New Poll: Who else IS sick of the smugglers....

[trailercruiser]

That truly is an amazing deal nonetheless.

Your from NYC so I understand the non facts you supply. You make statements with no proof. How about ordering 2 entrees or 3, or people wasting food at the buffet. I could care less . The hypocrisy of this whole thread makes me laugh. Like saying because you got a speeding ticket(breaking the rules and law) the cost of my taxes has gone up to repair the roads. Smugglers please continue to do so as you actually keep cost down according to the NY Times.;)

[saturnsc]

Your from NYC so I understand the non facts you supply. You make statements with no proof. How about ordering 2 entrees or 3, or people wasting food at the buffet. I could care less . The hypocrisy of this whole thread makes me laugh. Like saying because you got a speeding ticket(breaking the rules and law) the cost of my taxes has gone up to repair the roads. Smugglers please continue to do so as you actually keep cost down according to the NY Times.;)

 

So I'm a liar just based on where I live in the world? Ok.

 

And all that other stuff that you mentioned...I didn't go there, everyone else did. Please stick to the point.

[Nezmo]

So I'm a liar just based on where I live in the world? Ok.

 

And all that other stuff that you mentioned...I didn't go there, everyone else did. Please stick to the point.

So far you have ignored a few points made by others relating to supply and demand, etc. Those points relate to the topic and argue against your point that smuggling increases prices. I'm curious why you haven't countered them. Nothing to add?

[saturnsc]

So far you have ignored a few points made by others relating to supply and demand, etc. Those points relate to the topic and argue against your point that smuggling increases prices. I'm curious why you haven't countered them. Nothing to add?

 

 

Since you insist...I am a business owner and I know that supply and demand aren't the only variables that dictate pricing. Quantifiable revenue loss does as well and they (CCL) can quantify that loss based on what they do find (smuggled booze). They then have their number crunchers apply some equation to bar prices and prices of other things to recover the estimated loss of revenue therefore affecting all paying customers. Happy?

[Ms Belvedere]

Smuggling is NOT respectable behavior -- it shouldn't be tolerated -- it shouldn't be joked about -- it shouldn't be encouraged -- and it most certainly shouldn't be given a forum that amounts to aiding and abetting a "crime", minor though it may seem.

 

The same could be said about farting in elevators. Just sayin'... :p

[Nezmo]

Since you insist...I am a business owner and I know that supply and demand aren't the only variables that dictate pricing. Quantifiable revenue loss does as well and they (CCL) can quantify that loss based on what they do find (smuggled booze). They then have their number crunchers apply some equation to bar prices and prices of other things to recover the estimated loss of revenue therefore affecting all paying customers. Happy?

Happy? I'm not debating with you for the fun of it. I thought you'd want to discuss as you started a thread on it.

 

Do you believe that smuggling is increasing and causing the cruise company to further increase bar and/or cruise prices? I gave reasoning earlier that losses due to this kind of activity are already built in to pricing as it's a cost of doing business; just like shoplifting affects prices. Unless you have some hard data that smuggling activity is on the rise to the point where cruise lines are having to consider adjusting prices upwards further, I fail to understand what argument you are making in this thread.

 

I don't own a business but I have a background in economics.

[beach410]

You have nothing to support your argument, prices of drinks are not much more then they were when I first started cruising and are comparable to what restaurants charge. Look at the cost of gas, is it rising because we are smuggling that too?!

[JennLuvs2Cruise]

I personally don't smuggle alcohol on board, nor do I plan on doing it in the future. It's just not worth the process for us, or the embarrassment if we get caught. I abide policies, but that's just me. Does it bother me if others smuggle? No. I'm not cruising for these people, I'm cruising to be with my family & enjoy myself. What people choose to do, is their choice.

[Frank12]

Since CCL began it's crackdown on smuggling, it is obvious that much less booze is sneaking onboard just by the amount of folks on this board who are now being caught. This crackdown has been going on for a year now.

 

So now that a lot less smuggled booze is making it onto the ships, why have the bar prices not gone down?

[ryanpatricksmom]

The irony is that Carnival has a very successful business model....offer a good product at an affordable price...and many cruisers choose Carnival primarily for that reason. If CCL adopted the same philosophy with respect to their bar service, or even actively promoted Bon Voyage liquor sales to booked passengers, it could actually work to their advantage.

 

The value of any product is ultimately what the market will bear. Smuggling is one indication that the bar charges exceed the price point.

[Kristi Williamson]

How in the world did this old dinosaur get resurrected?!

 

People are going to smuggle liquor on, folks. It's the way it is. Some people aren't going to smuggle and are going to stand in judgement of others for doing so. That's life on pretty much every issue out there.

 

But, to suggest that the few smugglers are somehow killing Carnival's bottom line is a lame argument. There's no economic truth in it. So, if you're going to get all self-righteous about it, at least just tell the truth: You don't do it, and you think others should be like you in your perfection and uprightness...on this issue, anyway. No one is perfect, no one follows every rule all the time without fail, and no one's kids are nearly as awesome as they think they are ('cause they're human, too!). Such is life.

 

I'm just looking forward to hitting the deck on April 30th....and I won't care what you smuggle, what you don't, if you smoke, if you don't, what you wear, or what you don't. I'll be looking to hang out with my hubby and our four sweet kids. (who are, of course, perfect! LOL) No one else on that ship, short of pushing us down and kicking us, will impact my cruise for one single minute! Prioritize people... ;)

[Frank12]

The irony is that Carnival has a very successful business model....offer a good product at an affordable price...and many cruisers choose Carnival primarily for that reason. If CCL adopted the same philosophy with respect to their bar service, or even actively promoted Bon Voyage liquor sales to booked passengers, it could actually work to their advantage.

 

The value of any product is ultimately what the market will bear. Smuggling is one indication that the bar charges exceed the price point.

 

I could not agree more. If they would lower the prices just a little I really believe they would sell more drinks.

[bigdaddyvoges]

I am not trying to start any more pro/anti smuggling fires, however back in June of 2009 (Miami) we cruised with a group of 15 and brought on the following (all were 5ths, 750ml)

 

- (2) Southern Comfort

- (2) Capt. Morgan

- (2) Campari (it's the italian in our family, we enjoyed on our suite balconies before going down to dinner while the women got ready)

- (1) Pinnacle flavored vodka

- (1) Grey Goose

 

What we did was between 4 checked suitcases, 2 bottles each, we put each bottle in a tube sock and tied it off. We figured if 1 or 2 suitcases got caught fine, but they more than likely wouldn't catch all 4 suitcases. In my suite stateroom we lined up all 8 bottles on the shelf area where the ice bucket and various glasses were hanging. Every day our stateroom attendant would put the bottles back in line and clean around them as if we had our own bar in our room. She made sure we always had a full ice bucket and she even brought us extra glasses. Now when the end of the trip came our group gave her an additional $150 and left her with 2 unopened bottles (SoCo and Capt. which I hope she enjoyed or someone else).

 

My issue is if Carnival was truly trying to crack down on "smugglers" the attendant would have blown the whistle on us right away but she didn't. Nowadays I am not sure how in depth they are trying to catch these items, but come our Aug 2012 cruise, you better believe we will try to bring on 1-2 bottles per person. If we get caught, we get caught so be it. Now what I failed to mention above was my bar tab after that cruise was still $812, so I still think I did my fair share in adding to the bottom line, PLUS the $300 my wife spent on bingo and $200ish she burned in the casino.....All in all, my sign and sail card was roughly $1350 just for MY ROOM.

 

Hopefully the fire doesn't spread too quickly. Have a good one all!!!

 

Bob

Chicago

[bigdaddyvoges]

The irony is that Carnival has a very successful business model....offer a good product at an affordable price...and many cruisers choose Carnival primarily for that reason. If CCL adopted the same philosophy with respect to their bar service, or even actively promoted Bon Voyage liquor sales to booked passengers, it could actually work to their advantage.

 

The value of any product is ultimately what the market will bear. Smuggling is one indication that the bar charges exceed the price point.

 

I too agree with this, however, we all know that these prices aren't going down any time soon. Now with me and my group being active smugglers, I guarantee you that if the price of a well drink or beer dropped like $1-$1.50 we wouldn't go through the hassle of smuggling all together OR at the most we might bring a bottle or two but I truly would say we wouldn't bring any. When you consume the amount of liquor we do (without being the town drunks, just a steady stream of drinks for some vacationing adults), $1-$1.50 price break per drink would pay for the amount of liquor we would otherwise have smuggled on. Each stateroom in our group would save $100-$150 depending on the quantity of drinks bought. Just a thought although this will never happen.

 

Bob

[Frank12]

I am not trying to start any more pro/anti smuggling fires, however back in June of 2009 (Miami) we cruised with a group of 15 and brought on the following (all were 5ths, 750ml)

 

- (2) Southern Comfort

- (2) Capt. Morgan

- (2) Campari (it's the italian in our family, we enjoyed on our suite balconies before going down to dinner while the women got ready)

- (1) Pinnacle flavored vodka

- (1) Grey Goose

 

What we did was between 4 checked suitcases, 2 bottles each, we put each bottle in a tube sock and tied it off. We figured if 1 or 2 suitcases got caught fine, but they more than likely wouldn't catch all 4 suitcases. In my suite stateroom we lined up all 8 bottles on the shelf area where the ice bucket and various glasses were hanging. Every day our stateroom attendant would put the bottles back in line and clean around them as if we had our own bar in our room. She made sure we always had a full ice bucket and she even brought us extra glasses. Now when the end of the trip came our group gave her an additional $150 and left her with 2 unopened bottles (SoCo and Capt. which I hope she enjoyed or someone else).

 

My issue is if Carnival was truly trying to crack down on "smugglers" the attendant would have blown the whistle on us right away but she didn't. Nowadays I am not sure how in depth they are trying to catch these items, but come our Aug 2012 cruise, you better believe we will try to bring on 1-2 bottles per person. If we get caught, we get caught so be it. Now what I failed to mention above was my bar tab after that cruise was still $812, so I still think I did my fair share in adding to the bottom line, PLUS the $300 my wife spent on bingo and $200ish she burned in the casino.....All in all, my sign and sail card was roughly $1350 just for MY ROOM.

 

Hopefully the fire doesn't spread too quickly. Have a good one all!!!

 

Bob

Chicago

 

The crackdown is at the ports prior to boarding. No cabin steward in their right mind is going to tattle on you for having booze. They need their tips!

 

The cruise you mention above was before the crackdown started. I doubt you would get all of that alcohol onboard in Miami today. Maybe some of it, but not all.

[jenwales]

I can't say that I care what other people do, but I wouldn't/won't smuggle. I know what booze costs and build that expense into my budget.

[lstrong]

I agree that if prices were adjusted a bit, especially beer, less people would smuggle. Interesting that on my last two cruises on HAL, there was a 2 for 1 happy each each night in the bar and, the prices for drinks were less, including buying bottles for your room

[tiggerman101]

I quit drinking years ago so I really don't concern myself with much of this. I really don't care what people do in regards to smuggling, etc. With that said I don't understand why people don't just take advantage of the Bon Voyage department. Yes, I know they sell the bottles at a high price, but it isn't that big of a deal. I think negating all the contrived methods some people have come up with to smuggle alcohol would be very much worth the price. If most of you can pay for the cruise, etc then surely you can afford a bottle or two from Bon Voyage.

 

We had a lot of friends on one of our cruises in November. We had a VS suite so we threw a few balcony parties for everyone. I never once thought of sneaking on the alcohol for this. I just bought it ahead of time and had it waiting in my cabin.

[ryanpatricksmom]

I quit drinking years ago so I really don't concern myself with much of this. I really don't care what people do in regards to smuggling, etc. With that said I don't understand why people don't just take advantage of the Bon Voyage department. Yes, I know they sell the bottles at a high price, but it isn't that big of a deal. I think negating all the contrived methods some people have come up with to smuggle alcohol would be very much worth the price. If most of you can pay for the cruise, etc then surely you can afford a bottle or two from Bon Voyage.

 

We had a lot of friends on one of our cruises in November. We had a VS suite so we threw a few balcony parties for everyone. I never once thought of sneaking on the alcohol for this. I just bought it ahead of time and had it waiting in my cabin.

 

The problem is, they don't promote Bon Voyage as a source for liquor. My brother is cruising tomorrow. He was asking me for advice because he had no intention of paying the prices onboard for drinks for the entire 8 day cruise. I told him that he could borrow my Rumrunners, or that he should call Bon Voyage. Once I explained this as an option, he stopped worrying about how to get his bottles onboard, and started taking orders from his travelmates.

[capndinghy]

Do Gooders of the World Unite!

[saturnsc]

Happy? I'm not debating with you for the fun of it. I thought you'd want to discuss as you started a thread on it.

 

Do you believe that smuggling is increasing and causing the cruise company to further increase bar and/or cruise prices? I gave reasoning earlier that losses due to this kind of activity are already built in to pricing as it's a cost of doing business; just like shoplifting affects prices. Unless you have some hard data that smuggling activity is on the rise to the point where cruise lines are having to consider adjusting prices upwards further, I fail to understand what argument you are making in this thread.

 

I don't own a business but I have a background in economics.

 

From the gossip on the boards it would seem that the fact CCL has stepped up the effort to eradicate smuggling speaks to the notion that it is a big deal for CCL and others.

[saturnsc]

You have nothing to support your argument, prices of drinks are not much more then they were when I first started cruising and are comparable to what restaurants charge. Look at the cost of gas, is it rising because we are smuggling that too?!

 

You're comparing cherries to watermelons.

[saturnsc]

Since CCL began it's crackdown on smuggling, it is obvious that much less booze is sneaking onboard just by the amount of folks on this board who are now being caught. This crackdown has been going on for a year now.

 

So now that a lot less smuggled booze is making it onto the ships, why have the bar prices not gone down?

 

I don't think they'll ever drop their prices because they know they can get what they're charging, but less smuggling = more paid sale$ = helping to keep prices from continuing to rise.

[scchasgal]

I don't think they'll ever drop their prices because they know they can get what they're charging, but less smuggling = more paid sale$ = helping to keep prices from continuing to rise.

 

You got that right a captive audience if you want a drink.

[Nezmo]

From the gossip on the boards it would seem that the fact CCL has stepped up the effort to eradicate smuggling speaks to the notion that it is a big deal for CCL and others.

Of course. If they can reduce smuggling they can increase OI. Companies would be foolish not to look for ways to improve margins. But that still does not mean smuggling is causing prices to rise. There are others reasons for that.