Loads of newbie questions #3 - all about drinking (Alaska Northbound)

[PongosMum]

Island Princess

 

I’m assuming the answer to this is going to be a big fat huge “NO”, but ........

 

Does anyone know if you can order hot water to make your own drinks of tea & coffee?

For one reason or another I hardly ever drink either tea or coffee outside of my own home (have even been known to take the odd ‘green-tea’ tea bag to friends’ houses).

 

 

Soft Drinks

We plan to take some bottled water & soda on board with us – any idea where we can buy a 6 or even a 12pack of each in Vancouver?

 

Taking Wine on board

We’ll be taking 2 bottles of champers on with us at embarkation. The Princess website says that that’s all we can take for the whole trip, do they have some kind of database that logs the amount you take on board with you? How would they know you’d already brought on your allowance if you tried to take some more on board in one of the ports?

 

Thanks :)

[soccerref]

Does anyone know if you can order hot water to make your own drinks of tea & coffee?

For one reason or another I hardly ever drink either tea or coffee outside of my own home (have even been known to take the odd ‘green-tea’ tea bag to friends’ houses).

I can answer this question: I always take my own tea bags (I’m from the UK!) plus Starbucks Via sachets of coffee. I use these to make drinks in the buffet area because there is always hot water available there. I also order a jug of hot water from Room Service so I can have my ‘early morning fix’. I do give the server a small tip.

 

I also take a couple of insulated mugs so I can bring a hot drink to the pool/library/lounge/stateroom whenever I fancy.

 

Enjoy your first cruise... Alaska is brilliant.

[PunkiC]

I also take along my own tea and Via packs and just mark "tea" on the breakfast order form to receive hot water in the morning. Sometimes it is really hot and sometimes not so much, in which case DH runs up to the Horizon Court and refills it. Bless his heart.

 

The same technique works beautifully in the dining room or buffet--just ask for tea and then use your own supplies.

 

There is a liquor store in a mall that is just a couple of blocks from the dock in Vancouver and there are stores in that mall where you can buy soda. You can find it on line under BC liquor stores. We always restock our Perrier and wine at our ports of call and it has never been an issue. When we depart from Seattle (our home port) or for some reason have a rental car, we will bring a whole case of Perrier and check it with our luggage. DH just ties it up with twine and puts a luggage tag on it. When we don't have that luxury, we just bring it on board a few bottles at a time.

 

We took our very first cruise on the Island out of Vancouver and it is still our favorite ship. Happy travels.

[paul929207]

You can get hot water from room service, at the buffet or in any dining room.

 

Princess does not keep track of who has used their allotment for wine.

[PongosMum]

Does anyone know if you can order hot water to make your own drinks of tea & coffee?

For one reason or another I hardly ever drink either tea or coffee outside of my own home (have even been known to take the odd ‘green-tea’ tea bag to friends’ houses).

I can answer this question: I always take my own tea bags (I’m from the UK!) plus Starbucks Via sachets of coffee. I use these to make drinks in the buffet area because there is always hot water available there. I also order a jug of hot water from Room Service so I can have my ‘early morning fix’. I do give the server a small tip.

 

I also take a couple of insulated mugs so I can bring a hot drink to the pool/library/lounge/stateroom whenever I fancy.

 

Enjoy your first cruise... Alaska is brilliant.

 

thanks very much - we intend to have a ball :D. Hubby will be pleased - nofnk like a cuppa tetley lol & my kenco will now be making the trip with me :)

[PongosMum]

I also take along my own tea and Via packs and just mark "tea" on the breakfast order form to receive hot water in the morning. Sometimes it is really hot and sometimes not so much, in which case DH runs up to the Horizon Court and refills it. Bless his heart.

 

The same technique works beautifully in the dining room or buffet--just ask for tea and then use your own supplies.

 

There is a liquor store in a mall that is just a couple of blocks from the dock in Vancouver and there are stores in that mall where you can buy soda. You can find it on line under BC liquor stores. We always restock our Perrier and wine at our ports of call and it has never been an issue. When we depart from Seattle (our home port) or for some reason have a rental car, we will bring a whole case of Perrier and check it with our luggage. DH just ties it up with twine and puts a luggage tag on it. When we don't have that luxury, we just bring it on board a few bottles at a time.

 

We took our very first cruise on the Island out of Vancouver and it is still our favorite ship. Happy travels.

 

Wealth of information - thanks very much. We're visiting Seattle after the cruise, my mum lived there (don't know where) before I was born - a million years ago - and she always wanted to go back but never did - it's a bit of a homage to her memory. I'm sooooo looking forward to it. Thanks again, you've been really really helpful :)

[PongosMum]

You can get hot water from room service, at the buffet or in any dining room.

 

Princess does not keep track of who has used their allotment for wine.

 

thanks for the info - think we'll be stocking up in Ketchikan :)

[reney313]

thanks for the info - think we'll be stocking up in Ketchikan :)

 

We are sailing out of Vancouver as well. I don't have any desire to buy wine and pack in my checked luggage on the airline and I've heard the prices are much higher in Canada than the USA. I do like to have some wine in my cabin as I get ready to go to dinner so decided I would probably just pick up a bottle in Ketchikan.

[Alaskanb]

Tea: Took a small Bodum tea kettle with me and my PG Tips.

http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Bistro-17-Ounce-Cordless-Electric/dp/B004EBV0IM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1340553555&sr=8-2&keywords=bodum+kettle

Ordered extra milk with breakfast from room service and kept it in the fridge.

Wine: I found that the price of wine onboard was reasonable--check out the wine list on the Princess site. Here is the bcliquor site where you purchase wines in Vancouver http://www.bcliquorstores.com/ You will find it much more expensive than the UK or USA.

We were on the Island Princess on May 23 and my review is on this thread and the Alaska thread. Keep asking questions!

[Pam in CA]

Be very, very careful when bringing a hot water kettle or coffee maker on the ship. Fire is the #1 danger on a ship and it happens more frequently than you read about. Any electrical device that can get to the boiling point is a potential danger and can be confiscated... for good reason.

[robgvic]

Liquor and wine are more expensive here but I dont think a bottle or two will break the bank. I just bought several bottles of wine for under $10. Maybe they are under $8 in UAS but what is $2. It does help support our medical plan.

[tarheelmjfan]

I drink a lot of Diet Pepsi. Too much. :o The great thing about cruising to Alaska is you can almost always find a grocery store near the dock to pick up some to bring on the ship. You don't have to worry about being forced to get Pepsi Lite (Mexico) or similar. I've picked it up on many cruises, & the only version that takes like Diet Pepsi is Diet Pepsi. It is more expensive in Alaska than here, but sometimes you do what you have to. :p As for wine, we got great deals on wine in Vancouver. We were lucky enough to be there, when the $ was strong. It's been several years. Regardless, I doubt it will be a lot more than it will be in Alaska. Everything is marked up there substantially, which makes sense when you consider how remote most of Alaska is.

[Donder1]

Be very, very careful when bringing a hot water kettle or coffee maker on the ship. Fire is the #1 danger on a ship and it happens more frequently than you read about. Any electrical device that can get to the boiling point is a potential danger and can be confiscated... for good reason.

Agree!

I know it is prohibited to take any device like a kettle, hot pot, etc. Please don't do it. You are putting us all at risk should a fire start. Fire is the major concern on modern ships today...with the exception of total stupidity and recklessness re: Concordia incident.

[sherryf]

Soft Drinks

We plan to take some bottled water & soda on board with us – any idea where we can buy a 6 or even a 12pack of each in Vancouver?

 

I wouldn't bother lugging on bottled water. The tap water on the ship is great. Just bring a reusable bottle and refill in your room.

 

Taking Wine on board

We’ll be taking 2 bottles of champers on with us at embarkation. The Princess website says that that’s all we can take for the whole trip, do they have some kind of database that logs the amount you take on board with you? How would they know you’d already brought on your allowance if you tried to take some more on board in one of the ports?

 

 

We have always brought on as much wine as we wanted with no problem. I have a 6-bottle tote bag from Trader Joe's that I carry right on with me. No problems!

[robgvic]

You may actually find that soda pop is cheaper in Vancouver. Right now I can buy a 12pack for 2.99 but then that is at a Chain store and is on sale

[PunkiC]

We were able to buy really good wine in Manhattan for under $5.00 per bottle on our last cruise, so it was very disappointing to pay $15 per bottle for so/so wine a few days later in Halifax.

[RickEk]

A thermostatically-controlled pot that has an auto-shutoff should be okay...

[Alaskanb]

Agree!

I know it is prohibited to take any device like a kettle, hot pot, etc. Please don't do it. You are putting us all at risk should a fire start. Fire is the major concern on modern ships today...with the exception of total stupidity and recklessness re: Concordia incident.

You are misinformed--automatic shutoff kettles are permitted.

[PongosMum]

Thanks everyone - loads of really useful ideas & prices etc. Will be taking champagne on with us cos we're celebrating a couple of things (both outside the '45 days' for a ship celebration) so knowing that we can get a couple of bottles of wine (drinks while getting ready) in port we visit is great........ and knowing that it won't get confiscated is even better :D