Why NCL Premium PLUS Adult Drink Package?

[Sydneyberlin]

1 hour ago, LloydJr said:

Do you folks realize that BAC is directly proportional to body mass?

Looking at my beer belly (or Veuve baby, rather)- that makes a lot of sense!

 

See you at the belly splash competition… 🙂

[Lionkingrichard]

On 1/20/2023 at 8:50 AM, New2cruise2022 said:

1-2 mimosas for breakfast …

1 Mid morning frozen cocktail in the sun …

2 beers at lunch …

1 Mid afternoon frozen cocktail …

1 pre-dinner cocktail …

2-3 glasses of wine during 1.5 - 2 hour dinner …

1 cocktail during a show …

2-3 drinks bar crawling with friends. 
 

That is a day. 

Great plan!

 

Everyone forgets that the Alcohol content in all of these drinks is very small!

 

20 Long islands a day might be a little different outcome!😴

[New2cruise2022]

Just returned from 5-day cruise on the Bliss to Mexico. My brother @drwbrt and I both accepted FAS and both upgraded to FAS+. This includes the Premium Plus Beverage package. 

 

Verdict: Total return on value. Worth it. 
 

I should add that it was worth it for us. Let me explain how we maximized the value of this package. 
 

We captured a tremendous amount of value without even talking about alcohol. Let me start with Starbucks. 

 

Starbucks: Coffee and More. 
We both LOVE coffee. We both TOLERATE Starbucks. We ordered the way we wanted and Starbucks came through. 
- We could order 2 drinks at a time, every time. 
- With the exception of the last morning (disembarkation), never waited in line more than 10 minutes. 
- Baristas were good and busted to get through orders and move people along. 
- Package worked at the Starbucks located in the atrium, and was honored with every meal in MDR, Specialty, and buffet. It was nice at breakfast or to finish a meal if you didn’t want to go to the main location. (The menu was limited to espresso, double espresso, caffe latte, and cappuccino.)

- The menu at the main location was impressive. We ordered cappuccinos, macchiatos, chai teas, frappuccinos, and refreshers. All of them were delicious and well made. 
NOTE: Like I said, neither of us love Starbucks because we feel the beans often have an over roasted taste. We ordered blonde espressos and it made all of the difference. 
GO-TO Drink: Caramel Macchiato Blonde Roast with Oat Milk. That thing was great, EVERY, SINGLE, TIME. 

Surprises: The Strawberry Frappuccino. A nice break from the alcohol, fatty, salty foods throughout the cruise. Refreshers: All of the flavors were good. It was exactly what they claim to be: refreshing. 
Staff: Some of the best staff we came across was at Starbucks. They had the best grasp of the English language and were very knowledgeable about the product. This may have been NCL protecting Starbucks brand, but it really was good. 
 

Water: San Pellegrino and Acqua Panna

This is another place we got our value, all day and every day. @drwbrt likes the bubbles and would order San Pellegrino with every meal. I prefer my water flat and opted for Acqua Panna. The staff was good at bringing it and keeping it flowing as the water of choice. We never asked, but once the service staff saw that we were Premium Plus, they would offer the water to the rest of the table about half of the time. My boys don’t like the bubbles, so they would go with Acqua Panna. My brother was typically 2 bottles of San Pellegrino per meal. We were 2-4 bottles of Acqua Panna per meal. The listed price for these waters is $6.50 per bottle. If we only had four bottles, this was more than $30 per meal with the 20% gratuity. Great value. 
I do not love water. But Acqua Panna drinks really nice. No bad taste. 
NOTE: Both of us like a glass with ice and limes to go with the water. I glass would be brought nearly 100% of the time. Ice would be brought about 50% of the time, even when requested 100% of the time. I think we got limes once or never. Better for a different post, but the observation is that many of the staff suffered from a language barrier and this was a request they could not comprehend. 
 

Fresh Squeezed Juices, Sodas, and Red Bull. 
Fresh squeezed juices are great if you like them. I only tried pineapple and orange juice, but I know they offered others. I liked the orange juice and would regularly have this with breakfast. 
Sodas are not special to a premium plus package (included in the premium package) but just a few observations. On the bartender fountain gun, the Bliss had the following Coke flavors: Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Fanta Orange, Ginger Ale. Coke Zero, as I recall, was typically only available by the can. When I found it by the can, I always ordered two. I would either drink both or take one back to my room. When I could, I would always ask for a can. I prefer can over most fountain. Coke Zero could be hit or miss by bar or time of day, but it was almost always restocked by the next time you asked.
Favorite: Many of the bars had ginger beer in tap. This is different from ginger ale, this is the non-alcoholic ginger beer that is used as a mixer for the Moscow Mules made at the bar. For those looking for a more “dry” experience with a little more excitement than just a soda, try the ginger beer. It drinks really nice and has more bite than sweet. There is a bit of a kick that is almost peppery. Order it at Sugarcane Mojito Bar and they will add candied ginger to non-alcoholic beverage. At any bar, they can add other juices/flavors to make a nice mocktail. 
Great additional value provided in the package. 
Red Bull was offered in three flavors (original, sugar free original, and tropical.) I would typically have 2 per day. Great as a stand alone drink or used as a mixer.

 

For more on the actual alcohol offering, take a look at @drwbrt post on his hard work at the bars to research the offering, one drink at a time. (Ok, 2 drinks at a time.)

 

[New2cruise2022]

One final thought on value:

The value for the Premium Plus was there because of freedom and peace of mind. Having the package, we never worried about additional charges. We were free to order what we wanted. You could look at a bar menu and order what looked good. You weren’t evaluating every drink on price and the likelyhood you would enjoy it. You ordered and you tried. If you liked it, you finished it … and ordered another. If you didn’t, you put your drink aside and tried something else. An example is standing at Maltings with top shelf whiskey at your disposal. On tap is a sign that says “Blackberry Smash.” Because you have everything included you aren’t worried you are wasting your drink. So you try something. And it’s delicious.

This may not be value for everyone, but for us it outweighed making cost-value decisions and being able to relax and enjoy vacation.