SConnolly

[quote name='chrismarois']Haha. No worries. I started the thread, so I better answer the questions :-)

A plain glass is the normal bar glass you would get at any bar that is suitable for the drink. High Ball Glass for Scotch rocks, shot glass for a shot, or a pint glass for a draft beer. On pool decks they do not use glass as it is a safety risk, so they use plastic cups. They are the reusable plastic cups like would be at a cafeteria. In both cases you would drink your drink and the glass would be taken back, washed and reused.

Everything else will be the same when ordering the drink. You can get the umbrella, the fruit, 20 straws if you want. The drinks are not "crippled" because you use the package they just dont come in the fancy glasses. This is not unique to the package. If you do not purchase the package you can ask for those fancy glass drinks in a regular glass and you will be charged less, as you are always paying extra for the glass.

Should you decide that one of the glasses is really nice and you would like it then you will only pay the price of the glass. The drink portion will still be included in your package.

I hope this was a bit clearer. :-)

Chris[/QUOTE]

Awesome:....

We loved the package and thought it was a great deal.

[quote name='chrismarois']A Plain glass is a glass that you do not keep. So none of the light up glasses, none of the glasses that look like a disco ball, the after dinner shot glasses, etc. A plain glass would be a standard bar glass, or the standard pool side plastic bar glasses. If a drink is offered in a glass you can keep they will charge you for the glass. When you see the person walking around with the tray of light up glasses simple ask them you bring you one in a standard glass. I am sure they can make that happen thus preventing you from walking to the bar, but in my opinion this would justify an extra tip (This is of course up to you and in no way required)

Chris[/QUOTE]

Chris, you have a lot more patience than I do....buts lets see if I can test it.

Is a plain Glass the same as Plain plastic. :-)

Will I still get the fruit garnish

Is the straw free if i order a frozen drink do I have to pay for that separately.

What if I ask for 2 straws

Ocean Boy,

 

Again you will NOT pay gratuities on the drink over the $55 cost per day. I have booked this and talked to MANY people who have used it. You get a slip with $0.00 on it. Some bar/ships make you sign the $0.00 slip in hopes that you add ADDITIONAL gratuities. Additional grats are at your discretion and are not required.

 

Chris

 

You are correct on every point....based upon our personal experience last month.

 

Enjoy!

Anyone have any experience when traveling with a group where not everyone has a drink package?

 

What prevents a person with a package from ordering 3 drinks one at a time within 1-2 minutes? (3 separate bills)

 

Can a person just order 3 drinks at once with the package?

 

Also, I saw mention of one person being able to get the package for just one person in a cabin, but the other person had a doctor's note (about a medical condition). Anyone know about this?

 

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

 

Yes 3 of us bought the package in April, 1 of us did not, we had 2 cabins. They were quite happy to have guaranteed revenue. No medical note needed or any mention of it. Remember some people just do not drink.

 

As for ordering drinks the bartender will tell you that the package is for personal use only. If you order 3 drinks you will need 3 cards with the package or 1 card with the package and then they will just charge you for the other 2 drinks. The are are excellent at remembering their clients and their drinking habits :-). Min waiting time was 5 mins between drinks, we actually asked. Occasionally you could get 2 bottles of beer at a time if you wanted a pint glass and were sitting at the bar.

 

Overall we thought the package was excellent.

The only Heineken I've seen looks to be 12oz bottles (maybe 330ml?) and the cost is $4.75 plus 15% gratuity. They have Heineken and Heineken Light.

 

Thanks for clarifying, I realized I posted the price of the larger beers and not Heineken.

As recently as today in another thread, it was stated that not all individuals over 21 in a cabin had to purchases the package.

 

This is something that I would love to hear confirmed/clarified as for me it would probably be the dealbreaker if my wife, who is a very moderate wine drinker, was forced to purchase the package.

 

Also today I read that the dreaded La Terre is no longer the house white and has been replaced by a Robert Mondavi wine. Again confirmation would be appreciated.

 

Finally, my main drink would be Heineken bottles. A confirmation of the price would enable me to work out how many I would to drink per day to make that package worthwhile.

 

 

Heineken Regular or light was 5:50 last week before the Std 15% Gratutity.

 

Some beers come in regular size or 16OZ, Heineken was std. Most beers are included in the package except 2 specifically they exclude Chimay and the Larger Fosters Oil Can which was $8.

That post also says that all 4 people were D+ member. If you are not D+ I would take that with a grain of salt as I doubt RCCL would want to do anything to anger 4 very regular customers. I will see what I can find on this. For my booking it says that the package has to be purchased online and the purchase has to be completed 5 days before sailing, so maybe RCCL changed the rules? I will report back on this.

 

Chris

 

Chris, that would be me you are quoting...

 

Its not about our D+ status trust me and we would have had no cause of action to be angry if they had said no. We would have made our decision and moved on. As I said it is Its about doing it in person on the ship as I explained. I am sure you know by know if you call RCCL, they have a standard script they must adhere to and what limitations they have in place on their pre booking website. Hell many of the RCCL reps have never even cruised before.= and rely on us to bring them up to speed. (try asking them next time)

 

What happens in Miami Corp office etc has nothing to do with how the how the ship handles each situation. The ship is also responsible for generating their own revenue and they are given some freedom

 

Many, many folks did what we did, I witnessed it in person and discussed it then subsequently with some key personnnel the on Revenue team. I also discueed it with fellow cruisers at some bars. Will they enforce it on one ship versus another, sure its quiet possible just like the house wine selection is not consistent or beer selection or food.

 

Bottom line, wait until you board to book and see how it goes.

 

Good luck

Not that this would be an issue for me' date=' but my DH may be a different story. The Premium Package description on the RCI site states ALL beers. How can they pick and choose if they said ALL in writing? With what we paid for the package it should cover the large can of Fosters.[/quote']

 

Its all beers $6.25 or less I believe, the classic package carries over to the Premium package.

Actually that's not true; Pina Coladas & other fancy cocktails are quite a bit more...if you only drink domestic beer it likely isn't worth it. But if you like fancy drinks they add up fast!

 

 

 

Quick analysis on the premium package ex the 15% Gratutity

 

Break Even

Avg Cost # Drinks

Per Drink Per Day

$6.75 7.1

$7.00 6.8

$7.50 6.4

$8.00 6.0

$9.00 5.3

$9.50 5.0

$10.00 4.8

Thoroughly enjoyed watching.

 

Appreciate all the time and effort that went into this.

 

Thank you for sharing.

Yes, we live right off Exit 8A. They just raised the toll prices by 50% :eek:. Unbelievable. We try to avoid that road as much as we can.

 

 

We are neighbours, and in Monroe, take 8A every morning myself driving to NYC. Those Tolls are definetly taking a Toll. (Punn intended)

 

Love the review and Pics

 

We are on Liberty ourselves in May and Freedom in Sept.

Thank you for the input and suggestions.

Thank you for posting all the excellent information.

 

We have been to Rome several times ourselves but my sister will be traveling with us this time (her first visit)and we have the typical one day cruise visit.

 

Were looking for more of a leisurely day and yet i am wondering if I am still being to aggressive.

 

Train to Rome *-Termini Station

Metro to Colosseum

Taxi to Trevi Fountain*

Coffee break

Leisurely walk to Pantheon and onto Piazza Navona

Lunch surrounding area and people watching

 

Taxi to St Peters square and the Basicila

Metro back to Termini or are we better off in a Taxi.

 

3pm or so train back to Port.

 

Do not want to leave it too late to return as we had to sit on the floor a few years back.

 

Appreciate any input.

Has anyone used theirfree shuttle service from this hotel to the Cruise Port and return to the Airport.

 

Just found this thread today and it is a wealth of information.

 

Thank you all

 

 

PS: I too hope Shirley is ok as she seems to have gone quiet.

Outstanding review, truly appreciate the extra effort you have made to share your vacation with us.

 

We were dead set against cruising with 6,000+ fellow guests (no offense to anyone) but we seriously may have to reconsider to expericence it for ourselves.

I cannot find the noise free cabins on the RCCL website, can anyone help, which ship advertises them?

 

 

Only kidding, enjoyed this thread and agree with most of you, but remember it a ship and most of us are there to have fun....and god forbid the pool chairs were not set up for next morning, then we would have another thread to start, oh wait, maybe thats the answer for our chair hoggers, eliminate the loungers altogether and we can just stay in bed.

 

 

Happy cruising