Beverage package or dining package?

[minerva78]

I've never sailed on NCL but I'm looking at a cruise for December of next year because the dates we want to go are so much cheaper, I'm assuming because we'd be taking our 2 girls and the 3rd and 4th guests are free during this promotion. We're looking at going on the Getaway that goes to Costa Maya, Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel.

 

With the current promotion, we're basically looking at whether to choose the dining package or drinks package. I told my husband that if it were just us, I would choose the drinks package, hands down. But with our girls going with us too and 4 port days, I just don't know if it will be worth it. I'm leaning towards the dining package because I think it would be nice to eat in a specialty restaurant every night! But I have a feeling DH is leaning to the drinks package, because of course the idea of unlimited drinks is nice. Again, with us traveling with our kids, I can't get too wasted, lol.

 

So I'm curious if you were in my situation, which one would you choose? Sorry if this question has been asked a million times. I've never frequented this board and I want to make a decision by tomorrow so we can book it.

[Guindalf]

Go with the UBP - no question. The kids will get the soda package and you and hubby can enjoy as many adult beverages as you want - even soda and virgin fru-fru drinks.

 

Just compare the cost to see the value. The UBP is about $850 for two, plus two soda packages at, say $100, equals around $950. Four UDPs comes out to $480.

 

Even non-drinkers will benefit from the UBP. Just pay for a specialty restaurant when you want it.

[minerva78]

Go with the UBP - no question. The kids will get the soda package and you and hubby can enjoy as many adult beverages as you want - even soda and virgin fru-fru drinks.

 

Just compare the cost to see the value. The UBP is about $850 for two, plus two soda packages at, say $100, equals around $950. Four UDPs comes out to $480.

 

Even non-drinkers will benefit from the UBP. Just pay for a specialty restaurant when you want it.

 

Just to clarify, are you saying that I could purchase an unlimited dining package as well? Are any of the restaurants excluded from the package? I know for the promotion some are.

[aggiemom12]

That's a tough one....keep in mind with the drink package the 3rd and 4th guests receive the soda package, is that something your kids would enjoy? Our kids are grown now but if we would have had that option when they were younger, we would have gone with the dining package hands down. Hubby doesn't drink at all, the only type of carbonated beverage he likes is Dr. Pepper, he's a lemonade and tea type :confused:

[abbyar]

I don't think the math is that straight forward. A dining plan for our cruise will be $134 pp. not sure if I'll be able to drink that much on my own, especially if we bring some on board.

[seguetocaribe]

Just to clarify, are you saying that I could purchase an unlimited dining package as well? Are any of the restaurants excluded from the package? I know for the promotion some are.

 

yes, you can purchase the unlimited dining plan for $119 for the week per person. Ocean Blue is not included and neither are the a la carte restaurants (Shanghai's, the sushi place, ocean blue raw bar), however, you do get 20% off at Ocean Blue and all of the a la carte places if you get the unlimited dining plan.

[minerva78]

yes, you can purchase the unlimited dining plan for $119 for the week per person. Ocean Blue is not included and neither are the a la carte restaurants (Shanghai's, the sushi place, ocean blue raw bar), however, you do get 20% off at Ocean Blue and all of the a la carte places if you get the unlimited dining plan.

 

Thank you for the clarification. Is the $119 per person also the price for kids? We would have 2 adults and 2 kids in our room.

[titangas]

If you drink the math is clear.

If you do not, not so much.

 

My wife and I do not really drink alcohol at home.

We will on occasion enjoy a bottle of wine, but are pretty picky and do not enjoy most that are sold by the glass.

 

One of my children does not drink any soda at all, only non-carbonated drinks such as ice tea, lemonade or punch which can be obtained gratis.

 

Over the course of an entire week long cruise my wife and I might order 10 drinks at the absolute max, and 1 child would never order a single soda.

 

There is no way that if we would cruise as a family that we would get a better value at of the UBP over the UDP. Because if we had the UDP we would eat in a specialty every night.

Edited March 4, 2015 by titangas

[minerva78]

Hmm, I was reading some about the ultimate dining package on the NCL website, and it said that you don't have to purchase it for every person in the room, is that true? If that is the case, I might get the UBP through the promotion, purchase the UDP for just DH and I, and then use OBC to purchase the meals for my girls who wouldn't be on the UDP. I haven't talked to my TA yet, but I always get the best OBC through her compared to other companies, so I've seen one agency with $175 OBC, I bet I could get around $200 with my TA. That would be perfect and be the most cost effective for us, I think. DH and I definitely drink, so maybe it would be better to do this, since it would cost more to get the UDP through the promotion and pay for the UBP for the two of us. It really would be nice not to worry about the cost of drinks! At least the specialty restaurants would be a more predictable cost.

Edited March 4, 2015 by minerva78

[punkincc]

Thank you for the clarification. Is the $119 per person also the price for kids? We would have 2 adults and 2 kids in our room.

 

Never sailed with kids, not sure what the UDP price is for them if you were buying the package. You might not even need to buy one for them depending on their ages. I believe there is a free kids menu or they can eat 1/2 price off the regular menu up to a certain age.

 

I would try to estimate what you and the DH would drink if you were on a per drink basis. Usually about 10 drinks or so a day is what is needed in order for the the package to pay off. If the cost of buying 4 dining packages exceeds what you would spend on drinks, then your best savings would be to go with the UDP promo ( it is good for all 4 of you ) and just buy drinks as you go.

Edited March 4, 2015 by punkincc

[Jasalth]

I had to make this same type of decision but with only 3 port days since it is to Bermuda.

 

In the end I decided to go with the UBP instead of dining. I have never been a big drinker, but there have always been things I wanted to try but never did because I didn't want to spend the money. My husband really doesn't drink at all ever, so he will end up using the soda part of it more but who knows since it is already paid for he might try something.

 

In the end I figured I would either get the UDP on our own because it was cheaper in general because we only really need it for 3 instead of 4. My oldest DS is 90% vegetarian (he still eats burgers sometimes and the occasional chicken but that is very rarely) and it would be a waste for him. All our past cruises he has gone off with friends he met and ate on his own anyways.

 

I think the best way to look at it is will your DD's eat the food in the specialties? If so that might be the best way to go about it if you don't plan on drinking much. Also remember if they are younger and would be eating off a kids menu, they are 1/2 price which can save out of pocket money.

 

Another benefit to having the dining package on a port intensive cruise is you get to make all your reservations ahead of time at no charge. This way instead of having to worry about when you will get a table or if there is a wait, you can just book based on your port times. If you really want UDP instead of UBP I would go with that as a selling point to your DH :)

[AngAndBoys]

It is hard to decide. The UBP has more value, but nothing has any value at all if you can't use it for it's intended purpose. I guess you should think about how much you spent on alcohol on your last cruise with kids and how that compares with the price of UDP? Maybe that formula would give you your answer.

 

You'd have to consider if your kids would eat specialty every night as well or if they would only want it once or twice. Mine would, but some kids are picky eaters, rather be in kid club so want quick buffet etc. You would also need to plan out all your dining and reserve in advance to make sure you got to go all the places you wanted to go on the UDP. Kind of kills the whole freestyle concept.

[drbev]

We chose the beverage plan. From past cruises, I found that it was often difficult to get a reservation for the day and time wanted. For example, you might like dinner at 7 but first available is 930. Reservations need to be made asap on day one.

[aquarianne11]

Hmm, I was reading some about the ultimate dining package on the NCL website, and it said that you don't have to purchase it for every person in the room, is that true? If that is the case, I might get the UBP through the promotion, purchase the UDP for just DH and I, and then use OBC to purchase the meals for my girls who wouldn't be on the UDP. I haven't talked to my TA yet, but I always get the best OBC through her compared to other companies, so I've seen one agency with $175 OBC, I bet I could get around $200 with my TA. That would be perfect and be the most cost effective for us, I think. DH and I definitely drink, so maybe it would be better to do this, since it would cost more to get the UDP through the promotion and pay for the UBP for the two of us. It really would be nice not to worry about the cost of drinks! At least the specialty restaurants would be a more predictable cost.

 

Yes you can do that. The value of UBP is higher in terms of $$$. You can easily buy UDP for 2 passengers.

 

The kids can eat at the specialty restaurants for half price. FREE if they order from the regular kids menu. You did not mention how old they are, but I know that my 7 year old would definitely prefer mac & cheese and pizza over escargot and lobster. :)

[seguetocaribe]

Thank you for the clarification. Is the $119 per person also the price for kids? We would have 2 adults and 2 kids in our room.

 

No, not same price for kids. We purchased the UDP for myself and my husband. We made all of our reservations at the specialty restaurants ahead of time and made the res for 4 people for each night (once someone in your party has UDP, they can make a res for the number of people you want without paying for all ahead of time). My kids may not want to join us every night so the nights that they want to come, we will pay for them. The kids cost 1/2 price if they eat from the specialty menus. If they eat from the 'kids' menu, they are free.

When I say they are 1/2 price, I don't mean 1/2 of the $119. They are 1/2 of whatever the cost is per person depending on the cost of each restaurant.

Edited March 4, 2015 by seguetocaribe

[Fishymom]

Can kids order virgin daiquiri's with the pop card?

[minerva78]

Yes you can do that. The value of UBP is higher in terms of $$$. You can easily buy UDP for 2 passengers.

 

The kids can eat at the specialty restaurants for half price. FREE if they order from the regular kids menu. You did not mention how old they are, but I know that my 7 year old would definitely prefer mac & cheese and pizza over escargot and lobster. :)

 

Yeah, my girls would be 7 and 9 when we go, so I'm thinking they will be ordering off of the kids menu. They may be willing to try more things by then, but unless something drastically changes in the next year and a half, I think they may be eating off of the kids menu no matter where we dine.

[newmexicoNita]

I don't think the math is that straight forward. A dining plan for our cruise will be $134 pp. not sure if I'll be able to drink that much on my own, especially if we bring some on board.

 

This is something we are weighing right now. You say, especially if you bring some on board: You can't bring booze on board and wine, though allowed is a $15 corkage fee. Depending on how much one drinks, It looks to me like choosing the UBP is the best deal. We are not heavy drinkers, still when you figure about $7.00 or more per drink and a glass of wine at the same price; 2 or 3 glasses of wine in the evening alone, would cost $20 a person; add a couple of drinks throughout the day. Of course if you are not drinkers that is a totally different story. If your referance to bringin alcohol on meant smuggling it: well I won't talk about how I feel about that: it has been discussed here many times.

Edited March 4, 2015 by newmexicoNita

[sixesandeights]

Can kids order virgin daiquiri's with the pop card?

 

No. Is a SODA card. Daiquiri's with or without alcohol are not soda.

 

6&8

[sixesandeights]

So I'm curious if you were in my situation, which one would you choose? Sorry if this question has been asked a million times. I've never frequented this board and I want to make a decision by tomorrow so we can book it.

 

I am in a similar situation and it was a no brainer. UBP for free. We simply bought the UDP for my wife and I and now we are "all inclusive." Drinks are expensive and it takes VERY VERY little to be ahead with this package. When you figure a single beer is now going to be $7 after the price increase, mixed drink around $8-9, and frozen drinks a martinis around $10-11 its easy to see how quickly even VERY VERY moderate drinking will surpass the value of the UDP. Your kids will also get soda cards, and at $3 a pop those can add up. In the specialties your kids can eat free off the kids menu or half price off the special menu.

 

I think its an easy choice for UBP even for very light drinkers.

 

6&8

[minerva78]

Thanks for the information everyone.

 

I talked to my TA and we are officially booked on a 7 day Western Caribbean itinerary on the Getaway for December 11 of next year! I am so excited because I've never sailed NCL before, and I've been wanting to try another line. I really wanted to try Royal, but those prices are just way out of my league. So this promotion was perfect for us, it's going to all the places I wanted to take my kids (Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya, and Cozumel) and with the 3rd and 4th guest free, the price of this cruise was just unbelievable, especially for one of the newest ships.

 

So we decided to do the free UBP - the TA agreed that was definitely the best value. At some point we'll decide if we want to pay for the UDP for my husband and I or just pay as we go at some specialty restaurants. I've got plenty of time to decide, lol.

[Fishymom]

We just switched from UDP to UBP.

 

Plenty of free food... but not many free drinks...:D

[minerva78]

We just switched from UDP to UBP.

 

Plenty of free food... but not many free drinks...:D

 

Very good point! :)

[Ship2shoreCO]

When we booked, the agent at NCL that we spoke with advised us to go for the UBP. He said that unless you are a foodie, you're better off with the UBP and then paying the up charge to eat at the specialty restaurants only on the days when you really want to.

[abbyar]

We also switched to UBP. With a 5 & 7 yo who we'll probably leave at the club for most dinners, it makes much more sense to use the UBP for everyone and purchase only the UDP for dh and I OOP. Total was $268 - $134 pp. I know we'll drink $268 worth of freebies.