Specialty Dining Package

[twentyknots]

We’re about ready to book the Apex for a 7-day January Cruise.  We’re trying to understand how the prepaid specialty dining works.  From what I can gather, the cost of the package for 3 meals is $109 per person, plus 18% gratuity so $129.  Can that be used to eat in any of the specialty restaurants for a total of 3 times regardless of the cover?

Edited August 26, 2022 by twentyknots
grammar

[bama4cruisin]

Yes, but the only potential downside of the package . . . You cannot make any reservations prior to boarding.  If you wish to dine in Eden as a part of the package, you will need to head immediately upon boarding to one of the specialty restaurants or the stand outside Oceanview Cafe to book all your reservations.  You may need to be flexible with dates and time for Eden in particular.

[harbourxie]

25 minutes ago, bama4cruisin said:

Yes, but the only potential downside of the package . . . You cannot make any reservations prior to boarding.  If you wish to dine in Eden as a part of the package, you will need to head immediately upon boarding to one of the specialty restaurants or the stand outside Oceanview Cafe to book all your reservations.  You may need to be flexible with dates and time for Eden in particular.

One benefits for Concierge Class is :Main and specialty restaurant seating time preferences

Does it mean that I can get better chance to get the reservation for Specialty Dining, even if I only purchase the Dining Package? 1st on Celebrity, please help! Thanks, 

[jelayne]

With the dining package you can not book any reservations until you are on the ship.  In our experience the prime days and times are often unavailable by the time you board. Depending upon the ship some restaurants are always heavily booked.  On Edge Class Eden, Le Voyage and Fine Cut Steak House are heavily booked.  S Class Murano is the most popular.  Currently on our October cruise there are no reservations available for Eden, Le Voyage, Fine Cut has a few nights at 9:30 same for Roof Top Grill.   They are probably holding some reservations made on board and for high end Suite guests who get specialty dining included.

 

Does Concierge class get priority, maybe but Celebrity is fond of  "priority" as a marketing tool but there are other who will have priority over Concierge; Suites and Zenith.  

[jg51]

.

In our many years of cruising on Celebrity ships (mostly Solstice-class ships), we have often booked specialty-restaurant packages on Embarkation Day -- helped by a crew member sitting at a table near the Guest Services desk.  We believe that we have paid exactly the package price requested -- and that the price has always included a service charge (originally 15%, later 18%, and maybe 20% now).  The last time we were aboard Equinox (which was not long ago), an eight-dinner package was going for $315 (if we recall correctly) -- almost $40 per meal, which is quite a lot more than a year or so ago.

 

Can anyone who is aboard now (or has very recently disembarked) confirm that the package prices being asked (at the table on E-Day) still include the service charge (which many folks mistakenly call a "gratuity")?  We think that, now that package prices have been greatly increased, an additional, unprecedented service charge would be quite shocking; it would add about $63 to the aforementioned $315 package price.  [PS:  Lest anyone get the wrong impression -- namely, that we are miserly -- the truth is that we have always liberally given cash tips to waiters, sommeliers, and bar servers -- both in MDRs and SRs.]

 

Thanks, in advance, for your reply.

,

Edited August 31, 2022 by jg51

[jg51]

.

May we try the above just one more time?  It seems impossible that no one could reply!

Thanks.

.

[vjmatty]

On 8/26/2022 at 2:36 PM, jelayne said:

With the dining package you can not book any reservations until you are on the ship.  In our experience the prime days and times are often unavailable by the time you board. Depending upon the ship some restaurants are always heavily booked. 

 

Is this why I can never find an unlimited dining package on Celebrity? Or does that kind of package not exist?

[CaroleSS]

Not quite the answer @jg51 asked, but for our upcoming cruise, if I book a dining package, there is a 18% "gratuity" added to the amount.

 

it specifically calls that amount a "gratuity" and not  "service charge"

 

The prices of the specialty restaurants has gone up significantly!

[Tmc1512]

11 hours ago, CaroleSS said:

Not quite the answer @jg51 asked, but for our upcoming cruise, if I book a dining package, there is a 18% "gratuity" added to the amount.

 

it specifically calls that amount a "gratuity" and not  "service charge"

 

The prices of the specialty restaurants has gone up significantly!

Agree! Same for us and historically, when we have purchased the package that gratuity is charged. So, that part isn’t new. Happy sailing 

[Mark_T]

On 8/31/2022 at 3:53 PM, jg51 said:

Can anyone who is aboard now (or has very recently disembarked) confirm that the package prices being asked (at the table on E-Day) still include the service charge (which many folks mistakenly call a "gratuity")?

It is a recent change, but there is room for confusion, if you look at the package prices on a cruise departing from the UK/Australia then the prices will include the 18% service charge and there will not be any additional charge above that on payment.

 

For other departures there will be an additional 18% added when you pay...

[jg51]

On 8/31/2022 at 10:53 AM, jg51 said:

.

In our many years of cruising on Celebrity ships (mostly Solstice-class ships), we have often booked specialty-restaurant packages on Embarkation Day -- helped by a crew member sitting at a table near the Guest Services desk.  We believe that we have paid exactly the package price requested -- and that the price has always included a service charge (originally 15%, later 18%, and maybe 20% now).  The last time we were aboard Equinox (which was not long ago), an eight-dinner package was going for $315 (if we recall correctly) -- almost $40 per meal, which is quite a lot more than a year or so ago.

 

Can anyone who is aboard now (or has very recently disembarked) confirm that the package prices being asked (at the table on E-Day) still include the service charge (which many folks mistakenly call a "gratuity")?  We think that, now that package prices have been greatly increased, an additional, unprecedented service charge would be quite shocking; it would add about $63 to the aforementioned $315 package price.  [PS:  Lest anyone get the wrong impression -- namely, that we are miserly -- the truth is that we have always liberally given cash tips to waiters, sommeliers, and bar servers -- both in MDRs and SRs.]

 

Thanks, in advance, for your reply.

On 8/31/2022 at 10:53 AM, jg51 said:

,

 

23 hours ago, vjmatty said:

 

Is this why I can never find an unlimited dining package on Celebrity? Or does that kind of package not exist?

 

13 hours ago, CaroleSS said:

Not quite the answer @jg51 asked, but for our upcoming cruise, if I book a dining package, there is a 18% "gratuity" added to the amount.

 

it specifically calls that amount a "gratuity" and not  "service charge"

 

The prices of the specialty restaurants has gone up significantly!

 

2 hours ago, Tmc1512 said:

Agree! Same for us and historically, when we have purchased the package that gratuity is charged. So, that part isn’t new. Happy sailing 

 

54 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

It is a recent change, but there is room for confusion, if you look at the package prices on a cruise departing from the UK/Australia then the prices will include the 18% service charge and there will not be any additional charge above that on payment.  For other departures there will be an additional 18% added when you pay...

.

Whoah!  We are totally confused by what people are saying, seemingly in reply to our post -- which we have "re-quoted" at the top of this reply.  We beg everyone to explain things more clearly and at greater length, if you have something that is truly germaine to the specific subject that we have raised.  Thank you!

 

We are not at all interested (or asking) about purchasing a single meal (or multiple meals) in specialty restaurants [SRs] PRIOR TO our cruise.  Please do not respond about pre-cruise purchases!  We are asking only about purchasing multi-meal packages on EMBARKATION DAY  (E-Day) -- after getting aboard a ship.

 

It is our memory -- correct or faulty -- that the prices that are advertised for packages, purchased on board (on E-Day), already include a service charge ... and that "X" does not add an additional 20% over and above those prices. 

 

As stated by us in our initial post, the price advertised at a table on deck 3 of the Equinox, last month, was about $315 for eight meals on E-Day.  Therefore our question is simply this:  Will we be charged ONLY that amount ($315) -- or is "X" now going to add another $63 on top of that $315 (i.e., a new service charge of 20%) on E-Day?  If so, that would result in an average price per (allegedly discounted) meal of about $48 -- which may be 20% off (at most). 

 

In our opinion, $48 per meal is far too high an amount to charge guests who are making such a significant commitment of funds.  People who are buying eight meals ought to be able to expect what they received in the past -- a discount of about 1/3 off the regular price, not just 1/5.

 

PS:  The reason we initially said that Celebrity adds "service charges" -- not "gratuities" is this:  A gratuity is a (1) FREE-WILL offering that is (2) given by a customer AFTER services have been rendered.  If a customer is FORCED to pay extra BEFORE a service is rendered, that is NOT a "gratuity," but is instead a "service charge."  The word, "gratuity," comes from the Latin word for "free" (as in "free-will") -- and that Latin word, also used in English, is "gratis."  People give tips (gratuities) to waiters, etc., AFTER they have shown themselves worthy to receive them.  If we must give a waiter (or a stateroom steward) something in advance, that is NOT a gratuity!

.

Edited September 3, 2022 by jg51

[AndyCapn]

5 hours ago, jg51 said:

Whoah!  We are totally confused by what people are saying, seemingly in reply to our post -- which we have "re-quoted" at the top of this reply.  We beg everyone to explain things more clearly and at greater length, if you have something that is truly germaine to the specific subject that we have raised.  Thank you!

 

We are not at all interested (or asking) about purchasing a single meal (or multiple meals) in specialty restaurants [SRs] PRIOR TO our cruise.  Please do not respond about pre-cruise purchases!  We are asking only about purchasing multi-meal packages on EMBARKATION DAY  (E-Day) -- after getting aboard a ship.

 

It is our memory -- correct or faulty -- that the prices that are advertised for packages, purchased on board (on E-Day), already include a service charge ... and that "X" does not add an additional 20% over and above those prices. 

 

As stated by us in our initial post, the price advertised at a table on deck 3 of the Equinox, last month, was about $315 for eight meals on E-Day.  Therefore our question is simply this:  Will we be charged ONLY that amount ($315) -- or is "X" now going to add another $63 on top of that $315 (i.e., a new service charge of 20%) on E-Day?  If so, that would result in an average price per (allegedly discounted) meal of about $48 -- which may be 20% off (at most). 

 

In our opinion, $48 per meal is far too high an amount to charge guests who are making such a significant commitment of funds.  People who are buying eight meals ought to be able to expect what they received in the past -- a discount of about 1/3 off the regular price, not just 1/5.

 

PS:  The reason we initially said that Celebrity adds "service charges" -- not "gratuities" is this:  A gratuity is a (1) FREE-WILL offering that is (2) given by a customer AFTER services have been rendered.  If a customer is FORCED to pay extra BEFORE a service is rendered, that is NOT a "gratuity," but is instead a "service charge."  The word, "gratuity," comes from the Latin word for "free" (as in "free-will") -- and that Latin word, also used in English, is "gratis."  People give tips (gratuities) to waiters, etc., AFTER they have shown themselves worthy to receive them.  If we must give a waiter (or a stateroom steward) something in advance, that is NOT a gratuity!

.

🙄 My condolences to anybody who tried helping and got this lecture for their efforts.

[vjmatty]

6 hours ago, jg51 said:

 

 

 

 

.

Whoah!  We are totally confused by what people are saying, seemingly in reply to our post -- which we have "re-quoted" at the top of this reply.  We beg everyone to explain things more clearly and at greater length, if you have something that is truly germaine to the specific subject that we have raised.  Thank you!

 

We are not at all interested (or asking) about purchasing a single meal (or multiple meals) in specialty restaurants [SRs] PRIOR TO our cruise.  Please do not respond about pre-cruise purchases!  We are asking only about purchasing multi-meal packages on EMBARKATION DAY  (E-Day) -- after getting aboard a ship.

 

It is our memory -- correct or faulty -- that the prices that are advertised for packages, purchased on board (on E-Day), already include a service charge ... and that "X" does not add an additional 20% over and above those prices. 

 

As stated by us in our initial post, the price advertised at a table on deck 3 of the Equinox, last month, was about $315 for eight meals on E-Day.  Therefore our question is simply this:  Will we be charged ONLY that amount ($315) -- or is "X" now going to add another $63 on top of that $315 (i.e., a new service charge of 20%) on E-Day?  If so, that would result in an average price per (allegedly discounted) meal of about $48 -- which may be 20% off (at most). 

 

In our opinion, $48 per meal is far too high an amount to charge guests who are making such a significant commitment of funds.  People who are buying eight meals ought to be able to expect what they received in the past -- a discount of about 1/3 off the regular price, not just 1/5.

 

PS:  The reason we initially said that Celebrity adds "service charges" -- not "gratuities" is this:  A gratuity is a (1) FREE-WILL offering that is (2) given by a customer AFTER services have been rendered.  If a customer is FORCED to pay extra BEFORE a service is rendered, that is NOT a "gratuity," but is instead a "service charge."  The word, "gratuity," comes from the Latin word for "free" (as in "free-will") -- and that Latin word, also used in English, is "gratis."  People give tips (gratuities) to waiters, etc., AFTER they have shown themselves worthy to receive them.  If we must give a waiter (or a stateroom steward) something in advance, that is NOT a gratuity!

.

I think one or both or however many of you there are need to take in a lot less caffeine. 

[broker1217]

jg51--I suggest you start a new thread since your issue is significantly different than the original thread question posted by OP.

 

Additionally---can you not simply contact Celebrity and validate if you have to pay an additional Service Charge if you book at embarkation?

And frankly--I don't see any advertised pricing for packages purchased on embarkation day but I am in US and perhaps you are not?

 

Let's keep this thread directed at the OP original inquiry and try to help them.