Drink Pkg - Premium vs. Premium Plus Comparison

[DisneyTech]

Hi All,

 

My wife and I have booked our first MSC cruise for May, and are trying to wrap our heads around exactly what the differences are between the Premium and the Premium Plus drink packages. I've read the brochure from MSC that lists the benefits of each and I've answered a lot of my questions searching through the boards on here, but I have come up short on a few questions. 

 

Questions that we have:

• ❓ Does the $12 limit apply to all Liquor brands? I ask because in pictures of the menu, there is a page labeled "Super Premium Selection." Most of these (except for 2 or 3) are priced below $12. Can you get all of those that are under $12 or is that entire page reserved for the Premium Plus package? The menu I'm referring to is HERE.
• ❓ Does anyone know what the "*" and "**" next to some of the drink prices mean? By chance does it tell you which package you need for each type of liquor?
• ❓ Does anyone have a picture of the drink menu for the "Champagne Cocktails" that are only included in the Premium Plus package? I can't seem to find a picture of the cocktails from the Champagne Bar.
• ❓ I've also heard competing statements regarding whether the drinks at the chocolate bar are included in the Premium package? Does anyone have a recent picture of that menu? Everything I can find has pictures with prices well below the $12 limit.
• ❓ I'm interested to hear people's thoughts on the Mini Bar that is included with the Premium Plus package. Does anyone know what comes in it or have a picture of what the stocked minibar looks like? Are snacks included as well or just drinks? Any idea if they will customize what they put in there for you?
• ❓ Does the room service included in the Premium Plus package include just the standard room service fare? I see it says "drinks and food." Are you able to order cocktails, mixed drinks, etc from room service or just sodas and such. Does it include any food that is normally an extra charge? Any photos of the menus?

[Até]

The bar menu you link to is old and obsolete for comparisons, any menu that has the asterisks is from the old packages.  I'm hesitant to post any links because the bar pricing keeps changing.  There are several recent thorough review threads that have pictures of them, try to find one from your ship as there are significant differences fleet wide.  Additionally menu prices may even change again before you actually sail. 

 

The Premium package doesn't cover much at the Champagne bar, in the linked post below I inserted the wrong pictures saying it was the Butcher's cut menu but they are the Champagne bar menu from Meraviglia.  Premium covers even less, almost nothing, in the specialty restaurants and specialty shops like Venchi and especially in Jean Philippe. 

 

The minibar is nice if you aren't particular.  Beers are Heineken, Bud & Light, Corona and three mini bottle liquors are well brand - which kind of defeats having the P+ package.  Sodas, juices and waters are also in there.  There's small cans of Pringles, mixed nuts and chocolate covered nuts.  You have to fill out a re-order form to get it restocked and this frequency can vary widely based on your cabin steward's willingness to keep running to the store room.  YC is the only place I've been able to get non-standard items places in the mini bar, all other times I've just gone to bars to stock it with my favorite beers.  Bring your own bottle opener as they aren't always easy to get.

 

I've not tried Premium+ for room service but suspect they aren't going to run by a bar to get you a cocktail.  Most likely it would only include things like soda, beer and maybe a limited wine choice.  Again, I'm not 100% sure if it includes the for charge food menu items but based on the wording it should.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2716188-looking-at-msc-again/?tab=comments#comment-58949091