New and suprising info. on the new drink packages

[erfarb]

The information on RC website and on several posts here at cc suggest that the drink packages must be purchased for at least 4 days. Meaning if you have a 4 day cruise you would need to pay for all 4 days. If you booked a 7 day cruise you could pay for only 4 days of the 7( maybe buy the first 4 days, or buy the package a few days into the cruise and still only pay for 4 days.)

 

This is not true. I was just told by RC , if you have a 7 day cruise and buy the drink package , you will be charged for all 7 days. If you choose to purchase the drink package on day 3 of a 7 day cruise , you WILL be charged for 7 days. She was adament. She has been recieving calls all day asking for clarification of the rules.

I explained to her that this is not how it is stated on the website. She told me she really hopes there is some type of clarification sent out by RC because many cruisers are under the impression they only need to purchase 4 days, regardless of the length of their cruise.

I hope this is helpful .

[Merion_Mom]

The information on RC website and on several posts here at cc suggest that the drink packages must be purchased for at least 4 days. Meaning if you have a 4 day cruise you would need to pay for all 4 days. If you booked a 7 day cruise you could pay for only 4 days of the 7( maybe buy the first 4 days, or buy the package a few days into the cruise and still only pay for 4 days.)

 

This is not true. I was just told by RC , if you have a 7 day cruise and buy the drink package , you will be charged for all 7 days. If you choose to purchase the drink package on day 3 of a 7 day cruise , you WILL be charged for 7 days. She was adament. She has been recieving calls all day asking for clarification of the rules.

I explained to her that this is not how it is stated on the website. She told me she really hopes there is some type of clarification sent out by RC because many cruisers are under the impression they only need to purchase 4 days, regardless of the length of their cruise.

I hope this is helpful .

 

That adamant person on the phone is the one who is wrong.

 

You can buy it for the whole cruise, as long as your cruise is 4 nights or longer, or you can buy it on any day of your cruise, as long as there are at least 4 days remaining in your cruise, and pay a pro-rated amount.

[icsys]

I do wish that RCI representatives would get proper training, especially on their own Company rules, terms and conditions.

 

Here are the full T's and C's lifted from the Official RCI website:

 

Alcohol Beverage Packages

Terms and Conditions

1. The provision of Alcohol Beverage Packages onboard our ships are subject to change at any time.

2. The packages are currently available to pre-book in advance of sailing* and can also be booked once onboard. Online they should be available by 2

months before sail date. Outside of North America, guests aged 18-20 can purchase the package, but this can only be done once they are onboard.

3. The packages will only be offered on sailings of 4 nights or longer.

4. The packages can be withdrawn at any time. The pricing, contents and rules regarding eligibility and usage are subject to change at any time.

5. Standard gratuities of 15% have been added to the package price.

6. Pricing may also vary due to VAT regulations of the countries a ship may embark/debark at and also when we call within a country’s territorial waters.

7. Royal Caribbean’s Alcohol Policy and Guest Conduct Policy are strictly enforced on all of our ships across the fleet.

8. Only a guest with the package may obtain and consume a drink using the package. Any breach of this condition will be dealt with by the ship and could

result in the use of a package being withdrawn

9. Guest’s may be asked to provide suitable photo ID as well as their stickered SeaPass card when ordering a drink on the package.

10. Soda Fountain items are included within all 3 packages.

11. Items from the stateroom mini-bars or from room service are not included in the package

12. Pricing is available on the website.

13. Charges are per day, per guest, in US dollars. Packages must be purchased for the entire duration of the cruise, or once onboard for the remaining days of the cruise duration up to a minimum of 4 days. No refunds will be issued for unused days.

14. Contents of each package are shown on our website

15. If the item asked for is unavailable, a suitable alternative of at least the equivalent value will be provided

16. Certain items are available or not within each package. Minibar items, room service drinks, milkshakes, protein type smoothies, canned soda/beverages, souvenir glassware, tobacco products, ice cream etc are excluded from the packages.

17. Our bartenders and waiters abide by our company’s ServSafe program, which teaches our staff how to serve alcohol responsibly. Our bartenders and

waiters will watch for over consumption. Even if a guest purchases a beverage package, if over consumption is suspected, bartenders and waiters will take appropriate action and may deny service, or serve water or non-alcoholic drinks instead.

18. All bars, lounges, the Main Dining Room, Windjammer, Speciality Restaurants and our private destinations** (Labadee & Cococay) will supply package drinks.

*Packages available on N.American sailings from 15 Nov 2013. International cruises from mid Dec. Online bookings available from mid Dec 2013.

**During business hours only.

Edited January 17, 2014 by icsys

[funfamilyfun]

That adamant person on the phone is the one who is wrong.

 

You can buy it for the whole cruise, as long as your cruise is 4 nights or longer, or you can buy it on any day of your cruise, as long as there are at least 4 days remaining in your cruise, and pay a pro-rated amount.

 

I hope you are right! We were counting on this for our next cruise.

[Ken at the beach]

It is only if you are buying it on line or through a CVP that you must purchase it for the entire length of the cruise. Once on board you may purchase it for less than the full cruise as stated on their website.

[TravelerThom]

...If you booked a 7 day cruise you could pay for only 4 days of the 7( maybe buy the first 4 days.. .

Packages must be purchased for the entire duration of the cruise, or once onboard for the remaining days of the cruise duration up to a minimum of 4 days.

 

Note that this does not allow "the first 4 days"

[erfarb]

The information you have all provided is greatly appreciated.

 

I am simply stating what I was told by a representative on the phone. She admitted that the information on the RC website is annaccurate. She very clearly stated you must pay for the drink package for the duration of the cruise, regardless of weather you purchase online or on the ship. I have never cruised RC and I am really hoping that I was mis- informed. I beg you to prove this representative wrong, it would make me a very happy woman. I was only going to purchase 4 days of an upcoming cruise, so, needless to say, I was not happy when we ended our call.

[Merion_Mom]

The information you have all provided is greatly appreciated.

 

I am simply stating what I was told by a representative on the phone. She admitted that the information on the RC website is annaccurate. She very clearly stated you must pay for the drink package for the duration of the cruise, regardless of weather you purchase online or on the ship. I have never cruised RC and I am really hoping that I was mis- informed. I beg you to prove this representative wrong, it would make me a very happy woman. I was only going to purchase 4 days of an upcoming cruise, so, needless to say, I was not happy when we ended our call.

 

Ignore her; listen to us.

 

Best advice you will ever receive.

 

:D

[Ken at the beach]

The information you have all provided is greatly appreciated.

 

I am simply stating what I was told by a representative on the phone. She admitted that the information on the RC website is annaccurate. She very clearly stated you must pay for the drink package for the duration of the cruise, regardless of weather you purchase online or on the ship. I have never cruised RC and I am really hoping that I was mis- informed. I beg you to prove this representative wrong, it would make me a very happy woman. I was only going to purchase 4 days of an upcoming cruise, so, needless to say, I was not happy when we ended our call.

 

There have been a few posts here on CC of people that have successfully done this. As MM stated ignore her, listen to us.:)

[erfarb]

There have been a few posts here on CC of people that have successfully done this. As MM stated ignore her, listen to us.:)

 

Will do! Thanks so much, I feel much better.

[uksimonusa]

The information on RC website and on several posts here at cc suggest that the drink packages must be purchased for at least 4 days. Meaning if you have a 4 day cruise you would need to pay for all 4 days. If you booked a 7 day cruise you could pay for only 4 days of the 7( maybe buy the first 4 days, or buy the package a few days into the cruise and still only pay for 4 days.)

 

This is not true. I was just told by RC , if you have a 7 day cruise and buy the drink package , you will be charged for all 7 days. If you choose to purchase the drink package on day 3 of a 7 day cruise , you WILL be charged for 7 days. She was adament. She has been recieving calls all day asking for clarification of the rules.

I explained to her that this is not how it is stated on the website. She told me she really hopes there is some type of clarification sent out by RC because many cruisers are under the impression they only need to purchase 4 days, regardless of the length of their cruise.

I hope this is helpful .

 

Just bear in mind that you cannot purchase for the first 4 days of a 7 day cruise, as mentioned in your original post. When you purchase for less than the cruise length, you must purchase for all remaining days, with a minimum of 4. So if you purchase on day 1 then you must purchase the full 7 days.