Coke freestyle machines

[Felix331]

I'm all for it, love them on Royal Caribbean and found them very convenient to grab a drink or even just some ice without having to bother a bartender. Hopefully Princess will leave them open after venues have closed unlike RCI or just have them on deck maybe. 

[bemis12]

4 hours ago, Coral said:

So we are paying a tip on a service in which we will be getting our own drinks?

 

I'm sure you will still be able to get someone to serve you one, if that is your preference.

 

 

[teese]

Oh I hope this does come about. I can only have caffeine free and this would give me so many more choices. 

[Doug R.]

29 minutes ago, stoneharborlady said:

Why should the bartender get upset over having to serve a soda?  That is his job.

I think some, not all, feel that the transaction is not adding to the tip pool. I need to clarify that this does not apply to all or even a majority of bartenders, just enough that I have noticed this behavior. I also wonder if with the medallion that the bartender will know you have the soda package and will not serve you until he/she has served the "revenue customers".

[kywildcatfanone]

So I'm confused.  Will these machines be freely available for anyone or will you have to use your medallion to make anything other than the ice maker work? 

Will you have to have a soda package assigned to your medallion I assume?

Edited May 29, 2019 by kywildcatfanone

[HLNFan]

5 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

So I'm confused.  Will these machines be freely available for anyone or will you have to use your medallion to make anything other than the ice maker work? 

Will you have to have a soda package assigned to your medallion I assume?

The way they work on Royal Caribbean is you have a cup that has a chip in it.  The machine reads the chip to dispense.

 

[bemis12]

4 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

So I'm confused.  Will these machines be freely available for anyone or will you have to use your medallion to make anything other than the ice maker work? 

Will you have to have a soda package assigned to your medallion I assume?

 

It would be my strong assumption that they would only work with a soda package. 

[Mike45LC]

47 minutes ago, Doug R. said:

I also wonder if with the medallion that the bartender will know you have the soda package and will not serve you until he/she has served the "revenue customers".

On past cruises, many bartenders knew that I had the soda package, but they did not ignore me until after serving the "revenue passengers."  It was fast for the bartender to grab my soda (they knew my soda order) and get me out of there!

 

For the most part, the bartenders and wait staff also knew that my wife also had the soda package, and there was almost never a problem for me to get two sodas.

 

[kywildcatfanone]

2 minutes ago, HLNFan said:

The way they work on Royal Caribbean is you have a cup that has a chip in it.  The machine reads the chip to dispense.

 

I would expect it will be medallion driven on Princess, but who knows.  They have to have some way to identify who to "unlock" the machine for.

[kywildcatfanone]

Ultimately this will make me bring more of my own soft drinks onboard at embarkation and not buy the package.  At $7 it was an okay deal, this increase is pretty outrageous IMO.

[Mike45LC]

3 minutes ago, HLNFan said:

The way they work on Royal Caribbean is you have a cup that has a chip in it.  The machine reads the chip to dispense.

 

That would stink.  I do not want to have carry around a dirty soda cup with me all the time.  

[ckb104]

1 hour ago, teese said:

Oh I hope this does come about. I can only have caffeine free and this would give me so many more choices. 

I agree!  I love these machines so I can have caf-free diet coke with flavors.  I never get a soda package, but with freestyle machines, I would be tempted.  

[Potstech]

6 hours ago, Coral said:

So we are paying a tip on a service in which we will be getting our own drinks?

No.

[Potstech]

2 hours ago, Doug R. said:

I think some, not all, feel that the transaction is not adding to the tip pool. I need to clarify that this does not apply to all or even a majority of bartenders, just enough that I have noticed this behavior. I also wonder if with the medallion that the bartender will know you have the soda package and will not serve you until he/she has served the "revenue customers".

If he is ignoring customers to serve others he will not be a bartender for long. A few complaints to the Passenger Services Desk and he will be back to the buffet or home.

[Potstech]

1 hour ago, Mike45LC said:

That would stink.  I do not want to have carry around a dirty soda cup with me all the time.  

Most people will wash it in the sinks on most decks.  So why carry a " dirty" soda cup all the time.

[PoohUnderstands]

Oh, people, give Princess a break!  Gish, it is a MAINLINE cruise line, not a highend cruise line.  I think some people, including me!, would like highend stuff at mainline prices, but it just isn't going to be!  And again, the beverage package is yours to choose or not.  When I was young and putting away money for retirement, when I went on cruises I just drank what was free and was fine.  That was my choice.  Now that I can enjoy the fruits of my saving, I get the package as at $11 a day it isn't that much.  I enjoy my cokes, my virgin mojitos and other drinks and my pina colada etc "milkshakes".

 

At night before retiring, I would like to get whatever free soft drink I want to sip as I am reading and relaxing in my room from a machine in the buffet area anyway.  I use bartenders/waiters the rest of the time.  See, Princess, if they do add these machines, have just upped my choices!  Good for them.  Everyone, happy cruising and I know no one will die of thirst!

 

Pooh

[Coral]

2 hours ago, bemis12 said:

 

I'm sure you will still be able to get someone to serve you one, if that is your preference.

 

 

Not a soda fan. I just found this ironic as most of these stations are "self serve". I purchased this card previously for mocktails and hot chocolate.

Edited May 29, 2019 by Coral

[Shmoo here]

9 hours ago, geoherb said:

I'm sure many passengers will welcome these.

I don't.

 

Using the same spigot to dispense different products causes the flavor to be off in whatever I've gotten out of them.

 

Don't like them, and don't want to use them.

[Mike45LC]

12 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

I don't.

 

Using the same spigot to dispense different products causes the flavor to be off in whatever I've gotten out of them.

 

Don't like them, and don't want to use them.

Shmoo, you will have to buy the cans, then.  The current soda package uses the soda guns at the bars, from which multiple products are dispensed from the single spigot.  Luckily, my palate is not so highly developed that this has been a problem for me!

 

[KCsealegs]

I don’t see this as a detriment. The FreeStyle machines will most likely be located in the Horizon Court/World Fresh Marketplace next to the self-serve ice tea/water dispensers. Those folks that want to use them will see the benefit, and those who don’t, won’t be bothered by them. Win, win in my opinion! 

[satxdiver]

2 hours ago, HLNFan said:

The way they work on Royal Caribbean is you have a cup that has a chip in it.  The machine reads the chip to dispense.

 

The chip then solves the problem of who has the package.  I remember and will become reacquainted with RCL policy of locking the buffet between meals and at night so I assume this drink machine is outside the buffet area.  I sometimes use the machines at serve yourself restaurants and find them to be adequate.  These days though I drink unsweetened ice tea which is free and available in the HC/WFM 24/7.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Doug R.]

6 minutes ago, satxdiver said:

The chip then solves the problem of who has the package.  I remember and will become reacquainted with RCL policy of locking the buffet between meals and at night so I assume this drink machine is outside the buffet area.  I sometimes use the machines at serve yourself restaurants and find them to be adequate.  These days though I drink unsweetened ice tea which is free and available in the HC/WFM 24/7.

On the RCL ship I was on there were numerous machines scattered throughout the ship.

[Pierlesscruisers]

I swear, Princess could come up with a plan that would cut the cost of a given product in half and double the number of them you could get on a cruise and somebody on CC would find some reason to complain or whine about it. The new freestyle machines haven't even arrived yet and people are already griping about paying a service charge and having to do the "work" themselves, having the system "dumbed down" and lord knows whatever else that hasn't even been brought up yet. If you don't want to serve yourself, don't get the package and order your soda directly through a waiter/waitress. That way you will still pay the surcharge but you won't have to do all that work of getting up, walking to the machine and walking back.  You'll be paying more per drink, but look at all the effort you'll be saving!

 

Tom

[balanceok]

Love the Freestyle machines on RCI, so this is great news to me.

 

I enjoy my Diet Coke without caffeine, so this is definitely not a "dumbing down" move imho.

[famski740]

Love the freestyle machines on the RCI ships and could always find one close at hand as they are scattered throughout the ship.

 

Wife loves the pink lemonade from these machines.