When does purchasing a Cheers package become economical?

[BarbieGee]

I nor my cabin partner are big drinkers but on a cruise one likes to have a fancy cocktail a few times per day. If we each had 4 drinks per day per person would that justify purchasing a Cheers package?

 

I understand that specialty coffees are not included in this package. Am I correct?

 

[Mic101680]

Someone posted a link for a drink package calculator just yesterday on a similar topic. Most drinks are around $12, so you could do a general estimate from that and decide.

[1kaper]

https://cruisespotlight.com/drink-package-calculator/
 

Specialty coffees are included. 

[BarbieGee]

Looks like we'd have to have 5 alcoholic drinks per day to reach the cost of the package and the package for a 5 day cruise is $600. ($60 per person per day for 5 days)

 

It is my understanding that one is limited to 15 alcoholic drinks per day per person. Not sure I could get to THAT number! 😆

[Schoifmom]

Just now, BarbieGee said:

Looks like we'd have to have 5 alcoholic drinks per day to reach the cost of the package and the package for a 5 day cruise is $600. ($60 per person per day for 5 days)

 

It would be somewhere around 5 alcoholic drinks per day to reach the break-even point, unless you factor in any non-alcoholic drinks you would get (bottled water, sodas, juices, virgin cocktails, milkshakes, coffees, etc.).

 

FWIW, we had it when it was offered as a promotion bundled with the cruise fare and we found that we would not have broken even if we had purchased it.  But that's just us.

[hard_eight]

Coffees, milkshakes, energy drinks, gatorade etc are also included. 

[sparks1093]

10 minutes ago, BarbieGee said:

Looks like we'd have to have 5 alcoholic drinks per day to reach the cost of the package and the package for a 5 day cruise is $600. ($60 per person per day for 5 days)

 

It is my understanding that one is limited to 15 alcoholic drinks per day per person. Not sure I could get to THAT number! 😆

To be fair all passengers are limited to 15 alcoholic drinks per day. As mentioned specialty coffees are included (both spiked and non-spiked), milkshakes, bottled water, etc. so you could do 4 alcoholic drinks per day and a couple of specialty coffees and a milkshake to round out the day and still break even. Also remember to factor in time in port in your calculations.

[CaptG]

On my upcoming 6 day on the Horizon they offered a promotion for cheers at the time of booking and I believe it was $300 for both of us. We've never done the cheers package before but for that price it's worth it.

[havanadaydreaming]

i can make the drink package worth it, my wife cannot.   

 

on sea days we can make it worthwhile.  but, not so much on port days.  plus, you have to consume drinks daily to meet the price point.  on a 7 day sailing even i need a couple days off to regenerate.  

[Elaine5715]

The drink calculator posted uses the current prices onboard and tells you how much you could save with the drink package.

[ObstructedView2]

1 hour ago, BarbieGee said:

 

 If we each had 4 drinks per day per person would that justify purchasing a Cheers package?

 

 

 

 

 

 

🍷🥂🍾🥤🍹🍺🍸🍷

[Robpuffdaddy]

If you have 6 alcoholic drinks in a 24 hour period, the package is paid for.  Plus you get unlimited specialty coffees ( if you add a shot of alcohol, that is one of your 15 drinks), milkshakes, sodas, juices, energy drinks and bottled water.  So IMO it is worth it.  Love that I will not have a huge bill under my door that last morning for my bar tab.

[sparks1093]

1 minute ago, Robpuffdaddy said:

If you have 6 alcoholic drinks in a 24 hour period, the package is paid for.  Plus you get unlimited specialty coffees ( if you add a shot of alcohol, that is one of your 15 drinks), milkshakes, sodas, juices, energy drinks and bottled water.  So IMO it is worth it.  Love that I will not have a huge bill under my door that last morning for my bar tab.

The coffee shop offers several spiked coffees on their menu, all of which have different ingredients and all of which were quite tasty. You can certainly ask for a shot, but the menu coffees are better than just having a shot in the coffee.

[smears]

There are several wines on the menu that area around $14 per glass. If you feel as though on a certain day you may not get the value out of the cheers package, just have a few of those glasses of wine at dinner and you're halfway there. Also being able to just pick up a bottle of water at any bar is a nice perk. The coffeeshop, gatorades, coconut water, milkshakes...it's not hard to spend $60 bucks a day.

 

I think about it like this...if you got cheers, and ended up not breaking even...like say you would have spent $50 less by just buying drinks one by one...the $50 might still be worth it because over the course of your cruise you didn't have to think about it or worry about keeping track of your tab. There's some value in being able to relax and just not worry about it.

[pinto18]

The problem is ( at least for me) is that I would just drink more to justify the cost. I normally don't buy milkshakes, spiked coffee etc. So I guess the way I think of it is if you on a normal cruise..when you are paying for every drink..  drink 5 plus alcoholic drinks, then its "worth it". We got it when we had a cheers promotion and it was only 120 extra for a 7 day..it was fun! But I think I drank too much lol

[theckenlady]

You also pay full price on port days where your not on the ship if you book excursions. We find it hard to justify the price when we never drink that much on days we are in port.

[ctlyf]

If you are happy with ship's water, Iced Tea and lemonade with the occasional drink or pop, then probably not worth it. If you want to have specialty coffee (spiked or not), bottled water, soda, wine (although you can bring your own) or perhaps want to try a new drink or two, then Cheers might be worth it. If you don't think it will be worth it but don't want to worry about a huge bill at the end of your trip, consider adding Cruise Cash to your account before you sail. 

[cyntil8ing]

34 minutes ago, pinto18 said:

The problem is ( at least for me) is that I would just drink more to justify the cost. I normally don't buy milkshakes, spiked coffee etc. So I guess the way I think of it is if you on a normal cruise..when you are paying for every drink..  drink 5 plus alcoholic drinks, then its "worth it". We got it when we had a cheers promotion and it was only 120 extra for a 7 day..it was fun! But I think I drank too much lol

 

This is me too! My husband insists we get it, and it certainly is a convenience, but boy, do I end up drinking! At home, I drink mostly water, rarely soda, occasional wine, hardly ever cocktails. On a cruise, I find I rarely drink water because I have to get my money's worth.

 

On our cruise this summer, I started the day with a cappuccino, maybe a Mimosa if we went to dining room for breakfast. When we got back on the ship from the day's activities, I went to Red Frog for a rum punch. Then Serenity Bar for something frozen for sail-away. At the pre-dinner show, I would have an Appletini. At dinner, I would start out with a Prosecco, then a glass of something red with my meal, followed by another cappuccino with dessert. After dinner, another Appletini at the Comedy Show, then a Titos and Cranberry nightcap at the Casino Bar. It was a lot!

 

After a very busy day in Lisbon, we accidentally napped through dinner. Later on when we got to the Casino Bar, the bartender remarked that we were only on our second drink of the day. He asked if we were ok! 😄

[ray98]

It is roughly 4 drinks a day for us to break even.  Most of our drinks fall on the upper end, many from the Alchemy which were $12 each on the last cruise.  We always start the day with coffee and have several bottled waters and the occasional soda or milkshake throughout the day.  That total adds up and reduces the amount of drinks needed.

 

That being said, we get Cheers every time.  I have not spent 1 day on a cruise ship in 15 years where I didn't consume at least 6 drinks.

Edited December 1, 2022 by ray98

[Theosprey247]

It's only worth it if you use it. 

 

 

OR

 

Would you rather prepay for your drinks or pay afterwards.

[n6uqqq]

You can make it worth it, it just depends on how much weight you don't mind putting on to make it worth it. Cheers would have been great in my twenties and thirties but I am now 56 so it is a hard pass for me. I have had cheers once when my daughter bought it for me and realized it isn't for me as I am on the downhill side of the mountain. 

[Joebucks]

4 hours ago, pinto18 said:

The problem is ( at least for me) is that I would just drink more to justify the cost. I normally don't buy milkshakes, spiked coffee etc. So I guess the way I think of it is if you on a normal cruise..when you are paying for every drink..  drink 5 plus alcoholic drinks, then its "worth it". We got it when we had a cheers promotion and it was only 120 extra for a 7 day..it was fun! But I think I drank too much lol

 

That's the reality for most people. However, the marketing makes them feel a certain way about their vacation, so they will justify the $1000 beer and milkshake plan.

 

2 hours ago, ray98 said:

It is roughly 4 drinks a day for us to break even.  Most of our drinks fall on the upper end, many from the Alchemy which were $12 each on the last cruise.  We always start the day with coffee and have several bottled waters and the occasional soda or milkshake throughout the day.  That total adds up and reduces the amount of drinks needed.

 

That being said, we get Cheers every time.  I have not spent 1 day on a cruise ship in 15 years where I didn't consume at least 6 drinks.

 

That math is off. Cheers is $70.74 per day with tip. A drink is $14.16. That is 5 (of the more expensive drinks mind you). 

 

Back to the OP, the thread asks when it becomes economical. I don't know that I agree that "breaking even" is economical. Restaurants and bars try their damn hardest to sell you cocktails, their most profitable item. Vacation destinations are smart enough to sell you entire packages of them with this magic "break even number" of vacation serenity and value. To answer your original question, no. 4 drinks per day would not justify the Cheers package. 

 

Even though I did the math above, don't ever think of it as "well yea I could drink 5 drinks in a day!" Ask yourself if you and your roommate will each have 5+ drinks per day. 

[sparks1093]

4 hours ago, theckenlady said:

You also pay full price on port days where your not on the ship if you book excursions. We find it hard to justify the price when we never drink that much on days we are in port.

I personally don't do much drinking ashore. We tend to make up the port days on sea days so Cheers averages out.

[keels81]

It's a no-brainer for my husband and I. Though I hate the plastic waste, I hate the taste of ship water even more and can easily go through 10 bottles of water in a day. I also love a Gatorade first thing in the morning, a couple specialty coffees later in the afternoon or espresso after dinner. And now Carnival has added the Celsius line of canned beverages to their non-alcoholic listing, and I could get close to breaking even before even getting to the booze.

 

Back when I was drinking mostly beer, I'd still buy it but it would definitely question whether spending that much a day on 15 Miller Lites was worth it. But I drink almost exclusively vodka now and with the quality of the cocktail program on board, it's almost like I'm making money.

[n6uqqq]

55 minutes ago, keels81 said:

It's a no-brainer for my husband and I. Though I hate the plastic waste, I hate the taste of ship water even more and can easily go through 10 bottles of water in a day. I also love a Gatorade first thing in the morning, a couple specialty coffees later in the afternoon or espresso after dinner. And now Carnival has added the Celsius line of canned beverages to their non-alcoholic listing, and I could get close to breaking even before even getting to the booze.

 

Back when I was drinking mostly beer, I'd still buy it but it would definitely question whether spending that much a day on 15 Miller Lites was worth it. But I drink almost exclusively vodka now and with the quality of the cocktail program on board, it's almost like I'm making money.

If i need a restroom location onboard I shall contact you! 😄