Beverage package $ increase

[canadian girl 77]

We were on the Oasis the summer of 2018. We have another cruise on the Oasis booked for March 2020. DH and I had the Deluxe Beverage Package. We paid $489 CDN each for the trip. We bought DD to Refreshment package for $188 CDN.

 

I'm having sticker shock. The prices have increased so much. The Deluxe Beverage Package is $714 CDN each now. Refreshment package for DD is $308 CDN.

 

I get inflation. It has been almost two years. But in the case, the refreshment package has increased 64%. The Deluxe Beverage Package has increased 46%.

 

I'm pretty sure DH is going to want to get the Deluxe package regardless but there is no way DD will drink $308 worth of beverages.

[Clarea]

Nothing to do with inflation and everything to do with people willing to pay the higher prices.

 

Prices will continue to rise as long as people pay.

 

Take a look at cabana prices.

[Ourusualbeach]

26 minutes ago, canadian girl 77 said:

We were on the Oasis the summer of 2018. We have another cruise on the Oasis booked for March 2020. DH and I had the Deluxe Beverage Package. We paid $489 CDN each for the trip. We bought DD to Refreshment package for $188 CDN.

 

I'm having sticker shock. The prices have increased so much. The Deluxe Beverage Package is $714 CDN each now. Refreshment package for DD is $308 CDN.

 

I get inflation. It has been almost two years. But in the case, the refreshment package has increased 64%. The Deluxe Beverage Package has increased 46%.

 

I'm pretty sure DH is going to want to get the Deluxe package regardless but there is no way DD will drink $308 worth of beverages.

For the refreshment package at $188 that’s $26 a day which is about $19 a day US which is the same price.  Keep checking your prices as the refreshment goes on sale quite often for that price. 

 

Same idea with the delux package...keep watching. 

[brillohead]

There are sales periodically... just watch for prices to change and purchase when it gets to a price you can justify.

If the cost of the package is more than the cost of the drinks you would consume, you don't HAVE to get a package -- just buy each drink one at a time as you go.  

If your daughter isn't 21yo, you don't have to get her a package at all, either, even if you and your spouse do get the booze package.  Or you can get her a soda package instead of a Refreshment package.

[canadian girl 77]

On 1/19/2020 at 11:39 AM, Ourusualbeach said:

For the refreshment package at $188 that’s $26 a day which is about $19 a day US which is the same price.  Keep checking your prices as the refreshment goes on sale quite often for that price. 

 

Same idea with the delux package...keep watching. 

The refreshment package is actually $308 (or $44 per day). 1.5 years ago it was $188. 

 

I know I don't have to buy anything. I'm just surprised at how much the price has jumped. Especially for the non-booze package. Booze has gone from $60 per day to  $102. I haven't seen much in the way of price fluctuations so far. I thought it changed daily last time.

 

I'm guessing nobody has any insight into when they do sales?

[Clarea]

2 minutes ago, canadian girl 77 said:

 ...

 

I'm guessing nobody has any insight into when they do sales?

 

No discernable pattern

[suesnake2002]

I've noticed on all my up coming cruises that the unlimited drink package is up by about ten bucks per person per day

[JessyCruises]

Our exchange rate has gone up too, which does not help 

[ONECRUISER]

9 minutes ago, Canadian Disney Mom said:

Our exchange rate has gone up too, which does not help 

Makes big differece at time's. Live on Boarder and some yrs rate can swing where dealing in Hundreds/thousands dollar purchase can matter 

Edited January 21, 2020 by ONECRUISER

[canadian girl 77]

It's odd, because the rate was pretty close. 0.767 now compared to 0.762 in July 2018.

[JessyCruises]

26 minutes ago, canadian girl 77 said:

It's odd, because the rate was pretty close. 0.767 now compared to 0.762 in July 2018.

Well there goes that theory lol.

 

I have been pretty much only booking through the casino so I am only seeing the package prices in USD now.

[shipshape sam]

Can you imagine a better scenario where they can raise prices  on cruise fares and apparently anything else they want to and have passenger capacity also growing.  What a great business right now for cruise lines.  

[Shekim]

On 1/19/2020 at 10:39 AM, Ourusualbeach said:

For the refreshment package at $188 that’s $26 a day which is about $19 a day US which is the same price.  Keep checking your prices as the refreshment goes on sale quite often for that price. 

 

Same idea with the delux package...keep watching. 

Oh man, I hope I catch a break on the refreshment package. I paid $28 a day

[charmy98]

It's showing $75.81 CAD today, 21st Jan

[cruisincadian]

In April 2018 on the Allure, we paid 896$ Canadian for the drink package for the two of us. Our upcoming Harmony cruise in April 2020, it's $1340 and that's with the 30% discount applied. Royal has a lot of bright people that are paid to figure out how to maximize profits. There is obviously enough people willing to pay these prices so there is no incentive to lower prices.

[Magicat]

Unless you find a good deal, stick to pay to play.  Watch for drink specials at the Casino bar for mamosas and Windjammer for ceasars.  Usually a bucket of beer sale and even a drink card.

[Shekim]

22 hours ago, Shekim said:

Oh man, I hope I catch a break on the refreshment package. I paid $28 a day

Yay! I caught a break, checked this morning and the price has gone down to $22 a day. Called and canceled the other one and repurchased at the new price! It pays to check often

[mom2tcdx2]

Honestly seeing the constant changing of prices from sailing to sailing and day to day, really doesn't have me looking into Royal for future cruises.  Honestly I need to be able to budget and not knowing those prices when I book just doesn't work for us.  Really wish they would just choose a price and stick with it.  

[grouchomarx]

17 minutes ago, mom2tcdx2 said:

Honestly seeing the constant changing of prices from sailing to sailing and day to day, really doesn't have me looking into Royal for future cruises.  Honestly I need to be able to budget and not knowing those prices when I book just doesn't work for us.  Really wish they would just choose a price and stick with it.  

I agree I don't like this game they play.  The package is containing the same essential options on any cruise ship going anywhere.  There is absolutely no justification for the price changing game.  I only sailed Royal once and don't remember checking the prices all the time, I think we just bought the package outright not knowing this is their practice. We probably overpaid, it was probably cheaper at some point before the purchase date.  At least on Princess it's one price for everyone. No games.  Do they think people like this?  Or we're just a bunch of suckers willing to play?  I don't even think we're going to buy it, even though we drink a lot we can just go drink by drink and if we don't make out against what a package would have been, so be it.   We did that on our last cruise and we really didn't care, we were like $200 over gthe package price and that was fine for our budget.  I like that Royal has a better per day price than Princess (at least today they do, at least on my particular cruise), that is the only real reason I was looking into it in the first place.

[mom2tcdx2]

Each line as far as I can tell has set pricing, that allows you to be able to budget out your entire vacation upfront.  The waiting game with Royal of not even pricing out earlier is ridiculous.  We did the Allure in October 2018 and paid $32 a day for the drink package for a cruise at Halloween.  I saw slight fluctuations between $32-$40 most of the time.  We decided to book the Harmony kind of assuming the pricing would be roughly about the same.  Ha - not even close.  The cheapest the drink package has been was $61 and the highest about $72.  I have seen the internet packages go from $22 a day to $44 a day for the same package.  The dining package lowest has been $179.  You are locked into the cruise before you even know a lot of the pricing based on final payment date, etc.  

 

Others in my group have said the same thing.  We will probably stick with Carnival, NCL, Princess, or MSC.  Heck even when I go to Disney World I can still at least budget 12 months out how much dining, park tickets etc are going to cost without the day to day fluctuations.  

[brillohead]

10 minutes ago, mom2tcdx2 said:

We will probably stick with Carnival, NCL, Princess, or MSC.

Just make sure you budget for the gratuity on MSC -- they add that to every drink purchased with the package, so you can still rack up quite a bill at the end of the week.

[mom2tcdx2]

1 hour ago, brillohead said:

Just make sure you budget for the gratuity on MSC -- they add that to every drink purchased with the package, so you can still rack up quite a bill at the end of the week.

 

They do not add the gratuity on with the drink package.  I have sailed 4 cruises with MSC and had the drink package on all 4.  Never paid any gratuity and our last sailing was just this past September.  If you prepurchase the package you don't even have to add the gratuity on with the purchase as you do with Royal, NCL and Carnival.  

[brillohead]

36 minutes ago, mom2tcdx2 said:

 

They do not add the gratuity on with the drink package.  I have sailed 4 cruises with MSC and had the drink package on all 4.  Never paid any gratuity and our last sailing was just this past September.  If you prepurchase the package you don't even have to add the gratuity on with the purchase as you do with Royal, NCL and Carnival.  

It might depend on which package you have with them, as they have more than one.  I know there was an additional 80-cents or so charged for every soda in November on Meraviglia, and over a dollar for every Miller Lite.  

[mitsugirly]

I got an email from RC that stated:

 

Indulge, your beverage options are endless! Then said classic soda package was 30% off and bundle with voom and it was 30% off. When I go to order, it's the same price. The email doesn't give any discount or promo code to use. Anyone???

[Clarea]

9 minutes ago, mitsugirly said:

I got an email from RC that stated:

 

Indulge, your beverage options are endless! Then said classic soda package was 30% off and bundle with voom and it was 30% off. When I go to order, it's the same price. The email doesn't give any discount or promo code to use. Anyone???

 

This is standard operating procedure for RC.  The price you see already includes the fake discount.

 

Ignore any "percent off" numbers touted by RC, just look at the bottom line price.