Bev Package Cost trends?

[katiemylady]

Just signed up for our May 25th Holy Land cruise on Odyssey of the Seas, and wondering if people have experience with the UDP trends? We are seeing $69/person/day right now on the website. I expect those will probably go down before the trip, and I should keep checking? Last time we cruised (3 years ago), I know that the cost went down over time as we led up to the sail date. Is that still the norm?

[Biker19]

5 minutes ago, katiemylady said:

Is that still the norm?

No, there's no real pattern - it all depends on how well they sell, which is individual by ship/itinerary.

[ValerieJo]

The trend I noticed was the big jump in the price of the soda package.   We always buy it and it usually around $8.99 per person although I have found it on sale (Black Friday) for $5.49 per person.   I just booked a cruise for May and noticed that the "sale" price for the soda package is now $11.49 per person.  I've never seen it that high.   Hoping it drops a bit.  

[Flipchild32]

I know that for my cruise in April. The Refreshment package from March 1- yesterday was 45% off so 13.99/ppd and the classic was 10.99/ppd.... log on today and the classic is now 30% off at 8.99/ppd but the refreshment went up in price

[dcgrumpy]

It's $69.99 for my Harmony cruise and $72.99 for my Mariner cruise. The lowest I've seen for the 2 are $66.99/$69.99. 🙄

[billslowsky]

3 hours ago, Flipchild32 said:

I know that for my cruise in April. The Refreshment package from March 1- yesterday was 45% off so 13.99/ppd and the classic was 10.99/ppd.... log on today and the classic is now 30% off at 8.99/ppd but the refreshment went up in price

I saw exactly the same for my March cruise.  And the booze package yo-yos between 20% off and 25% off, today it went back to 20% off ($59.99).  I cancelled and rebooked my soda package.

[Idareu1970]

I’ve been looking at these options for a while, waiting for a price change (read drop) but they never seem to change for me 🤷‍♂️
 

Currently $11.99 for soft drink package and  $61 for the deluxe (I think it was $61 as I can’t seem to be able to log in at the moment 🤦‍♂️)

 

After converting US$ to Australian dollars, for 2 ppl cruising, the Deluxe package would be almost $1500 Australian!  As much as we Aussies love a drink, that’s a lot of coin just for grog!

[DCPIV]

You can always buy it now and then watch the price.  If it goes down, cancel the package you have for a full refund, and then buy it again at the lower price.  If it's something that works for you at the current price, you're talking about the difference between a good deal and a better deal.

 

Prices are up for everything everywhere, so don't be surprised if it doesn't go down much.  No telling.

[vidsmart]

I think you should buy it at whatever price it is at now. If if goes down just cancel and repurchase. My recollection is that prices are more likely to go up as the cruise date approaches. (Hopefully that’s not the case with Coco Beach Club—currently double for my May cruise vs what I paid for a Feb cruise)

[PhillyFan33579]

We have been on 5 RCI cruises since last year with another 10 RCI cruises booked thru March 2023. Based on my experience, prices for drink packages are higher than they were pre COVID. 

Edited March 13, 2022 by PhillyFan33579

[orville99]

The good news is that beers are now over $10/bottle, so the UDP is becoming easier to justify🍻

[Ilikebigboats]

I have 6 adults celebrating college graduations, so I will be spending $3500 for the drink packages for a 7 night Odyssey cruise out of Rome! I should have booked a all inclusive like Celebrity, NCL, or even a Silversea vacation, would have spent a lot less money! Lesson learned😖

[pkster]

4 minutes ago, Ilikebigboats said:

I have 6 adults celebrating college graduations, so I will be spending $3500 for the drink packages for a 7 night Odyssey cruise out of Rome! I should have booked a all inclusive like Celebrity, NCL, or even a Silversea vacation, would have spent a lot less money! Lesson learned😖

Norwegian's "free" drink package is really not free at all.  They still charge you 20% gratuity on the $99 "retail value" of the package, so $19.80 gratuity per person per day.

[JoeyJoeJoe]

I was also playing the waiting game for my cruise on the 8th of April started at $62+18% ended up paying $69+18% 😞 Price has just been sneaking up bit by bit since I booked the cruise. I say book it now if you want it you can always cancel and change. Wish I followed my own advice! 

Also another tip if you want the Ultmate dining package book that too. I waited too long now they are not even offering it!

[DCPIV]

On 3/13/2022 at 12:33 PM, Ilikebigboats said:

I have 6 adults celebrating college graduations, so I will be spending $3500 for the drink packages for a 7 night Odyssey cruise out of Rome! I should have booked a all inclusive like Celebrity, NCL, or even a Silversea vacation, would have spent a lot less money! Lesson learned😖

 

You might've done better with Celebrity, but I think you would find that any Silversea cruise would run you more than an extra $600 per person!

[SNJCruisers]

On 3/13/2022 at 9:32 AM, PhillyFan33579 said:

We have been on 5 RCI cruises since last year with another 10 RCI cruises booked thru March 2023. Based on my experience, prices for drink packages are higher than they were pre COVID. 

Because of the idiotic Dynamic Pricing Policy more than likely on all five of my currently booked RCI cruises I will become a teetotaler for the first time on a cruise in over 10 years.  Stuck with refreshment package from Black Friday sale on my B2B on the Oasis in June.  Don't expect the UBP to drop to a reasonable 60 bucks after gratuity.  So I'll just enjoy my alcohol on Princess, Celebrity and NCL with their included packages and pay for the reasonably priced Cheers on Carnival.

[SNJCruisers]

On 3/13/2022 at 1:43 PM, pkster said:

Norwegian's "free" drink package is really not free at all.  They still charge you 20% gratuity on the $99 "retail value" of the package, so $19.80 gratuity per person per day.

And when does the dynamic pricing policy on Royal let you get the UBP for 19.80 per day?  And don't bring up the 18.00 glitch from a few years ago.

Edited March 14, 2022 by SNJCruisers

[Grandma Dazzles]

On 3/13/2022 at 12:33 PM, Ilikebigboats said:

I have 6 adults celebrating college graduations, so I will be spending $3500 for the drink packages for a 7 night Odyssey cruise out of Rome! I should have booked a all inclusive like Celebrity, NCL, or even a Silversea vacation, would have spent a lot less money! Lesson learned😖

Possibly not - cruise would have cost you more -  RC owns Celebrity and you might have found the actual cruise would have cost more. Plus a big difference in Odyssey and Celebrity ships. 

[PhillyFan33579]

1 hour ago, SNJCruisers said:

Because of the idiotic Dynamic Pricing Policy more than likely on all five of my currently booked RCI cruises I will become a teetotaler for the first time on a cruise in over 10 years.  Stuck with refreshment package from Black Friday sale on my B2B on the Oasis in June.  Don't expect the UBP to drop to a reasonable 60 bucks after gratuity.  So I'll just enjoy my alcohol on Princess, Celebrity and NCL with their included packages and pay for the reasonably priced Cheers on Carnival.

I definitely couldn’t/wouldn’t go on a cruise without a drink package. Fortunately I can easily afford the current prices for the deluxe drink package, but I understand I am fortunate and realize a difference of even $10 per day can make a big difference for a lot of people. 

[SNJCruisers]

3 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

I definitely couldn’t/wouldn’t go on a cruise without a drink package. Fortunately I can easily afford the current prices for the deluxe drink package, but I understand I am fortunate and realize a difference of even $10 per day can make a big difference for a lot of people. 

The RCI stockholders love a cruiser like you that can easily afford the current prices for the drink package. Of course it all depends upon which ship you're on and the time of year how much the exact price is that you can afford.  Ten dollars per day difference is no big deal, but if it's 15 per day times 2 people that's just over 200 for the week.  A drop in the bucket for some, but a higher percentage of the overall vacation budget for others.

[Surfguyxxx]

On 3/9/2022 at 9:46 AM, Flipchild32 said:

I know that for my cruise in April. The Refreshment package from March 1- yesterday was 45% off so 13.99/ppd and the classic was 10.99/ppd.... log on today and the classic is now 30% off at 8.99/ppd but the refreshment went up in price

Doing a TA on Jewel in late April and the Refreshment Package up to $20 per day up from $18 per day about 2 weeks ago 😬.  That's quite a hike.  UDP stayed the same but the Voom went up also from $40.78 for 3 devices up to $53.95.  25% +.  

[SRF]

It still comes down to whether you will average 5 - 6 drinks, or more, per day.

 

If yes, the drink package is cheaper. 

 

If no, then the drink package is not cheaper, but may be preferable for the convenience (no receipts, no checking if your bill is correct, no second guessing if you want a drink or not).

[Surfguyxxx]

16 hours ago, SRF said:

It still comes down to whether you will average 5 - 6 drinks, or more, per day.

 

If yes, the drink package is cheaper. 

 

If no, then the drink package is not cheaper, but may be preferable for the convenience (no receipts, no checking if your bill is correct, no second guessing if you want a drink or not).

Yes the convenience is fantastic but I get a couple of Cappuccinos' in the mornings, fresh squeezed OJ, bottles of sparkling water during dinner, bottled water throughout the day, sometimes a few Mock-tails and some waters for the coffee maker in the room.  I don't drink alcohol so this is my vice.  

[SRF]

1 minute ago, Surfguyxxx said:

Yes the convenience is fantastic but I get a couple of Cappuccinos' in the mornings, fresh squeezed OJ, bottles of sparkling water during dinner, bottled water throughout the day, sometimes a few Mock-tails and some waters for the coffee maker in the room.  I don't drink alcohol so this is my vice.  

 

I understand and agree.  Even though we have the 4 Diamond drinks each this next cruise, I may get use refreshment packages for the coffees, fresh OK, and water.

[DCPIV]

4 hours ago, SRF said:

 

I understand and agree.  Even though we have the 4 Diamond drinks each this next cruise, I may get use refreshment packages for the coffees, fresh OK, and water.

 

We did a little "back of the napkin" figuring along those lines for our recent Liberty cruise.  Getting at least the Refreshment package was a hands-down no-brainer, vouchers or otherwise.  It took no time at all to add up water, espresso and other coffee, fresh OJ, etc., and even the occasional mocktail.  Just the water cost nearly got us to the price of the package.

 

On a related note, whenever I figure out the value of the Deluxe package, the first thing I do is back out the price of the Refreshment package, and then I only look at the cost of booze for figuring out the rest.