CHEERS drink package

[ed01106]

The state laws regarding alcohol do not apply at sea, underage drinking is a violation of cruise policy (like pool chair hogging) not state or federal law.

 

Plus the sole purpose of raising the drink age was to reduce drunk driving,  not exactly a problem with cruisers.  

[Hockeydad1972]

On 10/15/2019 at 12:07 PM, Elaine5715 said:

And booted off the ship

And the hysteria begins...!!😂

 

 

[geoffrywillhardt]

37 minutes ago, coevan said:

 

 

not on the ship

 

 

incorrect, 8 miles out Maritime Law takes precedent.

“Due to state laws, we cannot sell CHEERS! until the second day of the cruise (starting at 6:00am) for voyages departing from our Texas and New York home ports.”

 

I'm not saying they have to follow US law 100% of the time, what I am saying is that they are subject to it and they can and have been sued no matter where the incidence take place.

 

The last thing the cruise lines want is problems (especially major public law suits) arising from drinking.  

[coevan]

of course in a U.S. port, DUH! Sue who for what?

[ed01106]

46 minutes ago, geoffrywillhardt said:

“Due to state laws, we cannot sell CHEERS! until the second day of the cruise (starting at 6:00am) for voyages departing from our Texas and New York home ports.”

 

I'm not saying they have to follow US law 100% of the time, what I am saying is that they are subject to it and they can and have been sued no matter where the incidence take place.

 

The last thing the cruise lines want is problems (especially major public law suits) arising from drinking.  

Carnival is stretching the truth.  They can sell the Cheers package in Texas and NY, but they would be required to pay taxes.  And the state law doesn’t expire at 6 am it happens when they get far enough out to sea, waiting until 6 am is purely a corporate decision not state law.

[PhillyFan33579]

6 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

Carnival is stretching the truth.  They can sell the Cheers package in Texas and NY, but they would be required to pay taxes.  And the state law doesn’t expire at 6 am it happens when they get far enough out to sea, waiting until 6 am is purely a corporate decision not state law.

Carnival has to pay taxes while docked at every US port, which means passengers have to pay taxes on every drink they buy on a Carnival ship while at a US port, to include Galveston and New York. 

[ed01106]

14 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Carnival has to pay taxes while docked at every US port, which means passengers have to pay taxes on every drink they buy on a Carnival ship while at a US port, to include Galveston and New York. 

But the difference between Florida law and New York law is in Florida if Carnival sells the cheers package they only need to pay taxes on a pro rata portion (1day) if the sell it in NY they need to pay for the entire cruise.

[Elaine5715]

37 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

Carnival is stretching the truth.  They can sell the Cheers package in Texas and NY, but they would be required to pay taxes.  And the state law doesn’t expire at 6 am it happens when they get far enough out to sea, waiting until 6 am is purely a corporate decision not state law.

 

26 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Carnival has to pay taxes while docked at every US port, which means passengers have to pay taxes on every drink they buy on a Carnival ship while at a US port, to include Galveston and New York. 

 

7 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

But the difference between Florida law and New York law is in Florida if Carnival sells the cheers package they only need to pay taxes on a pro rata portion (1day) if the sell it in NY they need to pay for the entire cruise.

Geest Services has no desire or time to be listening to guests who are carping about sales taxes being charged when the guests have determined that they should not have to pay based on their geographic estimates.  

[PhillyFan33579]

48 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

Geest Services has no desire or time to be listening to guests who are carping about sales taxes being charged when the guests have determined that they should not have to pay based on their geographic estimates.  

I don’t understand your comment. Are you saying Carnival doesn’t charge sales tax?  I know that isn’t correct because they have charged sales tax on every drink I have ordered onboard on embarkation day while the ship was still in port and when sailing prior to reaching international water (this has been the case on all 32 Carnival cruises I have been on). Also, I have been charged sales tax for drinks every time I have been on a ship that has stopped in Puerto Rico. 

[Freckle53]

On 10/15/2019 at 2:23 PM, Pg0513 said:

Thanks everyone. This is my first cruise and I didn’t know if anyone has tried that before & if it wasn’t a big deal. 

It's been tried and done so much that this is why all adults 21+ in a cabin have to purchase Cheers if one does.  

[Qchell]

Cheers is generally worth it for my DH & I  we enjoy the freedom from counting pennies when ordering drinks on a cruise.  We take full advantage of the unlimited non-alcoholic drinks (coffee bar in particular) and enjoy the ability to try new drinks without worrying about spending $15 on a drink that it turns out we do not care for.  Cheers makes the Alchemy Bar a total treat as we enjoy spending evenings there, getting to know the bartenders, and being able to try off-menu drinks.  That is always a great experience for us.  We just consider Cheers to be part of the cruise cost and now end up with a very small bill at the end of the cruise. 

However, if the price is a bit high and you are not sure you may spend that amount, and there is one particular type of alcohol you prefer, you can pre-order a bottle for your room on the Carnival website.  Plan for sticker shock, but it's far less than the Cheers package and the bottles are very large.  If you think about how many drinks you can make with that bottle, and compare the cost of the bottle to the cost of that many drinks individually on board - it's a good deal!  

 

I would not recommend attempting to share from the Cheers program, nor give alcohol to anyone underage.  I am not sure what the penalties would be, but I would not risk ruining my first cruise that way.  If it's just you and your friend, and she is underage - you may want to forego Cheers and enjoy a light alcohol cruise your first time out.  Enjoy the time with your friend, order non-alcoholic frozen drinks (I highly recommend the Hurricane Wave), and maybe have a bottle in your room for you. 

[drafterdw]

On 10/15/2019 at 9:35 AM, Pg0513 said:

Hi there - I’m going on my first cruise next month and am wondering if the cheers is worth it. I’m not a big drinker but don’t want to end up having fun one night and rack up a big bill. I also want to know my sister is coming with me, but she is 20. Would it be possible for me to give her drinks? Thanks for the help

It doesn't matter how many drinks you think you will drink, it is the cost of the drinks. Our cruise last year we did not get  cheers-at end of cruise my husband totaled drinks including my bottled water and it was almost exactly what Cheers would have been. We usually have a beer or cold mixed drink in afternoon, a martini before dinner, a couple glasses of wine with dinner & a drink during show. I will have 3-4 bottles of water every day & a few special coffees during cruise, my husband will have 1-2 bloody marys during cruise. this is more than we would normally drink at home but we are on vacation & I don't think we have ever hit our 15 drink max. 

[Qchell]

On 10/15/2019 at 3:33 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

The staff can range from very strict to pretty laid back. You have to keep in mind the staff on a ship is constantly changing, so there is no general rule that says ship X is strict while ship Y isn’t strict. 

 

I completely agree!  A number of years ago a group of us were cruising together.  We took an excursion to an all inclusive resort.  It was January and a tad bit too chilly to get in the water and so windy that day you couldn't sit on the beach without feeling as if you were in a sandblaster.  So we hung out in the hot tub and drank all day.  Then a hour or so before we were scheduled to leave a friend had the 'bright idea' for us to do shots.  Needless to say we were barely standing upright when we returned to the ship.  

It wasn't until late the next afternoon that I went to order a drink.  The waiter came back with my drink, but informed me nicely that my card had been cut off and he had put my drink on my husband's card.  So I went to guest services, I told them that I understood why they had cut me off and asked if there was anything I could do to fix that or if it was for the rest of the cruise.  The GS person tapped a few keys on the keyboard and informed me I was good to go.  After dinner one of my friends was informed that she was cut off and was not served a drink.  She then went to Guest Services and was escorted to go have a conversation with security prior to being reinstated.  We were in the same situation due to the same incident - but received different treatment due to dealing with it with different people.  

[Joebucks]

3 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Carnival has to pay taxes while docked at every US port, which means passengers have to pay taxes on every drink they buy on a Carnival ship while at a US port, to include Galveston and New York. 

 

It is worse coming from New Orleans. I had to pay tax for the whole first night and whole last night.

[Elaine5715]

6 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

I don’t understand your comment. Are you saying Carnival doesn’t charge sales tax?  I know that isn’t correct because they have charged sales tax on every drink I have ordered onboard on embarkation day while the ship was still in port and when sailing prior to reaching international water (this has been the case on all 32 Carnival cruises I have been on). Also, I have been charged sales tax for drinks every time I have been on a ship that has stopped in Puerto Rico. 

I am saying that if Carnival didn't say 6 am to stop charging sales taxes leaving TX, there would be that person at GS shoving their phone at crew saying the ship was outside the sales taxing area.  I also have paid sales taxes on drinks in US ports and listened to people gripe about it.  

[geoffrywillhardt]

8 hours ago, coevan said:

of course in a U.S. port, DUH! Sue who for what?

The comment you made was that there were no state laws regarding drinking and I have proved that there are. There are and have been people that sue the cruise lines for alcohol related incidents on cruise ships including sexual assault and wrongful deaths.

 

You said that the cruise lines make arbitrary rules regarding drinking, they are anything but arbitrary and based on US federal and state laws that do in fact help them to cover their asses in the event of a law suit. They can go to court and say they took reasonable precautions based on US laws. May not immediately stop all law suits against them but it does help.

[Purvis1231]

19 hours ago, ed01106 said:

The state laws regarding alcohol do not apply at sea, underage drinking is a violation of cruise policy (like pool chair hogging) not state or federal law.

 

Plus the sole purpose of raising the drink age was to reduce drunk driving,  not exactly a problem with cruisers.  

Well that worked!