Don'tNeedAName

This post is too reasonable and considerate for this thread.

"Admit" what? You are so determined to be right about this when you are so clearly wrong. Taking your position to the extreme, one could argue bringing wine on board is also not "saving money" because you could limit yourself to only drinking the free champagne provided at art auctions, right? As has been stated previously, you are only viewing this through your lens. The DBP absolutely IS A SAVINGS for me, and certainly for others. For still others, no--the DBP would not make financial sense. The plainest language example possible: I do not drink wine (or at lest, very rarely) I do not want to be subject to the "for in-stateroom consumption only" limitation on liquor gift packages (a discussion on breaking the rules is for another time, but the rule exists) Therefore, if I am going to drink on a cruise, my options are to Buy a drink package, or Pay per drink Again, it isn't for everyone, but I am speaking objectively here, purely in the form of dollars out the door. There is a verifiable savings for some people, including myself. In that respect, on every cruise for which I have had the DBP, the DBP saved me money because the number of drinks I consumed would have cost more if I were to have purchased them on a per drink basis. Q.E.D.

OK, one problem solved, but then what's the solution for coke or water brought on board? Backpack cooler? 😁

Or perhaps this contraption would make it easier for those without the drink package who will be forced to carry around the bottle of wine they brought on board... 🤔

NOW we're talking efficiency!

I'm still trying to determine if this is parody. I mean, you are responding to his lived experience, so it isn't your value to "give" in some theoretical sense. He literally ordered those drinks. They have a cost on board. Not to mention, saying that you can bring something on board is not equivalent. Many people fly to port and don't want the hassle of checking a bag in order to bring wine on the flight or to locate a grocery/liquor store to buy wine when they get in town. On top of that, having a bottle of wine that I either drink in my room or have to go back to my room to get a refill is not the same as being able to get a new drink at any bar throughout the day--same with bringing on cans of pop, going back to the room throughout the day unless you plan on lugging the case around the ship with you. As one of the posters in this thread pointed out earlier, there seems to be a contingent of folks who absolutely, no matter what, state that there is no possible way that the drink package is "worth it." Furthermore, these same people appear to get some enjoyment out of trying to prove that they are somehow better/smarter consumers because they don't get "fooled" by the big bad corporate greed of Royal Caribbean. Yet someone else posted that "pro drink plan people" meet any question about "is it worth it?" with: "Yes! Definitely get it!" As another poster asked: when has that ever happened? As far as I can tell, no examples were given. From people who regularly get/have gotten the drink package, I generally see helpful advice along the lines of "if you drink X amount of drinks, and can get it for about Y price, then yes it makes sense" or "it also includes drinks other than alcoholic drinks" etc. Then, those examples are met with the above response from Joebucks that, no those experiences are not valid and are not actual value because.... ? Because he says so, I guess?

In a topic full of odd takes, that one has to be one of the weirdest... it almost seems like a parody of the type of response being discussed earlier in the thread. Determining something is "worth" it (especially at a given time and place) isn't a defense of the thing's price. Even those who find value in the DBP would love for it to be cheaper. It isn't an investment. It's an expense. You are putting your experiences onto everyone else. There are many people for whom that doesn't come close to an entire vacation. You're quite the psychologist. Your phrasing is also odd here--buying something does not necessarily mean that one is "for" or "against" that thing. It is purely transactional. Hence the high price of the DBP, so what exactly are we doing here? Can you explain how my beer or bourbon is served to me "extremely weak"? Also, "breaking even" in this context does not mean that someone is going to drink more in dollar value than Royal Caribbean spends on the drinks. No one thinks that. Instead, the per drink prices are what they are. Thus, if a person is going to drink X drinks on a cruise whether they buy singles or a package, then a package costing the same as Y drinks will be "worth it" if X is greater than Y. Is that difficult to understand? There definitely is some questionable logic around these parts.

How is bourbon rocks watered down, unless you let the ice melt? Is the suggestion that they short-poured? Or are you/he actually suggesting that Royal Caribbean is topping off its liquor bottles with water? The amount they charge for a single drink is so far and above the cost of the shot of liquor they are pouring, that the benefit of watering down the bottle would be so small compared to the absolute public relations nightmare of that practice. Of course it's also illegal to do that in the u.s., but obviously the foreign flagged nature of these ships makes a difference (although I suspect there would be some applicable law). It's not to say no bar has ever done it, but it would be a whole new level of insane for Royal Caribbean to get caught up in that. Edit: Longhorn said it much more succinctly than I did...