Bringing wine on board

[floridalover5623]

Many people have posted here that they were asked to stop at

the table, but they simply walked by to avoid paying.

 

Cause. Effect.

 

We're usually the first to board & I don't think they'll have their table set up that early in the day. We might be able to get by without checking our wine. ;)

[Astro Flyer]

We have found that, of the cruise carriers we have used, Princess has been the most considerate in allowing us to purchase a local wine in port without applying a corkage fee. Like you, we know what the rules are and adhere to them. It becomes important to us that we try a regional wine when visiting a wine producing area whether there is corkage or not. The policy and it's rationale are reasonable.

I feel the same way about the Princess wine policy & I think it's better than many other cruise lines even since it became more restrictive several years ago.

 

Their written policy does not address bringing wine from ports of call & someone asked Princess about it on Facebook. Basically they understood that passengers enjoy bringing wine onboard from great wine regions around the world. They said that was okay & it would be subject to the $15/bottle fee or if wanting to take it home they could store it for us.

 

I have often carried wine on the ship from ports without attempting to hide it & have never been assessed the fee and the only comment by a screener was "nice bottle of wine". I'm always prepared to pay the fee to enjoy great wines not available on the ship & not readily available at home and if so they're much more expensive. We drink most of our wine in a dining room & the $15 fee is added there so either way we pay the fee. It's nice to not pay the fee to drink wine in our cabin which gives us more money to spend on other things during our cruise. :)

Edited February 4, 2016 by Astro Flyer

[Stereobum]

I feel the same way about the Princess wine policy & I think it's better than many other cruise lines even since it became more restrictive several years ago.

 

Their written policy does not address bringing wine from ports of call & someone asked Princess about it on Facebook. Basically they understood that passengers enjoy bringing wine onboard from great wine regions around the world. They said that was okay & it would be subject to the $15/bottle fee or if wanting to take it home they could store it for us.

 

I have often carried wine on the ship from ports without attempting to hide it & have never been assessed the fee and the only comment by a screener was "nice bottle of wine". I'm always prepared to pay the fee to enjoy great wines not available on the ship & not readily available at home and if so they're much more expensive. We drink most of our wine in a dining room & the $15 fee is added there so either way we pay the fee. It's nice to not pay the fee to drink wine in our cabin which gives us more money to spend on other things during our cruise. :)

 

First post, so please be kind! Just want to clarify this.

 

If we bring on 2 bottles each, we can consume the non-corkage two in our cabin for free. We will then be charged the $15 dollars corkage at embarkation for the subsequent 2 and these can be brought to the dining room? Are they marked somehow so waiters know we have already paid corkage? I presume the MDR can't charge a further $15? Would like to know where we stand as first time sailing with Princess (Royal 6th Aug 16)

 

We did this last summer on NCL Epic whilst in Cannes. Picked up some lovely wine really cheap and then paid $13 corkage on each bottle when we returned to board and brought to the dining room with us each night, saved an absolute fortune!:)

[paul929207]

First post, so please be kind! Just want to clarify this.

 

If we bring on 2 bottles each, we can consume the non-corkage two in our cabin for free. We will then be charged the $15 dollars corkage at embarkation for the subsequent 2 and these can be brought to the dining room? Are they marked somehow so waiters know we have already paid corkage? I presume the MDR can't charge a further $15? Would like to know where we stand as first time sailing with Princess (Royal 6th Aug 16)

 

We did this last summer on NCL Epic whilst in Cannes. Picked up some lovely wine really cheap and then paid $13 corkage on each bottle when we returned to board and brought to the dining room with us each night, saved an absolute fortune!:)

Yes, they will mark the bottles on which you pay corkage at the gangway. Then when you bring it to the MDR you are not charged a second time on those bottles.

[Stereobum]

Yes, they will mark the bottles on which you pay corkage at the gangway. Then when you bring it to the MDR you are not charged a second time on those bottles.

 

Thanks Paul

As I thought but just wanted to double check:)

 

I presume likewise there would be no issue bringing one of these bottles (corkage paid) with us to watch 'movies under the stars'?

[Astro Flyer]

First post, so please be kind! Just want to clarify this.

If we bring on 2 bottles each, we can consume the non-corkage two in our cabin for free. We will then be charged the $15 dollars corkage at embarkation for the subsequent 2 and these can be brought to the dining room? Are they marked somehow so waiters know we have already paid corkage? I presume the MDR can't charge a further $15? Would like to know where we stand as first time sailing with Princess (Royal 6th Aug 16)

 

We did this last summer on NCL Epic whilst in Cannes. Picked up some lovely wine really cheap and then paid $13 corkage on each bottle when we returned to board and brought to the dining room with us each night, saved an absolute fortune!:)

Yes, they will mark the bottles on which you pay corkage at the gangway. Then when you bring it to the MDR you are not charged a second time on those bottles.

 

Thanks Paul

As I thought but just wanted to double check:)

 

I presume likewise there would be no issue bringing one of these bottles (corkage paid) with us to watch 'movies under the stars'?

Welcome to Cruise Critic & never hesitate to ask any questions.

 

Paul answered your original question & based on the Princess policy you can drink wine or champagne anywhere onboard that has been assessed a corkage fee.

 

"Additional wine or champagne bottles are welcome, but will incur a $15 corkage fee each, irrespective of where they are intended to be consumed".

 

http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/onboard/experience.jsp

 

Wine that you take to any dining room & pay $15 corkage can be stored there for another day if you have any remaining in the bottle. If you purchase any wine or are gifted wine, that already has the corkage fee included & there is no additional charge to enjoy it in the dining room.

 

If you might be interested, Princess has wine packages available for longer cruises which have a good discount off the regular Princess prices.

Edited May 1, 2016 by Astro Flyer

[Texas Aggie Mom 1518]

Are the in-room refrigerators large enough to use for chilling a bottle of wine?

[paul929207]

Are the in-room refrigerators large enough to use for chilling a bottle of wine?

Yes.

[TULIP9]

What about wine boxes brought on board, bearing in mind that most of them are 3 litres or 2.25 litres. How are these monitored and charged? Sadly there does not seem to be smaller cartons available at 0.75 or 1.0 litres,as cartons are much easier to accomodate and relatively light and compact to include in any luggage

[GUT2407]

You can bring as many bottles as you want; you will just have to pay a $15 corkage fee for the 2nd and subsequent bottles.

 

And that they are pretty strict on

[GUT2407]

What about wine boxes brought on board, bearing in mind that most of them are 3 litres or 2.25 litres. How are these monitored and charged? Sadly there does not seem to be smaller cartons available at 0.75 or 1.0 litres,as cartons are much easier to accomodate and relatively light and compact to include in any luggage

 

I'm told not permitted.

[easyboy]

What about wine boxes brought on board, bearing in mind that most of them are 3 litres or 2.25 litres. How are these monitored and charged? Sadly there does not seem to be smaller cartons available at 0.75 or 1.0 litres,as cartons are much easier to accomodate and relatively light and compact to include in any luggage

Quoted from the Passage contract:

"Guests agree not to bring alcoholic beverages of any kind on board for consumption except one bottle of wine or champagne per person of drinking age (no larger than 750 ml) per voyage only in his/her carry-on luggage. A corkage fee of $15.00 U.S.D. per bottle (which is subject to change without notice) will be applied to wine and champagne brought aboard by You and consumed in the ship's public areas. Any wine(s) or champagne(s) supplied by the Carrier to You as a gift are not subject to a corkage fee. At embarkation, all luggage is subject to scanning and any contraband, including alcohol in excess of the allowed amount, will be removed and discarded. You may be required to attend an inspection if your luggage is locked."

[Lucky TGO]

We always take 2 bottles for are friends there is no change.

Tony

[RMM34667]

Not really. To many, it may not be worth it to obtain and bring wine on board, considering you need to buy it at embarkation port if flying in (unless risk packing in checked luggage, if you have that).

 

See my attached spreadsheet - there are only a couple of bottles that are likely going to be cheaper to buy on board (don't forget there is 15% service charge). To each their own, but the facts are that you can do MUCH better value-wise and improve quality for same price point if you can bring your own wine on board.

 

(On our last cruise, for various reasons, it just wasn't possible/convenient to obtain wine prior to sailing. I used my spreadsheet to make selections with a decent value/quality proposition so I did not grossly overpay. Still, I wish I had my own selections as Princess has dumbed down the list overall in recent years).

 

Thanks. Using the 40% discount before gratuity I would save about 70 cents bringing the Rex-Goliath on board. I think I will pay that for the convenience of not carrying on board.

I will report back on the availability of Ice Wine. Sailing in 6 days.

[RMM34667]

Thanks. Using the 40% discount before gratuity I would save about 70 cents bringing the Rex-Goliath on board. I think I will pay that for the convenience of not carrying on board.

I will report back on the availability of Ice Wine. Sailing in 6 days.

 

 

Oh sorry I am already in vacation mode. This is what happened to my post. Wrong thread.