Updated drink package information

[Boytjie]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

The drink package cuts off at midnight on the last day of the cruise.

 

Except for coffee! The last morning we went to the Explorations Cafe and got our usual Americano with an extra shot. 😄

 

[puppycanducruise]

1 hour ago, Boytjie said:

 

Except for coffee! The last morning we went to the Explorations Cafe and got our usual Americano with an extra shot. 😄

 

Good to know.  Thanks.

[roxybear135]

Just received a response from the Office of the President regarding whether the Elite Beverage Package includes unlimited non-alcoholic drinks or not.  Turns out I was right and it does indeed include unlimited non-alcoholic beverages (they told me previously it did not).  So I suggest to anyone who is buying the Elite Beverage Package to print out the PDF I posted previously and this email so you don't have any issues on board.

[Florida_gal_50]

7 minutes ago, roxybear135 said:

Just received a response from the Office of the President regarding whether the Elite Beverage Package includes unlimited non-alcoholic drinks or not.  Turns out I was right and it does indeed include unlimited non-alcoholic beverages (they told me previously it did not).  So I suggest to anyone who is buying the Elite Beverage Package to print out the PDF I posted previously and this email so you don't have any issues on board.

And hopefully that will be enough.  Something tells me they will say it’s wrong.  I’m impressed with the speed of the answer.  I had an issue with being double charged for a cabana.  They eventually reversed it but it came out at a lower rate due to currency changes.  It was all their fault and I fought with them for two months.  

[roxybear135]

Hopefully it will be enough.  We aren't sailing until the end of the year, so hopefully they update their website before then to reflect this info.  If people who are on earlier sailings and get the Elite Beverage Package can confirm if they truly got unlimited non-alcoholic drinks while on board, that would be great.  What a pain this has been in just trying to get a straight answer and even then you can't be sure HAL will follow it!

[kazu]

19 minutes ago, roxybear135 said:

Just received a response from the Office of the President regarding whether the Elite Beverage Package includes unlimited non-alcoholic drinks or not.  Turns out I was right and it does indeed include unlimited non-alcoholic beverages (they told me previously it did not).  So I suggest to anyone who is buying the Elite Beverage Package to print out the PDF I posted previously and this email so you don't have any issues on board.

 

Excellent. I would print off your email if you are getting it and take it with you “in case”.  

[figmentdj]

Thanks for staying on this. Printing out your letter as we speak.

[cruise kitty]

Thank you to all who did so much legwork on this 🙂 Will be printing out this letter & taking it along with us... although I am hoping in the next tow weeks enough cruises will have gone, so that they have the kinks worked out 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

[neuronbob]

Thanks for this thread.  Been going back and forth about whether to buy a drink package.  We don't drink any alcohol, and we all, other than my son, drink mostly water with the rare virgin cocktail at dinner.  We are probably better off WITHOUT a drink package unless the price of water onboard is exorbitant.

[roxybear135]

12 minutes ago, neuronbob said:

Thanks for this thread.  Been going back and forth about whether to buy a drink package.  We don't drink any alcohol, and we all, other than my son, drink mostly water with the rare virgin cocktail at dinner.  We are probably better off WITHOUT a drink package unless the price of water onboard is exorbitant.

You might want to buy the Quench package, which includes 15 drinks a day of anything non-alcoholic.  Water bottles were just over $5 on our Alaska cruise because of the 18% gratuity, so if you're going to have several non-alcoholic drinks a day, you would probably be better off price wise with getting this package.

 

I just looked and it's $148.26 for a 7 day cruise for this package, including gratuity.  So I guess you will have to roughly estimate how much water/soda/smoothies/etc. you think you'll drink and see if it's worth buying the package or not.

Edited November 4, 2021 by roxybear135

[WillWorkForCruise121]

So this is interesting.   I had a chat just now with HAL through the website and the agent claimed BOTH beverage packages feature unlimited non-alcoholic drinks. 

[OVgirl]

11 minutes ago, WillWorkForCruise121 said:

So this is interesting.   I had a chat just now with HAL through the website and the agent claimed BOTH beverage packages feature unlimited non-alcoholic drinks. 

Okay, another version of the drink package.  Guess we'll all be downloading that chat and bringing it with us.

But I'm guessing that the cruise contract will over-ride anything said in a chat.

[roxybear135]

50 minutes ago, WillWorkForCruise121 said:

So this is interesting.   I had a chat just now with HAL through the website and the agent claimed BOTH beverage packages feature unlimited non-alcoholic drinks. 

If you're going to call ship services like it seems you might from your chat, can you ask them about it and report back here as to what they say?  The info that I got from the Office of the President was different from what that chat agent said.

[WillWorkForCruise121]

1 hour ago, roxybear135 said:

If you're going to call ship services like it seems you might from your chat, can you ask them about it and report back here as to what they say?  The info that I got from the Office of the President was different from what that chat agent said.

 

I called Ship Services and they said that the Elite package is unlimited non-alcoholic beverages and 15 alcoholic beverages up to $15.   The signature (included with "have it all") includes up to 15 beverages of any kind up to $11.  So, what the letter earlier in this thread stated seems to be factual.  I am guessing the chat agent was mistaken or had outdated information.   The agent from the Ship Services did not seem unsure, she was confident that those were the facts. 

 

She also told us it can only be booked on board and it is $11.80/day including gratuity per passenger.   Looks like we will be upgrading on our cruise. 

[roxybear135]

Thanks for calling.  I figured the letter I had received from the Office of the President that I posted in this thread was correct but it would have been nice to save some money if the chat agent had been correct.  I noticed that HAL still hasn't updated their website regarding the FAQ section on the beverage package so not surprising that some agents haven't been updated either.  So frustrating how hard it is to get the correct info from them!

[Dunmore2]

There are definitely people working at HAL who do not have updated information. A few months ago, we were told our signature package included drinks below $8. I knew this wasn’t true, but the inexperienced employee kept insisting. 
 

[kj329]

Question, about to sail Holland for the first time. On other lines I have been on, the bar wouldn't even bother swiping our cards for soda as they knew we had the drink package. If I just grab a soda from the bar, does that count toward the 15? Are they strict about swiping cards? What about the freestyle machines? Does a soda from their count as on of the 15? I know they have chips in the cups to make sure only those with drink packages use them, but do they count as well? Any ideas?

[CruiserBruce]

14 minutes ago, kj329 said:

Question, about to sail Holland for the first time. On other lines I have been on, the bar wouldn't even bother swiping our cards for soda as they knew we had the drink package. If I just grab a soda from the bar, does that count toward the 15? Are they strict about swiping cards? What about the freestyle machines? Does a soda from their count as on of the 15? I know they have chips in the cups to make sure only those with drink packages use them, but do they count as well? Any ideas?

Yes, as discussed all throughout this thread, soft drinks count for your 15 if you have the Signature Beverage Package. So, unless you get a bartender who is being nice, your card will get swiped, and it will count.

[YYC F/A]

I should add that to get 2 litres of water similar to a large bottle on the Celebrity Premium package - that will count as four of your 15 drinks on the SBP.

 

Coffee Baileys from the Dutch Cafe, or any mixed drink requiring a canned mixer, will also count as two drinks. 
 

if you like to stay hydrated and start your morning with a coffee baileys or two, that will be as much as 8 of your 15 drink limits before lunch. 

[Al Aboard]

Does anyone know if there is a simple way to see on the Navigator app what your current drink count is for the day?  I liked a suggestion I saw earlier of getting a bottled water or 2 at the end of the day on a light count day to store in the room fridge and use the next day, but I don't want to walk around with a counter in my pocket to see where I stand - especially of some drinks may count as double.

 

[VMax1700]

14 hours ago, Al Aboard said:

Does anyone know if there is a simple way to see on the Navigator app what your current drink count is for the day? 

No, there is no count shown.

[recruiter 28]

We were on the Rotterdam VII TA and had the signature beverage package.   We ordered freshly squeezed oj everyday and it was covered on the package. However, on day 12 we were suddenly charged for it. We were told it was not covered!  Beware all future cruisers...we were not happy.

[KroozNut]

On 10/12/2021 at 7:35 AM, figmentdj said:

Thanks for staying on this. Printing out your letter as we speak.

 

Me too... thanks!

[esimon]

wish the drink packages were less expensive - We enjoy drinking on Vaca but we can't drink enough to make it worth the price 

[Unlvswezel]

Has anyone experienced upgrading from Signature to Elite while on board? I called HAL to upgrade before my trip in 3 weeks and was told no upgrading allowed, not early and not on ship. I thought i read someone was able to upgrade prior to boarding but i cant seem to find the post. Any insight?