Wine package question

[RickinNYC]

Hi folks. Had a quick question re: the wine package. I'd purchased it once before but can't remember how it worked. When one purchases the wine package, are the bottles only served in the dining room? Or would I also be able to get a bottle to have at a bar?

[meltingmoments]

Hi folks. Had a quick question re: the wine package. I'd purchased it once before but can't remember how it worked. When one purchases the wine package, are the bottles only served in the dining room? Or would I also be able to get a bottle to have at a bar?

 

You can certainly have a bottle at a bar, as well as in the dining room. We had bottles all over on our Epic trip........dining room, O'Sheehans, cabin......no problem at all.

And if you don't finish a bottle ( un-heard of concept for me!! ;) ), the wait staff place a sticker on it and store it for you till next time you retrieve it! Enjoy! :)

[rjm11]

They actually don't give you the actual bottles- they give you little slips of paper that you hand to a waiter or bartender to redeem the bottles. When we signed up in March, right at the sign up they asked us if we'd prefer to have some (or even all) of the bottles delivered to the room- we took about half of them delivered to the room (sometimes drinking them there, sometimes carrying one to a restaurant with us), and the other half we just used the slips in the dining room. It was very convenient.

[KeithJenner]

They will get them for you anywhere, but its worth bearing in mind that the bars only have a small selection, so if you pick one up there then someone may have to go and collect it which could take a little while if it's busy.

[Delbankin]

Just back from Jade cruise and we purchased the wine package on the first day of boarding. They had a stall set up in the buffet area.

 

The strange thing about NCL as opposed to other lines is that we had to select our specific wines there and then because they write your choices on the slips of paper that they issue to you which you hand over in the restaurant or wherever.

 

This means you are better to do some research at home first so that you can get best value from the package - no point in paying for a package and selecting the cheapest wines on the menu.

 

We selected a mix of red and white wines so we could try to match with our choices of food throughout the cruise but obviously this was a bit of guess work in advance. It worked out fairly well in the end.

[RickinNYC]

Thanks to all! Looks like ill actually go with a wine package as opposed to the booze one. I've gotten to like wines lately and will use this as an opportunity to try different bottles. I'm going solo so now I have to figure out just how many bottles on the package I'd prefer.

[asda]

Just back from Jade cruise and we purchased the wine package on the first day of boarding. They had a stall set up in the buffet area.

 

The strange thing about NCL as opposed to other lines is that we had to select our specific wines there and then because they write your choices on the slips of paper that they issue to you which you hand over in the restaurant or wherever.

 

This means you are better to do some research at home first so that you can get best value from the package - no point in paying for a package and selecting the cheapest wines on the menu.

 

We selected a mix of red and white wines so we could try to match with our choices of food throughout the cruise but obviously this was a bit of guess work in advance. It worked out fairly well in the end.

 

Hi could you tell me how much the packages are please .

[KeithJenner]

Hi could you tell me how much the packages are please .

 

There are three levels, as you go up a level, you can order anything from that selection or below.

 

The Enthusiast 4 bottles for $88

The Aficionado 4 bottles for $98

The Connoisseur 4 bottles for $110

 

You can also get then in packs of 6 or 8 bottles but the per bottle price stays about the same.

 

A 15% tip is added and local taxes if applicable. Make sure you check whether you can save on taxes by waiting until you sail.

[coocooforshoes]

When do you get this information for pre-purchase?

What was the booze package?

Thanks for the information.:)

[KeithJenner]

I don't think you can pre purchase them. The lists of wine are around these boards somewhere, but I just select them when onboard.

 

The "booze package" is referred to above is the $49 per day for all you can drink (subject to limits on some types of drinks like top shelf spirits or expensive wines). There is certainly lots of info about that on here.

 

I would say that, if you drink wine exclusively and don't mind carrying a bottle around then you are better off with the wine package if you will get through less than a couple of bottles a day.

[Delbankin]

I will try to post a link to the package and prices but not too savvy so might not work out.

 

We paid $146 (+15%) for 6 bottles on Aficionado package (mid range) and Connoisseur was $162 + 15% for 6 bottles which gave you a further 4 or 5 additional wines to choose from. We found the Aficionado to contain a reasonable selection.

 

Link if it works out is http://boards.cruisecritic.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=251426&d=1352642009

[drsb]

Thanks for the link, but my version of word does not open docx. could you save as an older version of word for us old timers? ;)

[Demonyte]

When do you get this information for pre-purchase?

What was the booze package?

Thanks for the information.:)

 

Booze package is called UBP (Ultimate Beverage Program, if I remember correctly) - there are a ton of threads about it so just search for UBP and find all the info you need. :)

[Delbankin]

Thanks for the link, but my version of word does not open docx. could you save as an older version of word for us old timers? ;)

 

Sorry, don't know how to convert using an I-pad. Hopefully someone else can help.

[saffy22]

Oh I didn't realise the package had changed. Our last 2 NCL cruise we could choose any 6 bottles and got a 20% discount. Is that no longer the case?

Cheers

Saffy

[saffy22]

Hmmm just checked the link ( on my iPad) and the Australian wines listed are pretty low end. So I presume the others are too :mad:

[Delbankin]

There are many mentions of wine packages and 20 or 25% discount but as far as I could work out the package price is fixed and the level of discount worked out based on the value of bottles selected.

 

If you selected the cheapest wines in the package the discount would be minimal but being a true Scot I went to the trouble of finding out the on board prices of each wine, which can be achieved with a bit of effort, and then made sure I selected the more expensive wines in the package. The level of discount was then maximised.

 

Unfortunately I left my priced up list on the ship therefore can't begin to advise on best value options. There didn't seem to be any restrictions on how many expensive bottles you could select and also nothing to prevent you choosing 2 or 3 bottles of the same wine within the package.

[KeithJenner]

Oh I didn't realise the package had changed. Our last 2 NCL cruise we could choose any 6 bottles and got a 20% discount. Is that no longer the case?

Cheers

Saffy

 

Yes, it's changed to this new package, which usually ends up with considerably more than a 20% discount. Last time, we got six bottles for about $147 which would have cost something like $215 if bought separately. We saved over 30%.

[KeithJenner]

Hmmm just checked the link ( on my iPad) and the Australian wines listed are pretty low end. So I presume the others are too :mad:

 

I'm no connoisseur, but I also don't like real cheap slop. I've found all the bottles I've had recently to be very drinkable, but they are certainly not high end bottles that are included in the package, especially at the lower tiers.

 

If you want to buy really decent wine on a ship then it's going to be pricy. There is a full wine list that includes better wines, but they are at quite a mark up. I always buy a couple of bottles that I particularly like and carry them onboard. Even after paying the corkage they work out a lot cheaper than buying it on board if indeed that actually have the wine I want. That way I have a couple of bottles for if we eat at speciality restaurants for example and the rest for other times.

[saffy22]

Well I need to investigate the wines I am not familiar with then! I was already planning my package. Anyone else find it interesting the Conneseiur package is all CA wines?

Saffy

[KeithJenner]

Here is the full wine list, which gives individual prices for the wines in the package, as well as the others available.

 

As an example, my wine of choice is a Rioja. There are only two on the list and I would try to avoid the cheapest, so it's $48 a bottle on the ship. Recently I bought a couple of bottles at the port for €10 each and paid the $15 corkage. I had the wine I wanted for about half the price that I would have paid on the ship.

 

I also get the mid level wine package as it only costs about $2.50 per bottle more but the wines included seem to average more than that extra and I avoid getting the cheapest wines.

 

Edit: forgot the link.

 

http://www.ncl.co.uk/downloads/wine-list_fleetwide_03052012.pdf

[saffy22]

Thanks heaps for that, some old NCL favourites , and several new ones. Sad for some that have disappeared. Being a parochial South Australian I was excited to order a D'arenberg (small family winemaker) previously . Now all replaced by multinational owned brands. Way of the world I suppose. Sure I will find a decent drop anyway.

Cheers

Saffy

[ROSSCOT]

There are many mentions of wine packages and 20 or 25% discount but as far as I could work out the package price is fixed and the level of discount worked out based on the value of bottles selected.

 

If you selected the cheapest wines in the package the discount would be minimal but being a true Scot I went to the trouble of finding out the on board prices of each wine, which can be achieved with a bit of effort, and then made sure I selected the more expensive wines in the package. The level of discount was then maximised.

 

Unfortunately I left my priced up list on the ship therefore can't begin to advise on best value options. There didn't seem to be any restrictions on how many expensive bottles you could select and also nothing to prevent you choosing 2 or 3 bottles of the same wine within the package.

 

Thank for Info Can you buy the six bottle wine package at any time during the cruise i.e. six bottles 1st day and six bottles say fourth day, six bottles eighth day ( as I understand you can order a bottle at any of the bars, drink some, and have the remainder next day ) or do you have to purchase all the wine you want for the trip say 20 bottles on the first day.

[Delbankin]

Not sure about the latest question and indeed if you are limited to how many packages you can buy per cabin during the cruise. Hopefully someone can help.

[asda]

Hi. As anyone else had experience of buying the wine package were you have to choose all the wines at once . ( we're they sign the slips of paper with each wine) or can you choose each night?