Cunard drinks are such a rip off..

[ToadOfToadHall]

Can't speak for what happens on QM2 but currently bar staff on Queen Victoria are asking whether you want 1 or 2 ounces and what brand of mixer.

 

A bit of psychology going on there I think.

 

For example, in a UK pub, if you ask for a whisky (or whatever), you'll be given a single unless you specifically state a double ( I know someone will post an example that they have seen where this is not the case, just to prove a point, but it's not generally the case). But if a barman asks if you want a single or a double, a lot of people will say a double when they only wanted a single. "Oh, go on them why not?".

 

It's a good way to sell you more than you really wanted.

[smokinmike]

Thanks for the replies. I think a one ounce pour might be a good way to sample those Scotch whiskies aboard ship that I’m unable to find here in the US.

 

 

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[zippy11]

This is our third Cunard Cruise and we have tried all ships as it just seems to get more expensive each time. We have done six or seven Celebrity Cruses and to be honest the whole experience is much more pleasurable. The staff are friendlier and much more attentive, you have the ability to buy a drinks package, that’s if you didn’t get one in your holiday package and the food is higher quality and there is much more variety. I think Cunard has had the last of my money...

ive never been on a cruise but am booked onto queen mary 2,i noticed they had new drinks packages but these seem expensive as i dont think they include coctails

[majortom10]

ive never been on a cruise but am booked onto queen mary 2,i noticed they had new drinks packages but these seem expensive as i dont think they include coctails

 

They include cocktails if $11 or under.

[zippy11]

thanks just been reading some threads,dont think ill bother as there isnt much included that i like a d read somewhere that both people in cabin had to buy package and my mum doesnt drink

[avalon1025]

Totally laughable to compare prices in the Ritz in London to a bar on any Cunard ship even if dining in QG it is nowhere near the standard or cost of staying in the Ritz and even then whatever standard of stateroom/suite on Cunard the price is still the same and nothing will change my mind that Cunard's drinks price3s are a rip off and obviously by the emptiness of many bars on my last 2 cruises on QE and QM2 so do many others agree if it was such a bargain they would be full.

 

Not laughable, my QG suite was far more per night than the Ritz (adjusted for food). Whats laughable is that people moan over the cost of a drink when they aren't forced to buy one. Its the same way with people moaning over paying $25 to the airline to check a bag when they've paid thousands for a cruise. If the cost of drinks is a deal breaker, stay home

[eroller]

When I compare drink prices on Cunard it’s with other cruise lines. Not hotels. More of an apples to apples comparison. Hotels are a different animal. I find Cunard’s pricing to be higher than the competition and the quality generally lower. That is my point. Yes I can afford a drink, but no one wants to get ripped off or pay more than they should for something. The value proposition is lost in that case.

[DarCrav]

This is the current Deck drinks menu, the Commodore Club file size is too big to post.[ATTACH]427252[/ATTACH]

 

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Those prices are very reasonable. Can't wait to take our cruise from NYC to Quebec City in September, 2019. We'll be saving money on cocktails considering here in California you can't touch one for under $12.95.

[avalon1025]

When I compare drink prices on Cunard it’s with other cruise lines. Not hotels. More of an apples to apples comparison. Hotels are a different animal. I find Cunard’s pricing to be higher than the competition and the quality generally lower. That is my point. Yes I can afford a drink, but no one wants to get ripped off or pay more than they should for something. The value proposition is lost in that case.

 

Drinks were great in June....

[Adammara]

We had lunch yesterday at the local 'in' pub, a 250ml glass of house chardonnay was £9.60, so I will be happy to pay $14 + service charge, considering the ambience, service and surroundings on Cunard.

[MarkBearSF]

I find it interesting that Cunard has seemingly wound up with the worst of two worlds in their drink offerings.

(And for the purpose of this broad generalization I'm not addressing the ship-ship comparison the eroller has described, but rather the more general pricing expectations, largely based upon home-town experiences)

 

By and large, it seems that Americans don't mind the prices too much, but find the drinks too miserly and the Brits find the prices too high, but the measures are fine. The result is that both sides find something to grumble about,

 

- Mark

[majortom10]

We had lunch yesterday at the local 'in' pub, a 250ml glass of house chardonnay was £9.60, so I will be happy to pay $14 + service charge, considering the ambience, service and surroundings on Cunard.

 

Many of our "in" pubs where I live you could get the whole bottle for that price.

[majortom10]

I find it interesting that Cunard has seemingly wound up with the worst of two worlds in their drink offerings.

(And for the purpose of this broad generalization I'm not addressing the ship-ship comparison the eroller has described, but rather the more general pricing expectations, largely based upon home-town experiences)

 

By and large, it seems that Americans don't mind the prices too much, but find the drinks too miserly and the Brits find the prices too high, but the measures are fine. The result is that both sides find something to grumble about,

 

- Mark

 

Not at all but in the UK by law a standard measure of spirit in any pub/hotel is 25ml so is smaller than 1oz served in America and it seems generally alcohol is a lot dearer in America than UK.

[ToadOfToadHall]

We had lunch yesterday at the local 'in' pub, a 250ml glass of house chardonnay was £9.60, so I will be happy to pay $14 + service charge, considering the ambience, service and surroundings on Cunard.

 

I've just checked the prices of a 250ml glass of chardonny online at what are probably the two most expensive pubs in the centre of Chester - one was £6.00 and one was £7.30. The pub round the corner from me ( A Marstons pub ) charges £4.70.

 

I think it's safe to say that most pubs don't charge the thick in of a tenner for a 250ml glass of house wine.

[Yoshikitty]

Many of our "in" pubs where I live you could get the whole bottle for that price.

 

I've yet to find a normal restaurant (and that's how I compare Cunard with) in the UK where I am getting a whole bottle of Cardonnay for GBP 10,--

 

Here, a Chardonnay bottle will set you back with $ 30-100 (depending on level of restaurant) and a glass is starting with $10,--

And no restaurant in the UK where I have been was cheaper, quite the opposite.

 

If you expect small city pub prices, stay at home, people.

Edited September 7, 2018 by Yoshikitty

[majortom10]

I've yet to find a normal restaurant (and that's how I compare Cunard with) in the UK where I am getting a whole bottle of Cardonnay for GBP 10,--

 

Here, a Chardonnay bottle will set you back with $ 30-100 (depending on level of restaurant) and a glass is starting with $10,--

And no restaurant in the UK where I have been was cheaper, quite the opposite.

 

If you expect small city pub prices, stay at home, people.

 

Nobody mentioned restaurants I was referring to pubs in the UK where you go for a drink without buying food.

[cougaraz]

I've just checked the prices of a 250ml glass of chardonny online at what are probably the two most expensive pubs in the centre of Chester - one was £6.00 and one was £7.30. The pub round the corner from me ( A Marstons pub ) charges £4.70.

 

I think it's safe to say that most pubs don't charge the thick in of a tenner for a 250ml glass of house wine.

 

A city of 120k is hardly an accurate point of comparison for a Cunard cruise ship. Its closest kin are high end hotels in large cities.

[david,Mississauga]

Not at all but in the UK by law a standard measure of spirit in any pub/hotel is 25ml so is smaller than 1oz served in America and it seems generally alcohol is a lot dearer in America than UK.

Back when we were taking cruises on P&O the standard drink measurement was described as "one-fifth of a gill" which I found out was one ounce. The prices were so low it did not seem extravagant to order a double. At that time the standard measurement in Canada was 1 1/2 or 1 1/4 ounces. Since then it has become a mere one ounce in most bars and hotels here. Although Canada is mostly metric there are some exceptions. I hope 25 ml. (.8 of an ounce) does not become standard as that amount barely covers the bottom of a glass :).

 

Cunard's previous measurement of 1.5 ounces was fine with us. In Britain I noticed in first class on Virgin trains the complimentary spirits are in a miniature bottle of 50 ml. (1.6 ounces) which is described on the menu as a double portion, which obviously it is in Europe.

Edited September 7, 2018 by david,Mississauga
Typo

[ToadOfToadHall]

A city of 120k is hardly an accurate point of comparison for a Cunard cruise ship. Its closest kin are high end hotels in large cities.

 

That's maybe because I didn't compare those prices to Cunard, I compared them to Adammara's quoted prices in their local pub.

 

Also, what has the size of a city got to do with anything ? Chester is generally regarded as quite an expensive city in the UK, certainly it's pub prices are higher than some other much larger UK cities.

[ToadOfToadHall]

Nobody mentioned restaurants I was referring to pubs in the UK where you go for a drink without buying food.

 

That's because the goal posts constantly change.

[cougaraz]

That's maybe because I didn't compare those prices to Cunard, I compared them to Adammara's quoted prices in their local pub.

 

Also, what has the size of a city got to do with anything ? Chester is generally regarded as quite an expensive city in the UK, certainly it's pub prices are higher than some other much larger UK cities.

 

Because a Cunard ships most reasonable comparison is to a high end hotel in a large city.

[Adammara]

We are off to Dorset for a few weeks, in a holiday let. We always eat out at lunchtime in a restaurant or pub/restaurant, I have just checked a few that we intend to visit, and a 250ml of Chardonnay varies from £5.95 to £11.20. Not that I will be drinking them at lunchtime, depending on my choice I will get a bottle full for the same price to enjoy in the evening.

[majortom10]

Back when we were taking cruises on P&O the standard drink measurement was described as "one-fifth of a gill" which I found out was one ounce. The prices were so low it did not seem extravagant to order a double. At that time the standard measurement in Canada was 1 1/2 or 1 1/4 ounces. Since then it has become a mere one ounce in most bars and hotels here. Although Canada is mostly metric there are some exceptions. I hope 25 ml. (.8 of an ounce) does not become standard as that amount barely covers the bottom of a glass :).

 

Cunard's previous measurement of 1.5 ounces was fine with us. In Britain I noticed in first class on Virgin trains the complimentary spirits are in a miniature bottle of 50 ml. (1.6 ounces) which is described on the menu as a double portion, which obviously it is in Europe.

 

Yes in the UK a single is 25ml and if you ask for a double you get 50ml

[kentchris]

Yes in the UK a single is 25ml and if you ask for a double you get 50ml

 

Scottish (and, according to Wikipedia, Northern Irish) singles are commonly 35ml and the corresponding doubles are 70ml.

[eroller]

I find it interesting that Cunard has seemingly wound up with the worst of two worlds in their drink offerings.

(And for the purpose of this broad generalization I'm not addressing the ship-ship comparison the eroller has described, but rather the more general pricing expectations, largely based upon home-town experiences)

 

By and large, it seems that Americans don't mind the prices too much, but find the drinks too miserly and the Brits find the prices too high, but the measures are fine. The result is that both sides find something to grumble about,

 

- Mark

 

 

Good points Mark. I certainly don't mind paying for a drink but I at least want it to be decent (tasting more than just Diet Coke or Pepsi). My standards might be a little high. I'm used to gay bars, where drink prices can be expensive or cheap depending on the bar ... but they are always strong! Even so, I've had better drinks on most other cruise lines compared to Cunard, and cheaper too. I've been sailing on Cunard for years (since QE2) and this is new phenomenon for me. I've always been quite pleased with the drink prices and drink quality on Cunard, up until QM2's recent refit. After that is when I noticed the change. Higher drink prices (and charging separately for mixers), and lower quality. I also know a strong drink doesn't always equate to a good drink, but I'm a fairly basic mixed drink drinker, and lately on Cunard I've been hard pressed to even taste the alcohol. Sometimes I feel like I'm drinking straight soda.