Soda Card: Can it be shared

[dad son team]

OK, flame suit on...

 

On my last cruise, I bought the soda card for my son as I will only drink soda with dinner. The first night in the dining room, the assistant took drink orders and my son ordered his soda and I asked for the bar server to order mine. Bar server came and I ordered my Coke and paid my $1.87. Next night, my son's soda was on the table when we arrived. Bar server never showed. I asked the assistant to find him but he never came and the assistant just brought me a Coke for my frustration. Night three found 2 sodas on the table. When I informed the assistant that I did not have a soda card, his response was not to worry and that is was the bar servers fault for ignoring our table. I tried to do the honest thing and was told "not to worry". So, am I bad for accepting the soda? Needless to say, the assistant received an extra tip that week.

 

OK, flame away.

[HurricaneSally]

No you are not bad for drinking the soda, and it was admirable for you to want to purchase the soda. You showed your son the right way to behave in this situation. Congrats to you.

[mikefromny]

No flame here! You purchased the card for your son and pointed out and offered to pay for your own.

 

What you taught your son is that often, not always, when you are honest in a situation people will go out of their way to show their appreciation.

 

I commend you for bringing the situation to the waiter's attention. There is a HUGE difference between stealing and accepting something genuinely offered.

[Brad1185]

It was on RCI, granted it was a two week cruise, but seem there should be some type of discount in the longer cruises.

[jwlane]

Which dictionary defines stealing and sharing as being synonyms?

[Cuizer2]

The OP asked a question. The question is fair and I have no problem with that.

 

That said, the soda cards are sold per person. Just like buffet meals on land. The price of the soda card is not the issue. If you buy it, you are agreeing to the terms it was sold under. If you think the soda cards are too expensive, then don't buy them.

 

Sharing a soda card is like sharing a buffet meal on land. The buffet meals are sold per person, not per family.

 

Also, why limit it to just your family. Why not buy just one soda card and leave it on a hook near the bar. Then when anyone on the ship wants a soda, they just take the card off the hook and get their soda, then return the card to the hook for the next person to use.

 

Simply put, it is your choice to buy the soda card. If you choose to buy it, then you should honor the terms under which you bought it. If it cost $10 per week or $100 per week, it was your choice to buy it. If it is not a good deal for you, then do not buy it. Just don't try to rationalize it by calling it something socially acceptable - like sharing.

 

If someone comes into your house and steals something, then shares that something with someone else, are they are good person for sharing?

[EBFURR]

Wow, this is really a hot button for some people. We buy the cards for the kids. Usually in the dining room after the waiters have seen the cards for the kids, they will bring my wife a coke and say "don't worry about it", as the previous poster said. We are willing to pay, but they refuse to charge us. I drink water, so it is no issue for me. Sometimes the bartenders at our most frequented bars (Pool, Solarium, & Champagne) will recognize us and not charge for cokes since they know we bought 2 cards (they see us with our kids). Again, we will sign the slip if they charge us. We do not scheme and plot to get a few free cokes, they are offered to us. Besides, I do not drink water at these bars, if you know what I mean, so they are definitely making up the profit.

 

I think RCCL staff is not nearly as upset about this issue as some of the CC posters are. We do not steal, nor do we teach our children to do so. On the other hand, if we are offered something for free in the name of good customer service, then we feel no guilt in accepting the favor. I am figuring now that someone will call for the firing of the bartenders who give away the sodas.;)

[ckrobyn]

We bought soda cards for all of us. I didn't want to have to be "sneaky" the whole week on the ship.....besides, how can you share a card when you are in different areas of the ship? I was in the casino every night and my DH wasn't....

[Cuizer2]

Wow, this is really a hot button for some people. We buy the cards for the kids. Usually in the dining room after the waiters have seen the cards for the kids, they will bring my wife a coke and say "don't worry about it", as the previous poster said. We are willing to pay, but they refuse to charge us. I drink water, so it is no issue for me. Sometimes the bartenders at our most frequented bars (Pool, Solarium, & Champagne) will recognize us and not charge for cokes since they know we bought 2 cards (they see us with our kids). Again, we will sign the slip if they charge us. We do not scheme and plot to get a few free cokes, they are offered to us. Besides, I do not drink water at these bars, if you know what I mean, so they are definitely making up the profit.

 

I think RCCL staff is not nearly as upset about this issue as some of the CC posters are. We do not steal, nor do we teach our children to do so. On the other hand, if we are offered something for free in the name of good customer service, then we feel no guilt in accepting the favor. I am figuring now that someone will call for the firing of the bartenders who give away the sodas.;)

 

I don't see a problem with accepting gifts from the crew. I don't know if the person has the authority to offer the gift, but neither do you, so the assumption is that they do.

 

However, sharing a soda card is not the same as accepting a gift from the crew. The issue is with sharing soda cards, not with accepting gifts from the crew.

 

There are places I frequent that offer me gifts. These range from free fries with my meal to a 1¢ discount when I, or the store does not have the correct change.

[Linda8818]

Maybe RCI should set a good example. Maybe they should not put all your drinks in promotional plastic glasses and charge you an extra $1 every time you buy a drink in one without requesting it.

 

And when you directly ask the bartender 3 distinct times, 'is this a promotional glass??' he should not answer 'huh??' each and every time. What bs.

 

If someone wants to get an occasional soda off their brother's card, big deal. Give me a break and stop discussing soda.

[Cuizer2]

Maybe RCI should set a good example. Maybe they should not put all your drinks in promotional plastic glasses and charge you an extra $1 every time you buy a drink in one without requesting it.

 

And when you directly ask the bartender 3 distinct times, 'is this a promotional glass??' he should not answer 'huh??' each and every time. What bs.

 

If someone wants to get an occasional soda off their brother's card, big deal. Give me a break and stop discussing soda.

 

This comes under the heading of it is okay to do wrong because someone else did wrong. Sorry, but I don't buy that. If it is wrong, it is wrong.

[kruisecat]

We have done this sharing with our two kids. Not to be cheap, but the youngest child is in Adventure Ocean all day except at meal times and night. So my oldest one would get him a soda maybe once or twice each cruise. He is not a soda drinker. He likes juice and milk more. So I don't see paying $28.00 for maybe two glasses of coke. Do you?:)

 

No, but you certainly COULD purchase those 1 or 2 sodas the proper way. No matter how you try to rationalize it it is still wrong.

[Linda8818]

The OP did not ask if it was right or wrong. This forum is not 'cruising ethics'. If someone doesn't care to answer the OP, or does not care for their ethical standards, they can simply not post. Yes, -not posting- is an option.

 

Better yet, write to Royal Caribbean and tell them to check out CC, people might be sharing their soda cards.

 

Holier than thous are quite irritating.

[HurricaneSally]

If the OP asked if it was permitted, then the answer is no, it is not.

[Cuizer2]

The OP did not ask if it was right or wrong. This forum is not 'cruising ethics'. If someone doesn't care to answer the OP, or does not care for their ethical standards, they can simply not post. Yes, -not posting- is an option.

 

Better yet, write to Royal Caribbean and tell them to check out CC, people might be sharing their soda cards.

 

Holier than thous are quite irritating.

 

I sure RCI does read the boards and I am sure they know that sharing is going on. I don't have to read it in the newspaper to know people walk out of restaurants without paying. And poor customer service would not be a valid reason for doing so.

[Merion_Mom]

My mother told me, "Character is what you do when no one is watching."

[beachchick]

Maybe RCI should set a good example. Maybe they should not put all your drinks in promotional plastic glasses and charge you an extra $1 every time you buy a drink in one without requesting it.

 

And when you directly ask the bartender 3 distinct times, 'is this a promotional glass??' he should not answer 'huh??' each and every time. What bs.

 

If someone wants to get an occasional soda off their brother's card, big deal. Give me a break and stop discussing soda.

 

If you don't want to discuss soda or the soda card, then don't read or post on this thread. (I do agree with you about the souvenier glasses though. It's seems like you practically have to go make the drink yourself to get it in a plain glass. And I hate it when the bartenders try to tell you that you "have" to have in the extra-cost glass--that is so wrong.)

 

I'm afraid neither you nor any other poster gets to dictate how other posters share their opinions. You have yours and are entitled to them; I have mine and am entitled to them. As long as neither of us personally attacks the other, we each get to post our opinions. That's the way this forum works.

 

In this case, I'm on the side of not trying to rationalize "stealing" by calling it "sharing." The contract is one person per sticker. It doesn't matter how cheap the soda is for RCI (we all know that); it matters that when we purchase the sticker, we agree to the rules.

 

The OP seems to be aware of the fact that the stickers are designed for one person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked about "undercover" soda agents.

 

The bottom line is this: You can try to cheat and buy only one, but be aware that many people consider that stealing and wrong. Also, whomever has the sticker on his/her seapass will be running to the bar for everyone else all week. And has been noted, what do you do when you are not together? Does that person have to drop what they are doing to go get someone else a soda? Does that person surrender their seapass for who knows how long? But it all boils down to honesty, plus what we want to teach our children.

 

beachchick

[MrsPete]

Which dictionary defines stealing and sharing as being synonyms?

It's in the same dictionary that defines soda cards. Oops -- soda cards aren't in the dictionary, are they? Then I suppose RCI is allowed to define soda cards on their ship, and -- oddly enough -- they've already done that for us: they've said that one card is for one person. Whether we like it or not, that's the rule.

[caviargal]

Perhaps the reason soda cards continue to increase in price is due to the fact that RCI is compensating for the misuse of these cards by those who choose to "share".

 

Therefore, everyone pays more.

[jwlane]

one card is for one person

Obtuse or not, that was my point.

[Max Circus]

You can absolutely share the soda obtained with the card. Just ask the bartender to pour the soda in a "Scorpion Bowl" and provide you with as many long straws as needed. Place the bowl in the center of the table and sip away!!! ;)

[critterchick]

OK, flame suit on...

 

On my last cruise, I bought the soda card for my son as I will only drink soda with dinner. The first night in the dining room, the assistant took drink orders and my son ordered his soda and I asked for the bar server to order mine. Bar server came and I ordered my Coke and paid my $1.87. Next night, my son's soda was on the table when we arrived. Bar server never showed. I asked the assistant to find him but he never came and the assistant just brought me a Coke for my frustration. Night three found 2 sodas on the table. When I informed the assistant that I did not have a soda card, his response was not to worry and that is was the bar servers fault for ignoring our table. I tried to do the honest thing and was told "not to worry". So, am I bad for accepting the soda? Needless to say, the assistant received an extra tip that week.

 

OK, flame away.

 

Not bad at all! On our last Monarch cruise, I ordered a single Grey Goose martini. The bartender made me a double (he was just being neat emptying the bottle). I drank the whole thing.:D

 

To answer the OP's question: yes, you can share the card & get away with it because they don't have undercover soda cops on board. Nor do they have chair hog cops or "children in the Solarium hot tub" cops, "kids in the adult pool" cops or "adults on the Adventure Ocean deck" cops. They set their policies & expect you to abide by them. Whether you do or not is up to you.

[stargate fan]

FYI only, soda is probably the cheapest thing on board. I worked in fast food and still have a good friend who is a district manager for a fast food corporation.

One medium cup of soda costs the company approximately 6 cents. The average person pays $1.29 for said cup of soda.

Soda cards cost $4 pp per day. A person would have to provide almost 67 glasses of soda a day to for RCCL to lose money. Remember that the glasses of soda on a cruise ship are half the size of a fast food medium soda, so it would probably be closer to 135 glasses of soda given away.

I doubt sharing soda cards is the reason for rate increases. It's more likely greed.

 

Perhaps the reason soda cards continue to increase in price is due to the fact that RCI is compensating for the misuse of these cards by those who choose to "share".

 

Therefore, everyone pays more.

[madforcruising]

Probably I´m missing something butcan´t see how the revenue a company makes out of selling soda has anything to do with the fact if you can share a soda card with several people that is definitely and clearly sold as a per person soda card:confused: :confused: .

[zuscruiserz]

Exactly the point madforcruising! And Bravo to all those who "choose" to teach their children the right thing to do. Don't you think they learn from example? And this "sharing" of soda cards is not the worst thing they will learn - won't it be okay for them to "bend' the rules if they don't like the rules that are set for them? This is the society we live in today, I think, and I do fear for the next generation. We raise kids in such a "gray area", there is no right from wrong anymore. Tell me, how will they learn if we don't teach them???