the last day (debarkation), that's about 3.5 sodas a day!

 

Yikes! That's a lot of soda!

 

Obviously to those who believe that 3.5 sodas a day is a "lot of soda" the soda card would not be a sensible purchase. For those whose daily intake exceeds that amount,it might be the thing to do. Clearly each individual needs to determine whether or not it makes good financial sense to purchase the card. I know some folks who would drink 3.5 sodas in a single sitting and the amount that they might consume during a single sea day would probably exceed the cost of purchasing the card for the week. Not saying that so much consumption is wise or healthy but it is not unheard of.:) Folks can, and should, do the math and decide which way is best for them. YMMV.

[El Mono]

The soda card is expensive and it can not be compared to a buying cans of coke, its like comparing apples to oranges.

 

If you have the soda card and they fill up your "complimentary" cup for free, it will be 4/5 ice and 1/5 soda. That can't be compared to buying a can of soda where you will actually get a whole can of soda and ice in the cup.

 

Of course you can always ask for them to have no ice in it, but still..

[The Big Booper]

I always tell the bartender - easy on the ice.

 

On the first night I show the card with the sticker. Every night after that the asst waiter brings 2 glasses to cut down on his trips to the bar without us having to ask.