Soda Card or Not

[aloha of the seas]

I am a Diamond Member. I recently saw a posting on a thread that indicated that Diamond Members were entitled to free soda at certain times of the day. I have 2 questions:

 

1. Is this true?

2. If it is true, would it be advantageous to someone who does not drink alcohol to sign up for a soda card on a 17 day cruise?

 

Good Sailing, Murf.

[cruisePRN]

First of all it depends on which ship you're sailing. If your ship has a concierge lounge then your cokes are complimentary at happy hour usually 5-8pm. If you are like me and want a diet coke at lunch and dinner and a show and at the pool you need a coke card anyway.

[dak_friendly]

I am a Diamond Member. I recently saw a posting on a thread that indicated that Diamond Members were entitled to free soda at certain times of the day. I have 2 questions:

 

1. Is this true?

2. If it is true, would it be advantageous to someone who does not drink alcohol to sign up for a soda card on a 17 day cruise?

 

Good Sailing, Murf.

 

Think of it logically. Concierge lounge has free alcohol in the early evenings... at worst, order a rum and coke, "hold the rum".

 

Just to make this clear, I love soda pop!

 

The question you must answer is... how much do you love soda? I bought a soda card on my first cruise (a 9 nighter). After I got it and used it for a couple of days, I realized that I would have had to continually been drinking soda during all waking hours ... a little sip here, a little sip there ... to make it feel like I had gotten any value out of it. It just seemed to be a big hassle. I don't love soda pop THAT much and don't hold the personal values of consuming something specifically to "get my money back".

 

Since that cruise, I just buy a soda to enjoy somewhere in port. If there is a sea day or two after the port, I'll pick up a couple of extra 20 oz bottles. On a transatlantic, I had SEVERAL 2 liters and never ran out. I did feel kind of embarrassed for bringing that much on-board. In fact I'm still embarrassed about that one.

[madforcruising]

Hi Murf,

 

as I think you are talking about your Rhapsody cruise, there´s no Concierge Lounge on the Rhapsody as of yet. So there´s no free soda for D C&A members.

 

As for the question if the Soda card is worth to buy. DO the simple math. The Soda card is $6 per day + 15% gratuity.

 

Now I´m not sure about the exact Soda price onboard but I would guess you need to drink more than 2 or 3 Sodas a day every day. So only you know how much Soda you drink. BTW the Soda you get with the Soda card is fountain soda only, no cans.

[cb at sea]

If you only drink a soda once in a while, the soda card is not worth it. Sodas (by the can) run about $2.00--about what they cost in hotels!

[silentbob007]

Hi Murf,

 

as I think you are talking about your Rhapsody cruise, there´s no Concierge Lounge on the Rhapsody as of yet. So there´s no free soda for D C&A members.

 

As for the question if the Soda card is worth to buy. DO the simple math. The Soda card is $6 per day + 15% gratuity.

 

Now I´m not sure about the exact Soda price onboard but I would guess you need to drink more than 2 or 3 Sodas a day every day. So only you know how much Soda you drink. BTW the Soda you get with the Soda card is fountain soda only, no cans.

 

That's the key ... unless you normally drink 3 cans of soda a day or more, then you are better off buying them individually. I bought a soda card once and often found myself trying to find excuses to drink soda in order to justify the cost. Personally, it wasn't worth the hassel. Others who drink just a ton of soda or blatantly ignore the rules and share a single card amongst an entire group/family may think differently.

[KarinaGW]

That's the key ... unless you normally drink 3 cans of soda a day or more, then you are better off buying them individually. I bought a soda card once and often found myself trying to find excuses to drink soda in order to justify the cost. Personally, it wasn't worth the hassel. Others who drink just a ton of soda or blatantly ignore the rules and share a single card amongst an entire group/family may think differently.

 

Now, see, I'm the opposite. I would rather buy the sticker and not have to worry about buying individual cans and signing yet more little pieces of paper. Not to mention that fountian soda is more environmentally friendly.

 

At home, I suck soda down intravenously (well, not quite that bad). On the ships, froo-froo drinks and beer supplant a lot of that. And, I really like the lemonade. I'm pretty sure that I didn'y drink enough soda to offset my sticker last cruise, but the convenience more than offset the cost in my mind.

[Merion_Mom]

Now, see, I'm the opposite. I would rather buy the sticker and not have to worry about buying individual cans and signing yet more little pieces of paper. Not to mention that fountian soda is more environmentally friendly.

 

At home, I suck soda down intravenously (well, not quite that bad). On the ships, froo-froo drinks and beer supplant a lot of that. And, I really like the lemonade. I'm pretty sure that I didn'y drink enough soda to offset my sticker last cruise, but the convenience more than offset the cost in my mind.

 

But another thing to consider, if you DO swill soda like Karina (:)): is your gulp of choice Coke, Diet Coke or Sprite (or club soda)? If not, the soda card is not for you.

[Debde]

I got one for our youngest. At $4.00 a day-it's worth it. I love my soda and was actually happy with the lemonade. That you get real quick!

As someone else already said-if you drink more then 3 cans a day-go for it. For a 17 day cruise-your soda card will be $102.00. Do the math and see if it works for you.

[cruisePRN]

Others who drink just a ton of soda or blatantly ignore the rules and share a single card amongst an entire group/family may think differently.

 

What if it's not blatant?:p

[bubbie617]

What if it's not blatant?:p

 

You mean like shoplifting - but not blatantly?

[iheartbda]

What if it's not blatant?:p

 

You mean like shoplifting - but not blatantly?

 

OH NO...are we going to get into the finer points of soda card sharing? If I don't drink any on a particular day, it's OK if my SO drinks on that day or, what's wrong with letting someone else have a sip, or two, or three, or four or...?:p :D

[aloha of the seas]

Thank You to everyone who responded. I believe you have helped me make up my mind. It sounds like there is no free soda anyway for Diamond Members on the Rhapsody, and I would most likely drink 2 to 3 a day at a minimum. I did have a soda card on my Transatlantic and I got plenty of use out of it, but I was concerned about the issue of free soda for Diamond Members which apparently must only be available through the Concierge Lounge. Once again, thanks to all and Good Sailing, Murf.:)