skioncruises Posted December 12, 2012 #101 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) Can someone please clarify the new policy regarding the fizzy drinks. £1.80 per can or 95p if AI:eek: but ... Is it draught? Poured from bottles by the bar staff? or Do the bar staff/waiters open a can and pour it into a glass? Also, how big is the glass they serve it in? Can see a lot of drinks being brought onboard at the ports.;) I don't drink at all and as DH is a moderate beer drinker our bill won't make them any profit. Edited December 12, 2012 by skioncruises Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshwise Posted December 12, 2012 #102 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Thank you - the AI seems to have changed and it looked like the canned drinks are now chargeable! I know when we boarded I was surprised to see a charge for the soft drinks , was even more surprised when they didn't actually charge! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lppwrth Posted December 12, 2012 #103 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I had decided not to take the AI option at £199 pp per week, it will add almost another £800 to our up front costs. Having looked at the above prices I am now undecided. With a pint of draught Heineken at £3.70 it would only be about 7 drinks per day for the OH. If it's true you now are paying for a mixer to go with gin, vodka etc. I may consider the AI. With a few soft drinks and cappuchino's during the day, I guess we might just get even?? I think AI is briliant for those who tend to stay aboard, a lot but we are land based for most days. So a can of coke would be 95p if you already have the AI option.....oh why can't I just decide? We are going on 27th January, when is the latest I could add this option onto my booking? Thanks Lorraine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
campolady Posted December 12, 2012 #104 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) We took the A.I. option on our cruise on the ´Dream´ in May (99 Pounds for 2 people / 7 nights). Hubby only drinks Wine with meals then soft drinks/Coffee for the rest of the day; I have Wine with meals and the occasional Cocktail as well as non-alcoholic beverages. As, due to Hubbys health isues, we are back aboard by lunchtime most days, we reckoned that we had got our moneys worth by bedtime of day 2 of the cruise - everything after that was a bonus. We next sail on the Dream on 26 October and have again booked the A.I. package. Even though we have paid 138 Pounds for 2 people / 7 nights this time, allowing for the increase in drinks prices, we still reckon this is a very good deal. Any A.I. package is going to have its problems (this years seems to be the lack of canned drinks) but the Thomsons package is still far superior than you would get in most European 4 star hotels. Edited December 12, 2012 by campolady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whistlerbc Posted December 12, 2012 #105 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I had decided not to take the AI option at £199 pp per week, it will add almost another £800 to our up front costs. Having looked at the above prices I am now undecided. With a pint of draught Heineken at £3.70 it would only be about 7 drinks per day for the OH. If it's true you now are paying for a mixer to go with gin, vodka etc. I may consider the AI. With a few soft drinks and cappuchino's during the day, I guess we might just get even?? I think AI is briliant for those who tend to stay aboard, a lot but we are land based for most days. So a can of coke would be 95p if you already have the AI option.....oh why can't I just decide? We are going on 27th January, when is the latest I could add this option onto my booking? Thanks Lorraine 3 weeks before travel according to a friend that is also a Thomson TA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whistlerbc Posted December 12, 2012 #106 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) We took the A.I. option on our cruise on the ´Dream´ in May (99 Pounds for 2 people / 7 nights). Hubby only drinks Wine with meals then soft drinks/Coffee for the rest of the day; I have Wine with meals and the occasional Cocktail as well as non-alcoholic beverages. As, due to Hubbys health isues, we are back aboard by lunchtime most days, we reckoned that we had got our moneys worth by bedtime of day 2 of the cruise - everything after that was a bonus. We next sail on the Dream on 26 October and have again booked the A.I. package. Even though we have paid 138 Pounds for 2 people / 7 nights this time, allowing for the increase in drinks prices, we still reckon this is a very good deal. Any A.I. package is going to have its problems (this years seems to be the lack of canned drinks) but the Thomsons package is still far superior than you would get in most European 4 star hotels. At that price I would have no hesitation or complaints paying the 95p supplement per can of mixer/soft drink. The problem I have is paying the full price for AI and then being asked to pay a supplement on top for soft drinks. Unfortunately Thomson claim caribbean cruisers prefer non existant onboard credit for early bookers so its not even an option to book at a more advantageous time Edited December 12, 2012 by whistlerbc spell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lppwrth Posted December 13, 2012 #107 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I would have no hesitation either booking AI at a lower price. It would push the price up to 2K a person, to add it before I go. I am so looking forward to this holiday, but am struggling with the price. Wondering if I will regret it if I don't take the option. Lorraine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebooler Posted December 20, 2012 #108 Share Posted December 20, 2012 Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but why would someone on the AI pay £2 for a can of Strongbow when they can get a pint of draught Strongbow at no extra charge? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julessmiles Posted December 20, 2012 #109 Share Posted December 20, 2012 Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but why would someone on the AI pay £2 for a can of Strongbow when they can get a pint of draught Strongbow at no extra charge? No idea! But when we were on the Celebration this year, the draught cider was only available in certain bars - I'm certain it wasn't in the MDR so I guess if we wanted cider at dinner, we would have had to pay for a can! Not sure if that is the same with beer, lager etc too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highlandlassie Posted December 20, 2012 #110 Share Posted December 20, 2012 I have a very good TA - as they threw in the AI for free for hubby and In( should have been £69.00 each) - also check the brochure as depending on when you booked your cruise it was free. We also managed to book the cabin we wanted for free as well - TA threw that in as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Rouser Posted December 20, 2012 #111 Share Posted December 20, 2012 Hope your well Highland Lassie ;) Merry Christmas to you and your other half. Strongbow rules :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wddeni Posted December 21, 2012 #112 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Can anyone advise Celebration Wine do you get choice by the glass or is it just what is open What about bottles if you are AI are these full price or charged at reduction:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julessmiles Posted December 21, 2012 #113 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Can anyone adviseCelebration Wine do you get choice by the glass or is it just what is open What about bottles if you are AI are these full price or charged at reduction:o You do get a choice - Red, White or Rose ;) (but it's drinkable!) I believe you pay the full price for a bottle - we ordered a couple of bottles of sparkling this year & they cost us about £18; I wouldn't think people not on AI would pay more than that!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highlandlassie Posted December 21, 2012 #114 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Hi RR - as you can see I have jumped ship again, and its back to Thomsons for me lol - RCI was good, Thomsons rule in my opinion - only had wee btls of strongbow on the ship - so 2 small btls add 15% gratuity and 10% spanish tax - it worked out just under $15 for pint cider :eek: Both hubby and I are well thank you, aand looking forward to our 1st time on the dream:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julessmiles Posted December 21, 2012 #115 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Hi RR - as you can see I have jumped ship again, and its back to Thomsons for me lol - RCI was good, Thomsons rule in my opinion - only had wee btls of strongbow on the ship - so 2 small btls add 15% gratuity and 10% spanish tax - it worked out just under $15 for pint cider :eek: How much??!!!! Another VERY good reason to stick with Thomson - my husband can't drink beer so enjoys his cider - good to see that it looks like it is still available on draught on the Celebration! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highlandlassie Posted December 21, 2012 #116 Share Posted December 21, 2012 How much??!!!! Another VERY good reason to stick with Thomson - my husband can't drink beer so enjoys his cider - good to see that it looks like it is still available on draught on the Celebration! It was $5.75 for a small bottle of strongbow - add 15% gratuties and add another 10% for spanish tax - worked out for 2 small bottles of cider just under $15.00 :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogermathews Posted February 7, 2013 #117 Share Posted February 7, 2013 yep, and no Boddingtons either:( but Bacardi is onthe AI:cool: and so is Cider:cool: Thanks a lot for uploading all of those bar lists , personally I don't like boddingtons keg beer , real ale version is ok but doubt they would ever have that on a ship. John smiths is not to my taste either. The bottled beers look good but £2 surcharge per bottle when on all inc seems excessive as they cost them under a pound each and are saving on not serving draught. This may be a daft question but do you have to say every time you order that you have the drinks package , or do you just order whatever and its sorted out automatically ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sailaway487 Posted February 7, 2013 #118 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Thanks a lot for uploading all of those bar lists , personally I don't like boddingtons keg beer , real ale version is ok but doubt they would ever have that on a ship. John smiths is not to my taste either. The bottled beers look good but £2 surcharge per bottle when on all inc seems excessive as they cost them under a pound each and are saving on not serving draught. This may be a daft question but do you have to say every time you order that you have the drinks package , or do you just order whatever and its sorted out automatically ? On your boarding pass, which you will use almost like a credit card onboard for purchasing anything, it will have an 'AI' on it, notifying the staff you are on the drinks package. I would guess that when the bar staff swipe your boarding pass it should come up on their computer that you are on the drinks package anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeCountyMan Posted February 20, 2013 #119 Share Posted February 20, 2013 Just found this - is the Spirit drinks package the same ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lppwrth Posted February 20, 2013 #120 Share Posted February 20, 2013 We decided not to take the AI option which would have been £796 for the 2 of us (£199 pp per week). Noticed on embarkcation it would have been even more expensive at £219 pp per week. Anyway with us being off the ship for the whole day, everyday, we found that it really would not have been value for us. Our bar bill for the 14 nights was £430. We met a couple who sat at the bar in the Medusa every night and by their own admission were "seasoned drinkers" and they were pleased to have taken the AI package...but half way through the second week, said to me that despite all their efforts realised they had not got good value. Personally I could not physically manage to consume, enough to warrent the AI...if I had tried I think I would have missed out on some great Ports of Call nursing a huge hangover. One thing I noticed when buying a coke onboard was that sometimes you were given a 500ml bottle or sometimes a 300ml can and you were charged exactly the same £1.80. Bit weird really. I had great fun trying to buy a different bottle of "local beer" in each port and taking a picture of each one for the photo album....all in the course of research!!! Rum cocktails much nicer in the Islands than on the ship. I wish I was back there. Lorraine- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geomagot Posted February 20, 2013 Author #121 Share Posted February 20, 2013 Just found this - is the Spirit drinks package the same ? dream/celebration has a different menu current spirit/majesty menu on this thread, post #3 http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1790492 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davetrucker Posted February 21, 2013 #122 Share Posted February 21, 2013 We have been on the Dream 4 times now and always had AI and always thought it good value ,but now looking at the prices for all the drinks that are now premium drinks and there are a lot more I would not now upgrade. I think Thomson's are just now trying to screw us :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muffinman1 Posted March 25, 2013 #123 Share Posted March 25, 2013 last time I was on a cruise october 2011 the supplement for i.e stolaynia vodka on the A/I menu was only 10p , now its upto £1.20, were going on the spirit in October again, but it looks like its Smirnoff ( no supplement), and a few Drambuies ( no supplement) thank god we got our A/I for nought Alex & Helen:confused::p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrssbuckley Posted March 26, 2013 #124 Share Posted March 26, 2013 sorry guys am i a bit dim??? so on the AI i cant have a g and t without paying??? can i have a vodi n coke??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecttr Posted March 26, 2013 #125 Share Posted March 26, 2013 sorry guys am i a bit dim??? so on the AI i cant have a g and t without paying??? can i have a vodi n coke??? Of course you can have a free G&T on the AI. I drink Bombay Sapphire and it is free on the AI, as is the tonic :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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