RC Anthem of the Seas - Water wars....

[Usuallyrightagain]

We just got home today from our 9 night (actually 10 night, given the evacuation of a passenger) eastern Caribbean cruise.  This was our family's first ever cruise vacation.  Having got up before 6AM I now sit at my computer feeling thoroughly tired and slightly seasick, with a strange swaying going on inside my head!

One of the things that most irritated me on this cruise, and that I just mentioned in my RC survey is the water situation.  And I thought maybe people here can shed some light on it, or me giving my thoughts might help someone else considering their first cruise.

 

We don't drink soda much if at all.  And we're not fancy coffee people.  So we decided to eschew the beverage package.  Given the plastic situation being terrible for the environment and oceans we also decided that purchasing a pack of water bottles was not a great idea either.  So we brought our refillable water bottles with us on board and hoped for the best.

 

Now, it turns out there are plenty of places to get water.  However, most of them have the attached sign on them ("Important Health Advisory - Don't refill bottles here").  Assume this means that if you put something that you've been drinking out of previously underneath the machine, loads of germs might reverse-rapel (reverse-abseil) out of the bottle and into the machine, spreading 'flu to all and sundry.  However.... if you purchase the beverage package the entire way it works seems to involve you putting the massive cup you've been drinking out of previously underneath the machine and filling it.  And that's totally allowed.  So what's the difference?

 

I genuinely can't see why they have these signs.  It irked me so much.  They actually added the signs to a couple of machines that didn't have them when we first boarded (seaplex hot dog stand, sorrento's soda machine) so this is something they are currently doing.  How can people refilling bottles be any less healthy than people refilling the RC cups?  

 

Struggling to see the connection between the "Save the Waves" pledge and refusing to let people refill bottles....  Why can't they have a Brita refill station like our elementary school does?  Or one spigot for refilling bottles?  All my questions just come back to answer: to sell bottled water.

 

For what it's worth we just got cups, filled them with water multiple times and tipped them into our bottles.  We all have Contigo bottles with large openings and the spouts completely unscrew, so nothing that touched our mouths was remotely near anything on a machine or cup.

 

We had such a good time in Puerto Rico that we plan to go there for our next vacation, but might cruise again with RC after that, but only if they can call a truce on the water war...

[Clarea]

11 minutes ago, Usuallyrightagain said:

  ...  So what's the difference?...

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

One difference is that in order for the Freestyle machine to dispense, the the bottom of the special cup must be placed in the machine such that the top of the cup cannot touch the dispensing mechanism, plus the part that normally touches the mouth must be removed.  

[kerryincork]

I believe they are only referring to bottle tops that touch your mouth. If the top of your bottle unscrews completely you could of filled your bottle directly.

 

It was reported on here only the other day that this is what the signs mean.

 

And everyones mouths are filthy and basically a bacteria factory, and there is no time limit to how quickly something can be contaminated, this is why they don't want the spouts pressed up against the spout.

[KALCJ1]

One thing I noticed is you are showing a picture of a Freestyle Machine.  

 

In order to use the machine you must have the "special cup" with a chip in it.  Otherwise nothing will dispense.

 

You can always take a refillable bottle to a bar or to the water station and fill it.  If there's a sign that's posted to not use your own cup, then use theirs and dump the water in your refillable bottle. 

Edited May 19, 2019 by KALCJ1

[reallyitsmema]

12 minutes ago, KALCJ1 said:

One thing I noticed is you are showing a picture of a Freestyle Machine.  

 

In order to use the machine you must have the "special cup" with a chip in it.  Otherwise nothing will dispense.

 

You can always take a refillable bottle to a bar or to the water station and fill it.  If there's a sign that's posted to not use your own cup, then use theirs and dump the water in your refillable bottle. 

 

That is not true, the freestyle machines can dispense both ice and water into any vessel that is used.  You do not need the cup with the chip for water and ice.

[DaniDanielle]

Learn something new everyday!

[KALCJ1]

24 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

That is not true, the freestyle machines can dispense both ice and water into any vessel that is used.  You do not need the cup with the chip for water and ice.

That's really good to know...in all my cruises I ALWAYS thought you needed a chip to get the machine to work at all.  Thank you!

[MightyMike]

10 minutes ago, KALCJ1 said:

If there's a sign that's posted to not use your own cup, then use theirs and dump the water in your refillable bottle. 

 

But that is exactly the point that the original poster makes! Using their cup, dumping it into your bottle, and throwing their cup away is contradictory to the "Save the Waves" philosophy. 

 

I can see why at first glance the sign could be interpreted to mean, "Don't get water from here unless you purchased our soda package." But it doesn't say that. All that it says is not to use bottles. Even Royal Caribbean bottles are prohibited.

 

This actually sounds like a design flaw of the freestyle machines. If they can pass germs that easily, then maybe they need to revisit the design of the spout.

 

Until they do, as a truce to the water war, I would propose purchasing a souvenir tumbler from the gift shop and using that. Or bring your own from home. That allows you to use the machine as designed without purchasing a soda package.

[SeaScout]

Interesting topic.  We are considering booking on RCI out of Puerto Rico.  One of the questions I have before booking is the drinking water situation.  We typically sail on Carnival. On Carnival we can purchase a 12 pack of water for our stateroom at minimal cost.  GF usually pre-orders it to have it waiting in our cabin upon arrival.  I believe it's around $5.00 a 12 pack.

 

Does RCI do the same thing?  Are you allowed to carry on soft drinks in cans? (Carnival we can bring a 12 pack per person).  

 

 

[Clarea]

2 minutes ago, SeaScout said:

Interesting topic.  We are considering booking on RCI out of Puerto Rico.  One of the questions I have before booking is the drinking water situation.  We typically sail on Carnival. On Carnival we can purchase a 12 pack of water for our stateroom at minimal cost.  GF usually pre-orders it to have it waiting in our cabin upon arrival.  I believe it's around $5.00 a 12 pack.

 

Does RCI do the same thing?  Are you allowed to carry on soft drinks in cans? (Carnival we can bring a 12 pack per person).  

 

 

 

Royal allows you to carry on 12 factory sealed containers of non-alcoholic beverages per stateroom, each no larger than 500ml.

[mjkacmom]

I thought this was the same on every cruise line. We bring on our big yetis and just use a separate glass to fill them.

[gerif]

I’ve always drunk the ship’s water. Don’t need to use a disposable cup to fill your own bottle, just use a glass. OP is making something so simple sound so difficult. While he is might be careful about not letting his own bottle spout touch the dispenser, we have all witnessed cruisers (especially in the WJ) who appear to have been raised in a barn and can’t seem to grasp basic hygiene, thus the need for signs. 

[MightyMike]

16 minutes ago, SeaScout said:

Interesting topic.  We are considering booking on RCI out of Puerto Rico.  One of the questions I have before booking is the drinking water situation.  We typically sail on Carnival. On Carnival we can purchase a 12 pack of water for our stateroom at minimal cost.  GF usually pre-orders it to have it waiting in our cabin upon arrival.  I believe it's around $5.00 a 12 pack.

 

Does RCI do the same thing?  Are you allowed to carry on soft drinks in cans? (Carnival we can bring a 12 pack per person).  

 

Carnival’s  Liquor and Beverage Policy states that guests are prohibited from bringing water, sodas and other non-alcoholic beverages on board that are packaged in bottles.

 

Carnival used to allow passengers to bring bottled water onboard, but this changed a few years ago. I had a cruise aboard the Carnival Magic shortly after they imposed the new policy.

 

As a compromise, Carnival allows guests to purchase a 12-pack of bottled water for $4.50 (https://www.carnival.com/FunShops/in-stateroom-beverages/water). Notice how this price is completely inconsistent with the others. A single bottle is $3.75. An 8-pack is $20. This is because of the complaints they received about the new policy. Everyone accused Carnival of instituting the new policy purely to generate profit. 

 

The $4.50 12-pack offer was made to quiet the rebellion. People could no longer bring water onboard, but if they found this loophole, they could purchase bottled water onboard at store prices. 

 

At some point, I expect that Carnival will quietly remove this item from their online store. I don't think it was intended to be a permanent remedy.

[sgmn]

2 hours ago, DaniDanielle said:

Learn something new everyday!

Me too 😃

[not-enough-cruising]

1 hour ago, MightyMike said:

 

But that is exactly the point that the original poster makes! Using their cup, dumping it into your bottle, and throwing their cup away is contradictory to the "Save the Waves" philosophy. 

 

I can see why at first glance the sign could be interpreted to mean, "Don't get water from here unless you purchased our soda package." But it doesn't say that. All that it says is not to use bottles. Even Royal Caribbean bottles are prohibited.

 

This actually sounds like a design flaw of the freestyle machines. If they can pass germs that easily, then maybe they need to revisit the design of the spout.

 

Until they do, as a truce to the water war, I would propose purchasing a souvenir tumbler from the gift shop and using that. Or bring your own from home. That allows you to use the machine as designed without purchasing a soda package.

There wouldn’t be a cup to throw away, it would be a reusable plastic or glass tumbler. 

 

Its not a design flaw in the machine at all, as long as people place their vessel (Yeti, Tervis or what have you) on the tray and pressed the water button to fill. 

 

The problem with BOTTLES is they have a smaller opening to line up with the spout and inevitably people raise the small neck bottle up to the fill spout thus increasing the likelihood of cross contamination. 

 

I dont understand why this is a difficult concept to grasp for some. 

[SeaScout]

26 minutes ago, MightyMike said:

 

Carnival’s  Liquor and Beverage Policy states that guests are prohibited from bringing water, sodas and other non-alcoholic beverages on board that are packaged in bottles.

 

Carnival used to allow passengers to bring bottled water onboard, but this changed a few years ago. I had a cruise aboard the Carnival Magic shortly after they imposed the new policy.

 

As a compromise, Carnival allows guests to purchase a 12-pack of bottled water for $4.50 (https://www.carnival.com/FunShops/in-stateroom-beverages/water). Notice how this price is completely inconsistent with the others. A single bottle is $3.75. An 8-pack is $20. This is because of the complaints they received about the new policy. Everyone accused Carnival of instituting the new policy purely to generate profit. 

 

The $4.50 12-pack offer was made to quiet the rebellion. People could no longer bring water onboard, but if they found this loophole, they could purchase bottled water onboard at store prices. 

 

At some point, I expect that Carnival will quietly remove this item from their online store. I don't think it was intended to be a permanent remedy.

 

We're Platinum on Carnival so I'm quite familiar with their beverage policies. ( I don't see the water deal going away. It's very popular). 

I'm trying to find out, when sailing RCI,  if I can have a 12 pack of water waiting for us in our cabin upon arrival, and what the cost of that would be? 

  

[Thorben-Hendrik]

3 hours ago, Usuallyrightagain said:

All my questions just come back to answer: to sell bottled water.

👍🙄

[DaniDanielle]

I agree,  not a difficult concept.

[DaniDanielle]

Reply to Not Enough Cruising

[not-enough-cruising]

6 minutes ago, SeaScout said:

 

We're Platinum on Carnival so I'm quite familiar with their beverage policies. ( I don't see the water deal going away. It's very popular). 

I'm trying to find out, when sailing RCI,  if I can have a 12 pack of water waiting for us in our cabin upon arrival, and what the cost of that would be? 

  

You can have a 12 or 24 pack of 1 liter Evian bottles waiting in your cabin. The cost escapes me currently. 

[reallyitsmema]

14 minutes ago, SeaScout said:

 

We're Platinum on Carnival so I'm quite familiar with their beverage policies. ( I don't see the water deal going away. It's very popular). 

I'm trying to find out, when sailing RCI,  if I can have a 12 pack of water waiting for us in our cabin upon arrival, and what the cost of that would be? 

  

 

There is an Evian water package that you can buy but the prices are ridiculous.  It is for 1 liter bottles, so not a convenient size.  Look in your cruise planner for exact price but it is in the neighborhood of $50, too rich for me, especially for Evian.

[Iamcruzin]

This is what's showing in my cruise planner for the Anthem in June.

 

 

[Usuallyrightagain]

1 hour ago, not-enough-cruising said:

You can have a 12 or 24 pack of 1 liter Evian bottles waiting in your cabin. The cost escapes me currently. 

Yes. Not very "save the waves" to create 24 pieces of plastic bottle trash though, is it?

 

Thanks for the replies. Yes, I used the Freestyle and regular water dispensers. I still think they are missing a trick pretending that it would be unclean to put a water bottle In the machine. They could sell wide neck bottles in the store and in boarding area that would work better than something like a Swell bottle would.

 

Those who said I clearly don’t understand the concept, thanks, but I think I do. And I think discussing it and mentioning on here might help others. I actually saw a load of people who didn’t know how to work the freestyle machines, and the people in front of us at boarding had their pack of water bottles confiscated.  It would be handy if RC could get on board (boom, boom!) with a way to get plain old tap water to passengers who want it, without them needing to dirty the dining cups tipping water into reuseable bottles.

 

thanks again for the replies.

[SeaScout]

53 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

This is what's showing in my cruise planner for the Anthem in June.

 

 

 

$39 for water?? That alone gives some insight on whether or not we'll book on RCI.  I understand a small upcharge but that is just plain gouging in my opinion.  

[not-enough-cruising]

15 minutes ago, Usuallyrightagain said:

Yes. Not very "save the waves" to create 24 pieces of plastic bottle trash though, is it?

 

Thanks for the replies. Yes, I used the Freestyle and regular water dispensers. I still think they are missing a trick pretending that it would be unclean to put a water bottle In the machine. They could sell wide neck bottles in the store and in boarding area that would work better than something like a Swell bottle would.

 

Those who said I clearly don’t understand the concept, thanks, but I think I do. And I think discussing it and mentioning on here might help others. I actually saw a load of people who didn’t know how to work the freestyle machines, and the people in front of us at boarding had their pack of water bottles confiscated.  It would be handy if RC could get on board (boom, boom!) with a way to get plain old tap water to passengers who want it, without them needing to dirty the dining cups tipping water into reuseable bottles.

 

thanks again for the replies.

The folks who had their water confiscated should  have been allowed it (unless they were over the limit or had contraband disguised as water bottles) because it is RCI policy to allow 12 bottles per stateroom. 

There is ”plain old tap water” in the sink in your room, and in many water fountains throughout the ship, as well as in the facilities that you said you used. 

Sorry, but if you don’t understand the “potential” for sanitary issues while refilling bottles at the freestyle machines, then you don’t get it. 

Edited May 19, 2019 by not-enough-cruising