Drink Package-how did you like it?

[gordiej]

That's only taking into consideration alcohol though. throw 2-3 bottled water/coffee/sodas a day in there and you can get to $55 pretty easily even with only a few alcoholic drinks. Plenty of "average" people can get their money's worth without much effort on a standard Caribbean cruise.

 

And if one of your port days is Labadee or Coco Cay where you can use the package it's even easier.

I'd just add here that there were often annoying lines at Cafe Promenade to get the specialty coffee. I think it was one of the few places one could get an iced latte (we had success in the Park Cafe, but not at the Doughnut shop). And most of the fountain soda wasn't that good - the mix always tasted off. Probably intentionally (I never used the freestyle machines because I couldn't bother to carry around the cup). And on Labadee the sodas were warm and/or flat (warm bottles poured over ice). So just because you *can* make it pay off, doesn't mean that's the best option. I'd probably have preferred to just drink iced tea and have an occasional CAN of soda when I felt like it. (And FWIW, we all thought the regular brewed coffee was pretty decent).

 

Also, the "convenience" argument I referred to upthread was bogus. They make you sign a slip for every drink except fountain sodas. This was definitely not the case on Celebrity a few months ago! I presume it's because they're fishing for tips. (FWIW, we experienced a WIDE range of service from the drink staff on board and it never seemed to have anything to do with whether we tipped or not.) A real annoyance to have to get the check and sign all the time.

 

And I think I've mentioned it here (or in another thread) - if you like red wine, then the alcohol package isn't a great idea. Unless you like your red wine slightly above normal room temperature. At least when you buy a bottle and it's served at room temperature (as it is on cruise lines), you can put it on ice for 10 minutes to get it to proper serving temp. Not so with wine by the glass. Would be a total waste.

 

I still think on a 7-day cruise it's not great value for most. I can certainly drink like a fish too, but I don't usually want to that many days in a row. And there are a lot more interesting wines sold only by the bottle.

 

As for the comment about them making money on the package - of course they do. Even if you consume $80 worth of drinks a day, they make money because it probably only costs them $40 and you paid $65.

[fraternal]

I have not read the complete thread,but is there a list somewhere of exactly what drinks are included in premium pkg? Does it include maragritas, long island ice teas, crown royal? We are debating whether to get it or not for our Oct cruise on the Allure.

[Beachammo]

I have not read the complete thread,but is there a list somewhere of exactly what drinks are included in premium pkg? Does it include maragritas, long island ice teas, crown royal? We are debating whether to get it or not for our Oct cruise on the Allure.

 

It includes every drink $12 and below. Crown Royal is included, as that's what I drink most of the time. I also got Margaritas with Patron when on the pool deck.

 

SA

[1 Buffett Fan]

I have not read the complete thread,but is there a list somewhere of exactly what drinks are included in premium pkg? Does it include maragritas, long island ice teas, crown royal? We are debating whether to get it or not for our Oct cruise on the Allure.

 

Fraternal, it definitely includes the three drinks you mentioned. I don't recall ordering anything over $12, which as previous posters have mentioned is the guideline or limit for this package. There were several times when we ordered frozen rum drinks and were able to ask for and receive an extra shot (rum floater) in the drink without question. Of course tipping a bit extra helps.

[CP3o]

I'd just add here that there were often annoying lines at Cafe Promenade to get the specialty coffee.

 

Long lines for drinks will penalize both purchasers of the package and those that don't. RCCL will normally want to staff well b/c those that would have purchased coffee or poolside drinks, may change their minds b/c of a line/wait. The incentive would be to manage staffing so don't lose sales and profit; make it easy for pax to spend money.

 

With more pax on packages, staffing more to serve them increases their labor and ingrediant (coffee, beer, wine, rum,etc) costs so maybe RCCL will be less bothered by solving wait times, at least until it causes fustratin and fewer buy the packages. Convenience is a huge part of getting a package so if there are long annoying lines, it won't work increase profits or customer satisfaction in the long run.

[Gammaw]

Sounds like your experience is with the soda package. For the soda package you're right they do add 15% gratuity to the cost quoted and also if you pre-order you might get the coke imprint on your sea pass card and avoid the sticker. However for the Premium Drink package (& the Ultimate, Select & Replenish), the price quoted per day includes the gratuity (can't answer why they are different from the soda package :rolleyes:) and you will wind up with a sticker on your card even if you pre-order.

 

And not everyone in the cabin has to buy a package and those that do, do not have to buy the same one.

 

 

Ok, now I am really confused. I have seen that everyone in the cabin has to purchase a package, and I've seen others that says not everyone does. With that being said, my son and I are sailing on FOS for the very first time on February 22, 2015. I am getting the best drink package that is offered, (I can't for the life of me remember the name of it LOLOL), and my son is getting the drink package that allows him to have the premium coffees from Starbucks as he adores their coffee.

 

My question is; my son rarely drinks alcohol, but I would love to order a bottle of champagne or a nice bottle of wine for our first night at dinner to kind of celebrate a new experience with RCCI. Would I be able to order the wine/champagne and (2) glasses? Or would that be considered "Sharing"?

 

Please help me to understand how the drink packages really work.

 

Thanks for your help in advance :)

[Clarea]

Ok, now I am really confused. I have seen that everyone in the cabin has to purchase a package, and I've seen others that says not everyone does. With that being said, my son and I are sailing on FOS for the very first time on February 22, 2015. I am getting the best drink package that is offered, (I can't for the life of me remember the name of it LOLOL), and my son is getting the drink package that allows him to have the premium coffees from Starbucks as he adores their coffee.

 

My question is; my son rarely drinks alcohol, but I would love to order a bottle of champagne or a nice bottle of wine for our first night at dinner to kind of celebrate a new experience with RCCI. Would I be able to order the wine/champagne and (2) glasses? Or would that be considered "Sharing"?

 

Please help me to understand how the drink packages really work.

 

Thanks for your help in advance :)

When Royal first introduced the drink packages, they required everyone in the stateroom to purchase a package. Late last year they changed the policy, and no longer require all guests in a stateroom to buy the package. That's why there is confusion, because the rule changed, and you can still find old FAQs on the web that quote the old rule.

 

Any bottle of wine or champagne you purchase can be shared with anyone, because that purchase (other than the 20% discount) is not part of any unlimited drink package.

Edited July 16, 2014 by clarea

[Desert Cruizers]

My husband bought the $40/day package and it saved in the long run. He drinks nothing but beer and during Cruise #1, he payed per bottle and in 5 days had a $303 beer bill with 8 more days of cruising. Cruise # 2 & 3 he went with the package and it saved us.

[mds556]

I found this thread after I had emailed RC asking about their drink packages. While I was waiting (couple days) for their response, I read through everyone's posts. Lots of good information! Well RC emailed me back, so I am posting what they wrote....

 

"We appreciate the opportunity to respond to your inquiry about our Premium Beverage package. Kindly be advised that typically all brands of liquor are included in the beverage packages; however, it is up to the discretion of the bar. Please inquire with your server or bartender at the time you order your drinks if you are uncertain.

 

Additionally, the gratuities for beverages do not factor into the price of the beverage for the package as the package covers all beverage gratuities. Thus, if you are allowed a drink up to $10, then an $8 drink would be covered, regardless of what the gratuity would normally be."

 

I'm not sure if they answered my questions or not. But I will just ask before I order my drinks. Each time, I guess, since each bar may be different.

[papcx]

I'm not sure if they answered my questions or not.

 

 

They didn't :D

[Clarea]

...I'm not sure if they answered my questions or not. But I will just ask before I order my drinks. Each time, I guess, since each bar may be different.

Very good idea.:)

[nclsuncruiser]

Thanks, Aerobaldness for your response from gordiej about Perspective Dear as that was in response to one of my post.

 

Not sure where they were going with that, but really do we need people telling us what the government agencies THINK what is best for ourselves?

 

agreed. and others telling us we need the AA.

 

Maybe they don't understand the thread title.

[NightOne]

 

What we discovered on board was that the King & Country pub offers a bucket of 5 good beers for $20 and my husband got this every sailing day.

 

Since everyone's definition of good varies could you elaborate on specifically which ones you got in the bucket? (i.e. which ones do you consider the good ones?)

 

Thanks

[John&LaLa]

Since everyone's definition of good varies could you elaborate on specifically which ones you got in the bucket? (i.e. which ones do you consider the good ones?)

 

Thanks

 

Cold = Good

 

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[Gammaw]

When Royal first introduced the drink packages, they required everyone in the stateroom to purchase a package. Late last year they changed the policy, and no longer require all guests in a stateroom to buy the package. That's why there is confusion, because the rule changed, and you can still find old FAQs on the web that quote the old rule.

 

Any bottle of wine or champagne you purchase can be shared with anyone, because that purchase (other than the 20% discount) is not part of any unlimited drink package.

 

 

Thanks Clarea for the info!! I guess I will just get my wine / champagne a glass at a time. :)

[JohnSnowGOT]

We really enjoyed the drink package on our last two Allure cruises. But honestly I felt certain bar staff did not like the package.....some acted indifferent or even rude, and we tipped too!

Would do it again in minute esp on the bigger ships.

I guess I am one of the weird ones who does pay, perhaps extra,........not to have a bar bill at the end of the cruise. I am happy to pay for that and don't count drinks or worry about getting my monies worth. I enjoy the convenience of not worrying about $$$ while on the ship.. I pay up front and get over it.

 

I must say that we had the premium drink package on Celebrity 2 months ago and OMG! So much better!

[jules815]

This may have been addressed here already, but I thought I read somewhere that Margarita's made with Patron weren't included? If it's because they're more than the $10 allowed for mixed drinks, are we able to just pay the difference?

 

Another thing that confuses me a little bit about the Premium package, is there are certain beers on the menu that aren't included in the package, period. For instance, if you wanted an IPA (I forget the brand), or a Foster's, it's not included in the package. It has nothing to do with the price; they're not included. Granted there's a wide variety of beers to choose from that are included, but the two my husband would order most, happen to be the ones with an asterisk next to them. Go figure. We still have ordered the Ultimate Package for both weeks of our upcoming cruise.

[train460]

It actually costs more than $55 because they add their tip to it automically. I don't drink alcohol but I do buy my son the "soda package". It's too late to buy it now (you don't buy anything on line within 7 days of sailing) but it is better to buy it ahead of time because then the coke imprint is on your sea pass. When you purchase it on board you get a sticker on your sea pass card and it can come off. I don't drink so I don't purchase a package but I have heard they have made it a rule if one adult in the room buys a package then all adults have to. That is NOT RIGHT!

I guess i am not understanding this completly then.

according to this..http://media.royalcaribbean.com/content/shared_assets/pdf/menus/beverage_packages.pdf

gratuities are already included in the $55 per day cost per the fine print at the bottom.

so with both wife and I getting this package for 7 days comes to $770.

is this what we will be charged or some other number?

[medic368]

I guess i am not understanding this completly then.

according to this..http://media.royalcaribbean.com/content/shared_assets/pdf/menus/beverage_packages.pdf

gratuities are already included in the $55 per day cost per the fine print at the bottom.

so with both wife and I getting this package for 7 days comes to $770.

is this what we will be charged or some other number?

 

You will pay $55/day, the gratuity is included not added on after the fact. If you spend alot of time in the same place

I highly recomend an extra tip to the waiter innthat area, your service will improve exponetionaly . Also the wait staff and bartenders equally split the total tips accrued by package users on a per pour basis and not a percentage of the sale, so if you recieve excellent service from a particular individual tip them personally.

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[palofmine]

Well, it's 5-6 drinks each day, every day. Which can be harder to do on days when you're in port. And by the end of the cruise you may not want to look at another daiquiri for a while. I think for the average person it's difficult to justify financially, although I understand the whole "convenience" argument.

 

Also, I like to drink nice wines with dinner (say, $60-80 on average, but sometimes more). Sure, I can pay the difference on anything by the glass over the package limit, but there really isn't that much variety of good stuff by the glass. And if it's not served at the right temperature, it's difficult to do anything about it, other than order something different (though I would expect all reds are served at ship temperature). With a bottle, I can put it on ice as desired.

 

So for me, if I want to order some nice bottles of wine at dinner, even with the % discount you get being on the package, I'd still probably come away spending more money (and having ingested more empty calories!) than just going a la carte, and I'd be annoyed about having to drink warm red wines. :)

 

 

i ahve a oj at breakfast, and at least 3-4 frosty beverages through out the day , a soda, several teas, and coffee, a few bottles of water.. i'll more than likely more than even out on my usage.

[momsrule27]

I had read that you can purchase the package as long as there were 4 days left of sailing. Has anyone done that and are you charged just for those 4 days @ $55? The reason I'm asking is I just read a review of someone who was on the RCI cruise out of Galveston (forgot the name of ship) and he was told it was a package price so he would be charged for all 7 days even though he wanted to order it on the 2nd day.

[Clarea]

I had read that you can purchase the package as long as there were 4 days left of sailing. Has anyone done that and are you charged just for those 4 days @ $55? The reason I'm asking is I just read a review of someone who was on the RCI cruise out of Galveston (forgot the name of ship) and he was told it was a package price so he would be charged for all 7 days even though he wanted to order it on the 2nd day.

You only pay for the days you buy. You must buy at least 4 consecutive days, and they must extend to the end of the cruise

[momsrule27]

You only pay for the days you buy. You must buy at least 4 consecutive days, and they must extend to the end of the cruise

 

Great thanks. Since the last 4 days we are only in San Juan till 1:30 followed by Labadee (where package counts) and 2 days at sea coming home I would probably benefit from the package.:)

[lv2bcruzin]

I've never drank enough to constitute buying a drink package and I drink a good amount. It really depends on how busy you are. If all you do is sit around there is plenty time to drink, but we are usually fairly active. Even on Sea Days. The funny thing is I really want to do it just for the ease of it. But every time I do the math (like it's going to change :rolleyes: ) it just doesn't make sense for us. That being said, we are doing a B2B on the Freedom in September which is not port intensive at all, so we'll see how much drinking we can accomplish. :D

Edited July 30, 2014 by lv2bcruzin

[restasured]

Not sure why people say your probably not get to the 5-6 drink daily to break even with port days.

 

Usually back on board in time to enjoy a couple of drinks before dinner, especially Martini's, then a couple with dinner, then at least a couple or more if you go to the shows.

 

Even port days I will have bailey's with my coffee at breakfast.

 

That's about $60-$65 without much effort or over indulging.

 

8 drinks in a 14 hour day IMHO is very doable.

 

May be doable, but I would talk to AA when I got home. Could be a problem with 8 drinks a day for 7 days in a row. :)