Drink package - Expensive.....buy now or on board?

We are due on a 17 nights cruise in October, have just looked at the cost of the drink packages :eek:

The cheapest starts at GBP36.90 so for 2 of us we are looking at a minimum of GBP1254.60/USD1608.00 for the cruise!!!! The cruise is a very special occasion so don't want to be worrying about having a drink whenever we fancy one but at the same time this seems VERY expensive.

Would it be cheaper to wait and buy on board? Do they have special deals or the opposite, once on board it is a lot more expensive????

Thanks for any advices/suggestions.

We are due on a 17 nights cruise in October, have just looked at the cost of the drink packages :eek:

The cheapest starts at GBP36.90 so for 2 of us we are looking at a minimum of GBP1254.60/USD1608.00 for the cruise!!!! The cruise is a very special occasion so don't want to be worrying about having a drink whenever we fancy one but at the same time this seems VERY expensive.

 

Would it be cheaper to wait and buy on board? Do they have special deals or the opposite, once on board it is a lot more expensive????

 

Thanks for any advices/suggestions.

It seems lately there are no advantages/deals to waiting to buy on board, though guess no harm waiting in case some miracle happens on your specific cruise. The one reason to waiting to buy on board for some is to use some OBC one might have, I plan to do this to upgrade my package once I board.

The cost of the drink package is definitely high so really do your math and see if it makes sense for you. If there are any days that you think you might not drink so much or if you think you only 'might' drink enough to come out even or ahead, then you might be better to pad your OBC account and create your own drink slush fund. At least that way if you don't drink what the plan would cost, the money comes back to you.

Edited to add: I hope your math above included the 18% gratuity, if not then expect it to be more. Unless you don't have to pay this in GBP booking?

Nanourw,

This is a decision you'll need to make for yourself.

Using the $1,600 total cost you cited, that comes to a little less than $100 per day - or $50 for each of you. Imagine a typical day on the cruise: a mimosa with breakfast, a glass of wine with lunch, a pina colada while hanging by the pool, a gin and tonic before dinner, a glass of wine with dinner, and a glass of port after dinner.

Now let's say the average price of all those drinks is a modest $13 with gratuity included. Do the math -- 6 x $13 = $78, for each of you ( or $156 for both of you) for 17 days, for a total of $2,652.

The number of drinks may seem too high (or too low), so you need to decide. I can tell you that this drink list is just about right for me -- with possibly (probably) a second glass of wine at lunch and dinner. For me, the full drinks package is the right answer. Maybe not so for you.

It seems lately there are no advantages/deals to waiting to buy on board, though guess no harm waiting in case some miracle happens on your specific cruise. The one reason to waiting to buy on board for some is to use some OBC one might have, I plan to do this to upgrade my package once I board.

 

quote]

 

You no longer have to wait until you have boarded to use your OBC. Under the revised scheme, your OBC now shows on line before your cruise and you can use it to purchase various items e.g. excursions, drink packages , internet packages etc.

It seems lately there are no advantages/deals to waiting to buy on board, though guess no harm waiting in case some miracle happens on your specific cruise. The one reason to waiting to buy on board for some is to use some OBC one might have, I plan to do this to upgrade my package once I board.

 

quote]

 

You no longer have to wait until you have boarded to use your OBC. Under the revised scheme, your OBC now shows on line before your cruise and you can use it to purchase various items e.g. excursions, drink packages , internet packages etc.

 

You do if you only want to upgrade since you can't do this online, but ya that is a nice change to be able to use it for some things before sail date.

It seems lately there are no advantages/deals to waiting to buy on board, though guess no harm waiting in case some miracle happens on your specific cruise. The one reason to waiting to buy on board for some is to use some OBC one might have, I plan to do this to upgrade my package once I board.

 

quote]

 

You no longer have to wait until you have boarded to use your OBC. Under the revised scheme, your OBC now shows on line before your cruise and you can use it to purchase various items e.g. excursions, drink packages , internet packages etc.

 

That is very good news. Love the OBC and now can do more pre planning before I walk on board.

What I suggest is you wait to get on board. There is no advantage in pre-purchasing. You may want to begin the first few days going a la cart the first full day or so and keep track of how much it costs. That may help you decide if the package cost is worth it. You don't have to buy the package the first few days either. You can even wait a week or more. However once you purchase, you will pay for every day after that until the end.

Bear in mind that the classic package also includes more than liquor. You can get soft drinks in cans (maybe only fountain soft drinks by the time you sail), bottles of water and wonderful specialty coffee at Cafe al Bacio. Those add up quickly as well as the cocktails/beer.

Of course all this is subject to change by Celebrity before your October cruise if they hold true to form. :rolleyes:

 

You do if you only want to upgrade since you can't do this online, but ya that is a nice change to be able to use it for some things before sail date.

 

You can use it to upgrade online before sailing. Did it two weeks ago for Solstice

As stated, you have to do the math for yourself. A lot of the "think about drinking X, Y, Z" advice you get often reads like people are trying to max out the value (drinking enough to get their money's worth) versus how much you may realistically drink day-to-day. The first time I sailed Celebrity, I booked a soda-only package and paid for liquor a la carte because I don't drink much alcohol and certainly no booze during the day (it puts me to sleep). I also don't need bottled water or specialty coffee (my vice is soda). It was much cheaper than had I paid for an alcohol package. I also agree with the advice that you can wait until you're onboard to see if you really need an alcohol package, especially if you don't know if you're going to drink much. Under the current rules (always subject to change), you can add the package later in the cruise...up until a few days until the end.

Definitely wait until you're onboard, because for at least the first day you can gauge what your consumption will be in real time vs an estimate on paper. Also take into consideration the type of alcohol you drink(are you okay with the basics or do you prefer top shelf brands only?)the type of cocktails(look at the list/style of cocktails offered in each package), and how many you'll have per day. Also, if you're wanting to have canned soda, bottled water, smoothies, or coffee/tea drinks not included in the cruise price(and how many of them you'll have per day), these are also covered by the drink packages with alcohol(or, as mentioned by others, solo packages for water, soda and juices are available, as are wine packages). You'll have time enough to add it after you sail, and any bartender will be very happy to assist you in purchasing a package(and your OBC can be used to buy).

 

You can use it to upgrade online before sailing. Did it two weeks ago for Solstice

Yes, that's exactly what I thought too, so that's why I pointed it out to poffles. Unsure why they are having problems?

Another thing to think about. You will be deluged by servers/bar tenders trying to sell/upgrade you when you first board. They get the gratuity for the entire package they sell you if they are successful.

I like to visit a few bars and find a bartender who gives me very good service or has a good personality and then buy the upgrade from them. That's a way to tip them.

I was told by one of my more than one cruise bartenders that those servers work hard to upgrade people when you first board then after they get the gratuity, cut back on service because they won't make any more money from the people with packages.

Yes, that's exactly what I thought too, so that's why I pointed it out to poffles. Unsure why they are having problems?

I have not been able to. How did you do it?

Laura

We are due on a 17 nights cruise in October, have just looked at the cost of the drink packages :eek:

The cheapest starts at GBP36.90 so for 2 of us we are looking at a minimum of GBP1254.60/USD1608.00 for the cruise!!!! The cruise is a very special occasion so don't want to be worrying about having a drink whenever we fancy one but at the same time this seems VERY expensive.

 

Would it be cheaper to wait and buy on board? Do they have special deals or the opposite, once on board it is a lot more expensive????

 

Thanks for any advices/suggestions.

If you do wait till you get onboard to decide, it can pay you to buy your OBC from Celebrity as they often use a much more favourable rate than you will get from your credit card company when you settle your final bill. The website will tell you how much $25 will cost in GBP and you buy in blocks of $25. You can call Celebrity Uk and do this over the phone as the website doesn't always work !

I agree with waiting until you are onboard to decide, unless you want to take a lot of time to analyze prices, predict what you plan to drink, etc., etc.. The only financial advantage in most cases is that you don't have to upgrade the first day, which is in reality only a partial day anyway.

Also keep in mind you can bring on an unlimited amount of soda and bottled water (as well as buy some in port to bring onboard). You can also bring on 2 bottles of wine per stateroom, but there is a corkage fee if you bring them into the MDR.

There is another new policy that's been reported on another thread that allows passengers to pay the difference between beverages included in the classic beverage package and an ordered beverage that's above the limits as opposed to paying for the full value of the drink. Personally, DH and I would never pay for the beverage package because for our drinking habits it would not pay. That being said, when we are offered free perks by our TA, the beverage package is ALWAYS the one we choose. It's nice to not think about ordering whatever we want without a thought...mimosas, bloody marys, wine, bottled water, soda, specialty coffees, etc..... If the beverage package is important to you and it's not an offered perk, now that it's available to be purchased or upgraded using OBC pre-boarding it seems like waiting is a moot point. Also, sometimes X offers a pre-cruise discount for cruise enhancements such as beverage packages, shore excursions, WIFI. Whatever you decide, have a wonderful cruise and enjoy your special occasion.

 

You do if you only want to upgrade since you can't do this online, but ya that is a nice change to be able to use it for some things before sail date.

 

I think you may be wrong. I log into my cruise planner just now for my cruise embarking May 7 and see I can upgrade pre-cruise classic to premium for $11.80 a day.

 

Good News! You are eligible for Beverage Packages Upgr

 

Good News! You are eligible for Beverage Packages Upgrades.

 

When you are considering 'the cheapest' are you looking at the standard or the classic? Based on posts on this board I wouldn't consider purchasing the standard - so much is excluded. Personally I'd prefer to have that amount as my drink budget instead. Many people are content with the offerings on the classic package.

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I have not been able to. How did you do it?

 

Laura

 

I think you may be wrong. I log into my cruise planner just now for my cruise embarking May 7 and see I can upgrade pre-cruise classic to premium for $11.80 a day.

 

Good News! You are eligible for Beverage Packages Upgr

 

Good News! You are eligible for Beverage Packages Upgrades.

 

 

Yes, it comes up on my cruise planner too. Unsure why the quoted message keeps quoting my user name when I originally stated you could do it on line and now use OBC - it was poffles that was the OP having problems upgrading.

It seems lately there are no advantages/deals to waiting to buy on board, though guess no harm waiting in case some miracle happens on your specific cruise. The one reason to waiting to buy on board for some is to use some OBC one might have, I plan to do this to upgrade my package once I board.

 

Edited to add: I hope your math above included the 18% gratuity, if not then expect it to be more. Unless you don't have to pay this in GBP booking?

Hi Poffles,

Thanks for the reply, I have just checked and the "good news" is the 18% gratuity is included in the price.

Probably missed something but lots of the replies mentioned OBC, it's only our 2nd time with Celebrity and I don't think we have any, nothing shows in My reservation/profile. How do we get OBC?

Imagine a typical day on the cruise: a mimosa with breakfast, a glass of wine with lunch, a pina colada while hanging by the pool, a gin and tonic before dinner, a glass of wine with dinner, and a glass of port after dinner.

 

Now let's say the average price of all those drinks is a modest $13 with gratuity included. Do the math -- 6 x $13 = $78, for each of you ( or $156 for both of you) for 17 days, for a total of $2,652.

Hello golfguyhhi,

Thank you. Your average cruise day drinking selection looksvery similar to ours :),we would have a few more coffee/tea and juices mid-afternoon by the pool so lookslike that the classic package would probably be better for us and then we don'thave to worry especially as we have quite a few days at sea.

When you are considering 'the cheapest' are you looking at the standard or the classic? Based on posts on this board I wouldn't consider purchasing the standard - so much is excluded. Personally I'd prefer to have that amount as my drink budget instead. Many people are content with the offerings on the classic package.

 

 

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Hi Sanger,

I was looking at the standard but having looked at both I see that the classic is a much better option indeed. Thank you.

Thank you everyone for your replies.

Was hoping you would all say wait till you are on board as it's half the price ....obviously not the case.

As we have quite a few days at sea looks like the Classic package might be a good option. We might wait a few more weeks to see if any special offers come along as mentioned by Luvcrusn.

At least we know we can get it on board at the same cost, I was worried it was going to be higher on the ship but as not the case as a few of you mentioned might as well wait.

Hi Poffles,

Thanks for the reply, I have just checked and the "good news" is the 18% gratuity is included in the price.

 

Probably missed something but lots of the replies mentioned OBC, it's only our 2nd time with Celebrity and I don't think we have any, nothing shows in My reservation/profile. How do we get OBC?

There are lots of ways to get OBC (on board credit). Sometimes after our cruises we get a Postthankyou email from Captains Club offering OBC for a future booking within a specific time period. Sometimes you can get it as a perk offered by Celebrity and many times we get it from our TA. It can be gifted to you by (if you have nice, loving, generous) friends or family. Sometimes it is offered by credit card companies for booking with a particular card during a specific timeframe.

At least we know we can get it on board at the same cost, I was worried it was going to be higher on the ship but as not the case as a few of you mentioned might as well wait.

Great. Now you've given Celebrity another idea on how to make more money off of cruisers. :(