Drinks package for just 1 cabin?

[camerond]

Hi all,

Going on World Europa in a few weeks and we have 2 cabins booked (one for each adult and child sharing with one of them).

Looking at the drinks packages, we wouldn't get value if we booked it for both cabins. But... do you think if just one cabin got a drinks package (the one that has the solo adult, no kid), can that person get 2 drinks at a time at a bar? 

[dbrown84]

3 hours ago, camerond said:

Hi all,

Going on World Europa in a few weeks and we have 2 cabins booked (one for each adult and child sharing with one of them).

Looking at the drinks packages, we wouldn't get value if we booked it for both cabins. But... do you think if just one cabin got a drinks package (the one that has the solo adult, no kid), can that person get 2 drinks at a time at a bar? 

I haven't taken my first MSC cruise yet, but I'm pretty sure I've read that you can only get 1 drink at a time.  good luck on the responses you get.  this is a very divisive topic on some of the other boards here on CC

[rikitikitavii]

3 hours ago, camerond said:

Hi all,

Going on World Europa in a few weeks and we have 2 cabins booked (one for each adult and child sharing with one of them).

Looking at the drinks packages, we wouldn't get value if we booked it for both cabins. But... do you think if just one cabin got a drinks package (the one that has the solo adult, no kid), can that person get 2 drinks at a time at a bar? 

So what you are asking is…Can I buy one drink package and have 2 people use the single drink package??

Sounds like the cruise line “wouldn’t get value” with you on board.

[Nikita4]

No, your bookings are linked, so all from our booking have to buy a drink package. You can't buy one package for the hole family! In the MDR you have one table and the hole table had to have the same package.

But you can have more than one drink at a bar. My kids, we were in YC normally, were going to take drinks for the hole teens club and the staff (10 Persons...) so was no problem with the two YC cards to order and become 10 drinks 🙂...

 

When I am not in YC, so I don't buy a drink package, I am not a big fan of cocktails and alcohol, so I pay 100 Euros a week for drinks and a bootle of wine for myself. Sometimes its cheaper without a package.

[dbrown84]

1 hour ago, Nikita4 said:

No, your bookings are linked, so all from our booking have to buy a drink package. You can't buy one package for the hole family! In the MDR you have one table and the hole table had to have the same package.

But you can have more than one drink at a bar. My kids, we were in YC normally, were going to take drinks for the hole teens club and the staff (10 Persons...) so was no problem with the two YC cards to order and become 10 drinks 🙂...

 

When I am not in YC, so I don't buy a drink package, I am not a big fan of cocktails and alcohol, so I pay 100 Euros a week for drinks and a bootle of wine for myself. Sometimes its cheaper without a package.

Why the assumption the bookings are linked?  Is this something MSC does?  Thanks 

[Nikita4]

Bookings are linked when you book two cabins together or you link two bookings together to have  the same table assigned in the MDR.

[JamieLogical]

You can definitely get more than one drink at a time from the bar with one card. My husband and I always have the Easy Plus package and one or the other of us will often go up to the bar to fetch drinks for both of us without issue. But we DO both have the package.  It sounds a little like what you are proposing is stealing....

[MisterBill99]

You're not allowed to share drink packages.

 

Also, I've read that MSC will not seat people with drink packages at the same MDR table as people without them (which I usually think is a pretty stupid policy). So, you're going to run into a problem if only one adult has it, unless you eat at the buffet every night (or specialty dining).

Edited March 7 by MisterBill99

[Mark_T]

30 minutes ago, MisterBill99 said:

Also, I've read that MSC will not seat people with drink packages at the same MDR table as people without them (which I usually think is a pretty stupid policy). So, you're going to run into a problem if only one adult has it, unless you eat at the buffet every night (or specialty dining).

Although that is in the rules I've never heard of it being enforced...

 

14 hours ago, camerond said:

do you think if just one cabin got a drinks package (the one that has the solo adult, no kid), can that person get 2 drinks at a time at a bar? 

No, that would be abuse of your single package and the bar staff can see how many people in your cabin has a package, one package per adult required if you both want to have your drinks covered.

[JamieLogical]

I was booked on a cruise with several friends in different cabins. All but one of us had the Easy Plus drink package. I was NOT able to link our bookings with that one passenger prior to sailing, but once we were onboard, I was able to get him moved to our table.

[MisterBill99]

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

I was booked on a cruise with several friends in different cabins. All but one of us had the Easy Plus drink package. I was NOT able to link our bookings with that one passenger prior to sailing, but once we were onboard, I was able to get him moved to our table.

 

OK, so their system enforces it.. until you get onto the ship.

[wetterthanwater]

10 hours ago, MisterBill99 said:

 

OK, so their system enforces it.. until you get onto the ship.

 

I was seated with people with a drinks package on my recent cruise on Euribia and I didn't have one. None of us changed our table.

[MisterBill99]

1 hour ago, wetterthanwater said:

 

I was seated with people with a drinks package on my recent cruise on Euribia and I didn't have one. None of us changed our table.

 

But presumably they were not linked to your reservation, it was just random. So, like I said they appear to enforce it before you get on the ship and then don't care once you're onboard.

[Sunshine42794]

I had called as the couple traveling with us are recovered alcoholics and I felt it is a bit discriminatory to say everyone must have the same drink package or cannot dine together I was told they would have to purchase the non alcoholic package to be able to sit with us.  It’s the dumbest “rule” I have ever heard.

[camerond]

Thanks all for your replies. We've decided to not purchase any packages for ourselves and pay as we go. 

 

We will purchase the kids drinks package though as DS will get value from that. Hopefully that doesn't mean we have to purchase the same for ourselves....🤔

 

[Nikita4]

The hole cabin had to buy a drink packages, the kids package means the non alc for the adults. You can t buy inly for the kids a package.

[Mark_T]

7 hours ago, Sunshine42794 said:

I had called as the couple traveling with us are recovered alcoholics and I felt it is a bit discriminatory to say everyone must have the same drink package or cannot dine together I was told they would have to purchase the non alcoholic package to be able to sit with us.  It’s the dumbest “rule” I have ever heard.

The aim is to make it easier for your servers to know what the status of each table is as it can affect water as well as other soft/alcoholic drinks service.

 

As Jamie mentioned a few posts up, once onboard you are unlikely to have an issue getting people assigned to the same table.

[MPickle235]

On 3/9/2024 at 4:41 AM, Mark_T said:

As Jamie mentioned a few posts up, once onboard you are unlikely to have an issue getting people assigned to the same table.

I can vouch for this.  We take a cruise every fall with a bunch of friends, the last 4 years with MSC, all in different cabins and some booked direct and some via TA, all with different drink packages and we have always been able to make arrangements to be at a single table or 2 adjoining tables in MDR on boarding day.

[alserrod]

On 3/7/2024 at 9:05 AM, camerond said:

Hi all,

Going on World Europa in a few weeks and we have 2 cabins booked (one for each adult and child sharing with one of them).

Looking at the drinks packages, we wouldn't get value if we booked it for both cabins. But... do you think if just one cabin got a drinks package (the one that has the solo adult, no kid), can that person get 2 drinks at a time at a bar? 

 

 

AFAIK, all people in the same table for MDR must have the same drink packs.

[JamieLogical]

22 minutes ago, alserrod said:

 

 

AFAIK, all people in the same table for MDR must have the same drink packs.

 

That is untrue. In order to link reservations to get assigned the same dining table, they need to have the same drink package, but once onboard, you can ask to be reassigned to a table with people with a different package. Also, if you are assigned to a sharing table with strangers, those strangers will often have different drink packages from you.

[alserrod]

Thank you. I didn't know it