Drink Package was best cruise deal ever!

[Toronto Guy]

We are new to Celebrity and will be sailing Solstice out of Seattle next May. So looking forward to it.

 

I have been struggling with these drink packages since before we booked. I have read different sections of this thread and think I have gotten myself confused and appreciate feedback / assistance from verteran cruisers on your recommendations.

 

 

Our typical consumption is:

1. Bloody Mary in the morning
   
2. Frozen cocktail or two by the pool
   
3. Glass or two of wine with dinner
   
4. Couple of martini's after dinner
   

My problem is I don't know the average or regular price of the above items in order to determine which package would best meet our needs. I have already decided on the Premium Non-Alcholic package at a minimum since if I understand correctly it includes fresh squeezed OJ (Love It) and soft drinks / water.

 

Now if we go with a Classic package, will that cover us? Or should we go with the Premium?

 

What really has me confused is the ability to pay the difference. I seem to recall a posting that the policy has changed, but have seen nothin to substantiate that - so I am leaning to discounting it.

 

Also, I understand there is some sort of "calculator" out there on one of the threads, but I can't seem to be able to locate it.

 

So, what should we do? Classic or Premium.

 

Lastly, what are the chances of Celebrity repeating the 10% off sale. Our sailing was not included in the sale back in June, so we were unable to purchase it then. Hopefully, they will repate the offer - or is it on sale on Day 1 on the ship?

 

Thanks for the help and advice.

 

I would go with the Premium, especially if you also like some nice coffees or bottled water in addition to what you have outlined. I would also suspect it will go on sale again before May. This year it was on sale in January and June already I believe.

[Spartan1771]

Toronto Guy:

 

I see you recently sailed on the Infinity. We are going on our honeymoon in October on the Infinity, eastbound through the Panama Canal. How did you like the ship?

[ORV]

I don't know about the Cellar itself, but I know it wasn't accepted in the machines at all.

 

As far as me cheating. Yes I did cheat. I will admit it. Am I bragging, no, I'm just making a truthful statement about my experience and I can tell you that a lot of other people were doing as well. The whole discussion was whether or not purchasing the package was worth it. So I was just elaborating on my experience. To each their own. I dont think I was "stealing" from the cruise line. Frankly, most of the bartenders knew what I was doing and didnt give me a hassle about it. I had no issue using my own card if need be.

 

 

Edited to add:

Cheating...Inst it cheating if you bought the drink package and cancelled it and then bought it again when it went on sale?? Thats "cheating and bragging" too.

 

Your comparison there is pretty fuzzy thinking.

[tunaman2011]

Greetings

 

Today I went to the market and they had beautiful heirloom tomatoes for $6.99/LB. They are just tomatoes, so I took the little sticky tag from the $0.99/LB tomatoes, stuck it on the heirlooms and went to the register. The cashier must have known because she gave me a funny look, but I got my tomatoes for only $0.99/LB. The heirloom tomatoes are a great bargain.

 

Good Sailing

Tom

[gw2fll]

I would go with the Premium, especially if you also like some nice coffees or bottled water in addition to what you have outlined. I would also suspect it will go on sale again before May. This year it was on sale in January and June already I believe.

Thanks for the information. We are leaning in that direction and will make the appropriate adjustments if needed for our 10 day. (Example, if we find we don't consume the "right" level, we will drop back a level.)

 

We have two cruises upcoming on RCCL and they currently do not offer packages of this type. Although I think they are considering it.

 

I plan on keeping close tabs on our beverage consumption to help better gauge the actual consumption as the port and sea day levels are compreable between the two cruises. Armed with this, I will be in a better position to truly be able to determine the right package. Plus, I will pay close attention to the beverage cost as hopefully they are close between Celebrity and RCCL.

 

Thanks again for the info and recommendation. Happy sailings...

Edited July 29, 2012 by gw2fll

[bjbear]

Hi, I'm sailing to Hawaii on Century for 2 weeks in Feb., solo. I haven't yet researched the drinks pkgs as I should. ;) But it sounds like it would be cheaper to get one. My question is, the Classic or the Premium? I don't drink a lot of specialty coffee, no soft drinks. Mostly I drink wine, and on vacation, maybe 1 or 2 mixed drinks per day. Since there is only 1 person and let's say, on sea days, 5 or 6 glasses of wine (it's vacation!!:D) do you think the Classic would work or should I consider the Premium? I've already figured out that 5 or 6 glasses of wine come to around $60 per day.

 

Advice is truly appreciated. :)

 

Thanks, Sue

[Diane Rose]

I noted that one of the posts stated wine in the room while dressing for dinner.

 

Do the packages include a drink or wine that am be ordered to the room? If this is the case, why order the bar setup for the cabin?

 

Also, is it easy to get wine pairings with each course in Blu?

 

Diane

[Toronto Guy]

Toronto Guy:

 

I see you recently sailed on the Infinity. We are going on our honeymoon in October on the Infinity, eastbound through the Panama Canal. How did you like the ship?

 

Gorgeous after the dry dock. You will love it!!

[cathylene]

How do you know when Celebrity is offering a discount on the Drink Packages?

Thanks,

Cathy

[Toronto Guy]

Hi, I'm sailing to Hawaii on Century for 2 weeks in Feb., solo. I haven't yet researched the drinks pkgs as I should. ;) But it sounds like it would be cheaper to get one. My question is, the Classic or the Premium? I don't drink a lot of specialty coffee, no soft drinks. Mostly I drink wine, and on vacation, maybe 1 or 2 mixed drinks per day. Since there is only 1 person and let's say, on sea days, 5 or 6 glasses of wine (it's vacation!!:D) do you think the Classic would work or should I consider the Premium? I've already figured out that 5 or 6 glasses of wine come to around $60 per day.

 

Advice is truly appreciated. :)

 

Thanks, Sue

 

If you are primarily a wine drinker, I wouldn't go with the classic pkg at all as the selection is quite limited by the glass under the 8 dollar mark. If you mostly drink wine and are not into the expensive martinis etc., I would think u would be better off buying one of the wine packages and take your 2 bottles on board at embarkation as well to enjoy in your room. If you like the martinis and the coffees etc go with the premium pkg.

[Toronto Guy]

Btw..I am no "drinker", but do like my wine and cocktails on vacation. The premium pkg is a good deal for me only because I also make full use of all the non alcoholic drinks as well....and I like to workout so bottled water is also a consideration. I love the premium package - it works out great!

[Spartan1771]

Btw..I am no "drinker", but do like my wine and cocktails on vacation. The premium pkg is a good deal for me only because I also make full use of all the non alcoholic drinks as well....and I like to workout so bottled water is also a consideration. I love the premium package - it works out great!

 

Gorgeous after the dry dock. You will love it!!

 

Thanks for the info!

[merprincess]

I don't know about the Cellar itself, but I know it wasn't accepted in the machines at all.

 

As far as me cheating. Yes I did cheat. I will admit it. Am I bragging, no, I'm just making a truthful statement about my experience and I can tell you that a lot of other people were doing as well. The whole discussion was whether or not purchasing the package was worth it. So I was just elaborating on my experience. To each their own. I dont think I was "stealing" from the cruise line. Frankly, most of the bartenders knew what I was doing and didnt give me a hassle about it. I had no issue using my own card if need be.

 

 

Edited to add:

Cheating...Inst it cheating if you bought the drink package and cancelled it and then bought it again when it went on sale?? Thats "cheating and bragging" too.

 

My husband and I enjoy our individual beverage packages. We would never want to try to scam the system, it would definitely impact on the enjoyment of our cruise if we would have to feel that we were constantly on the verge of being "found out." Of course it evidentally did not bother you...

[ArrrEnnn]

I think it depends solely on how much you will be on the boat. We did a 10 night Eastern European and we sailed into 8 ports out of the 10 days. We were off the boat by 9-9:30 in the morning and back no earlier than 3pm. How much drinking could we possibly do between 4pm-10pm? I felt almost pressured to make the mark. I didn't want my dollar to go to waste. We drank mostly at dinner and one or two at a show or with a friend at a bar, but we were exhausted from long hikes during the day and often went to bed early (call us old, we're still in our 20's). With the classic package, you can only have drinks up to $8. While eating dinner I could get a pomegranate martini, but in the martini bar it was over my price limit. Ummm...? We could never figure it out.

 

Anyways... I think a soda package would have sufficed me and a water package for my husband. It was nice to grab extra bottles of water before trekking through 114deg F Athens, Greece. And a coffee every morning at Cafe al Bacio was indeed the highlight of my morning. Otherwise though, I could have done with out the package. With about 2 glasses of wine per person each night ($6-7/glass) and a cocktail during a show ($8), we over estimated all the other drinks at the $8 mark (even though we know sodas and coffees were NOT that much around $2-5 max) we still came up short at around $700, even though we paid $1000 USD for two classic packages.

 

Def depends on how much time you plan on spending on the ship!

[tomvk]

I noted that one of the posts stated wine in the room while dressing for dinner.

 

Do the packages include a drink or wine that am be ordered to the room? If this is the case, why order the bar setup for the cabin?

 

Also, is it easy to get wine pairings with each course in Blu?

 

Diane

 

Room service is, not included in the packages.You have to get a drink and bring it back to your cabin.You can get 2 drinks if you have 2 cards with you so both of you don't have to go to the bar.

The wine stewards in BLU are very good and usually not as busy as those in the MDR so getting wine pairing should not be a problem.

 

Tom

[Kevnzworld]

I'm a wine drinker primarily. I find the " wines by the glass " selection to be limited and low end. There was an occasional good offering at Blu.

I often just ordered by the bottle given that they save the unused portion for the following evening. I found a reasonably priced bottle of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc in Cellar Masters that I liked, that they also would save for me, or I could bring to my room.

Remember you can get free iced tea refills all day in the Oceanview cafe.

The beverage package doesn't work for me.

[Cpamomma]

We have decided to not buy any beverage packages for our upcoming cruise. We will be in port 8 of the 11 days. We are not heavy drinkers. We do work out every day, but we bring our own water bottles. We will also use those water bottles on our port days since they can hook onto our bags (also cuts down on environmental waste). We plan to bring two bottles of a favorite local California wine with us to sip while on the balcony in the evening. Anything above that we will purchase as we go along. I cannot imagine that we will spend anything near any of the package amounts. But, you should consider the number of days you will be on the ship and your drinking habits to see what choice is right for you.

[Evilgrin72]

I bought the premium package for myself because I plan to drink like a GD pirate for 8 straight days. I will be cruel to alcohol, and through my cruelty, it will know who I am.

[bjbear]

I'm a wine drinker primarily. I find the " wines by the glass " selection to be limited and low end. There was an occasional good offering at Blu.

I often just ordered by the bottle given that they save the unused portion for the following evening. I found a reasonably priced bottle of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc in Cellar Masters that I liked, that they also would save for me, or I could bring to my room.

Remember you can get free iced tea refills all day in the Oceanview cafe.

The beverage package doesn't work for me.

 

I am also primarily a wine drinker, almost exclusively. So are you saying you can order wine by the bottle and keep in your cabin? Then I could have a drink on the balcony while getting ready for dinner and another before bed. Love Sauvignon Blanc.

 

Thanks, Sue

[Lsimon]

I am also primarily a wine drinker, almost exclusively. So are you saying you can order wine by the bottle and keep in your cabin? Then I could have a drink on the balcony while getting ready for dinner and another before bed. Love Sauvignon Blanc.

 

Thanks, Sue

 

Celebrity is very flexible when it comes to selling you bottles of wine. You can order a bottle of wine from their large wine list from room service if you like. Any bottle ordered in the dining room can be corked and stored for another night, sent to your cabin for later on or even sent to a lounge for you to finish. There is also no issue if you want to carry an unfinished glass from any area to another.

 

We've also ordered bottled wine from the large dining room list at lounges which don't normally have that list available with no issues but in consideration of the wait staff we've either done this at times they were not busy or with some advance notice sine the waiter needs to go get the bottle from another location.

Edited July 31, 2012 by Lsimon

[Spartan1771]

i bought the premium package for myself because i plan to drink like a gd pirate for 8 straight days. I will be cruel to alcohol, and through my cruelty, it will know who i am.

 

 

lol!!

[Spartan1771]

Just got a call from our travel agent. We just upgraded from Veranda Class to Aqua Class for $100 for the two of us! WOO HOO!!

[librarylady19]

I bought the premium package for myself because I plan to drink like a GD pirate for 8 straight days. I will be cruel to alcohol, and through my cruelty, it will know who I am.

 

Hilarious....I like to see decisiveness regarding the decision to purchase and use (or should I say use) the drink package :D

Edited August 1, 2012 by librarylady19

[woodsmen]

Hilarious....I like to see decisiveness regarding the decision to purchase and use (or should I say use) the drink package :D

 

 

Hey there...we were on the Eclipse with you and your hubby last year. December i think. we were up in the rear bar the morning the ship was to leave, and I think my wife and I had a drink with you. We just booked the feb 24 cruise on the Silhouette. Should be fun. We went on the Allure of the Seas in march with all of our teens and had a blast.

[Evilgrin72]

Hilarious....I like to see decisiveness regarding the decision to purchase and use (or should I say use) the drink package :D

 

I plan to tear through every item on every bar menu on the ship. This is my objective, I have 8 full days to complete it.

 

I have looked at your amazing photo review several times to aid me in plotting my strategy so I thank you (and my liver curses you) in advance !