EclipseChaser9

17 hours ago, memoak said:

If you  struggle to make the plus package work for you then it is probably a service not designed for you. We will drink coffees, waters and a minimum of 6-8 alcoholic drinks a day each. It is designed for us

I only drink about two alcoholic beverages a day, but I ordered (usually) 3 or 4 specialty coffees a day, enjoyed the speciality desserts and the unlimited juice bar.
 

Juice would have been $8 per glass, smoothies $12, coffees $4, and my alcoholic beverages were $12 or $14 each.  
 

With the WiFi and paid gratuities Plus was a good value even though I only drank a few alcoholic beverages a day.

3 hours ago, Krozulo said:

I've seen it said many times, some people get the package so they don't have to worry about a bill at the end of the cruise. They can order whatever they want whenever they want. There's some freedom with that, I get it. For me it would be the opposite.

 

When I look at the Plus package and subtract the things I would pay for (like gratuities), and ignore things I wouldn't pay for (like specialty desserts), I'm left with a balance that's all drinks. I made a list of drinks we would enjoy, with prices including gratuities, and I told my wife, "We're on vacation. Not driving anywhere. No plans tomorrow. What would you drink without reservation?" and we each could maybe make the package work each day. Add one drink before, with, or after dinner and Plus would make sense. But our 8 day cruise has 4 port days. We'd have to make up for those drinks on the sea days and I don't know that we can. 

 

So, for me, having the package would be stressful because I'd be counting drinks and dollars to make sure I come out ahead. I would rather get an $80 bill at the end knowing the package cost $100 extra than to pay the $100 and find out I missed out in $20 worth of drinks.

So here is my update after my 15 day cruise.  I’m glad that I purchased the Plus upgrade.

Every morning we enjoyed having speciality coffees delivered to our cabin.  It was fun to try the different speciality coffee varieties. 
 

I don’t drink many alcoholic beverages, at most two a day.  I enjoyed trying different drinks that I hadn’t ever had before.  My cabin mate likes to drink Bailey’s before bed, so we had Bailey’s delivered to our cabin at night.

We drank a lot of Perrier and bottled water, and some sodas.  
 

We enjoyed sampling speciality desserts, although there were plenty of baked goods and sweets available without a Plus upgrade.

After the eclipse servers walked around the deck serving a special eclipse drink (alcoholic) which was quite good.  Available at no charge with Plus upgrade,  and it was fun to celebrate the eclipse with others in our area. 
 

We could order Mimosas with breakfast too.

I really enjoyed the juice bar, but wouldn’t have paid $8 for freshly squeezed juice or $12 for a smoothie if it wasn’t included with the package.  I had two juices every day and my cabin mate had smoothies.

When I figure in the cost of WiFi and gratuities I think the Plus package was a good value. The WiFi was actually very good, and while I realize many or most people want to go offline during cruises I needed to connect my laptop for a few minutes every day to check my work emails.   The price I had to pay for taking 17 days off during a busy time at work.   Besides my work laptop, it was nice to be able to send pictures to friends and family so I did like using WiFi.

So did it make sense financially?  I didn’t count, and don’t intend to go back and add it up. I was on vacation, and having the Plus package made my vacation more enjoyable.  
 

Besides, if  looked too closely into the financial aspect I might question whether I should actually spend the money to take a cruise at all, instead of using the money to pay down my mortgage or pay off my vehicle 🙂 

We are halfway through our 15 day cruise, and I’m happy to have the Plus package.  We have tried new drinks, all the speciality coffees, premium desserts, and we visit the juice bar a few times every day.  
 

The poolside delivery is excellent and we have made good use of delivery to our stateroom.  We order speciality coffees as soon as we wake up and Bailey’s late night for a before bed drink.

Even when we were just at a random place on the deck before the eclipse we were able to get water, drinks, and snacks delivered directly to us. The medallion is wonderful as we can be located wherever we are on the ship.

27 minutes ago, disgirl said:

I always look at the cost difference and subtract

Example  a 7 nt cruise I am looking at -  Standard vs Plus is apx $550 CAD difference

 

Gratuties are apx $180 CAD

WIFI is apx $150 CAD

Medallion deliver is apx $15 CAD

2 casual dining are apx $40 CAD

 

That leaves apx $165 /7 days = apx $23 a day for beverages.

I budget $25 for 2 (alcoholic) beverages a day.  Its a no brainer for me to get the Plus package and get more beverages, sparkling water, pop, bottled water, juice, etc.

 

 

 

We visit the juice bar frequently, which I would skip if it wasn’t included in the Plus package. It’s very good, they use fresh fruit and make it in front of you.  But I wouldn’t pay $8 or $12 for fresh juice if it wasn’t included.

We also get bottled water and some canned sodas so we always have some available in our refrigerator. 

It is my first cruise, and I had read so many opinions pro and con that I was torn.

But I bought the Plus package and I’m very happy that I did.  I’m on vacation, and it is nice not to have to worry about how much I am charging up to pay at the end of the cruise.

And I can’t put a price on the convenience of having drinks and snacks delivered poolside, or while we are watching movies under the stars, or just relaxing in our room.

it will be interesting to compare with our two friends who are on the same cruise, and who we hang out with almost all day.  They opted NOT to do the Plus package, and the four of us are ordering nearly identical food, drinks, room service, pizzas, casual dining, etc.  

31 minutes ago, WisCruiser2 said:

Sounds like a wonderful event! Funnily, my daughter and her family went to friends in Carmel and had an awesome view of the eclipse there 🙂

Yes, I actually live in the 100% totality area in Indiana.  But historically we had a 70% chance of overcast skies.  Indiana is a very cloudy state!  
 

My dog sitter watched the eclipse from my backyard!  It turned out to be a perfect day in central Indiana. 

My friends in northern Indiana saw nothing but clouds. 

I am on the Emerald Princess Eclipse cruise, and the reason is picked this cruise was to see the eclipse.  I traveled to Casper Wyoming to observe the 2017 eclipse.

Our captain did an excellent job of parking us in a perfect place to observe the eclipse.  I had gone up early on deck 16 to set up my tripod next to the railing, but there was plenty of space available for even those who came up at the last minute. 
 

After Totality the crew members walked around serving a special Eclipse alcoholic beverage which was delicious.

I would definitely book a Princess Eclipse cruise again for future eclipses.